Three injured in traffic accident

Although one agrees fully that a good portion of our roads are dangerous (by the way, what happened to our roads upgrade projects we've been promised? was it yet another election gimmick? have any of you seen any work being done since the last elections?), it is no excuse to over speed and drive carelessly.
Installing more speed cameras won't help either as drivers know where they are and slightly decelerate when they reach them, then push the pedal to the metal once they are past it.
What we really need is for the Police to get off their fat butt and do what they are supposed to do; after all it's us that are paying their wages through hefty Income Tax. This is not saying that all Policemen don't do their job but the only ones actually doing something are the Drug Squad, who I totally commend and urge them to keep up their good work. It is really sad not to say likewise for the rest.

True that a lot of drivers need road education, but we have to admit that some of our roads are dangerous. Take for example Triq Il-Kunsil ta' L-Ewropa - Luqa leading to Rahal Gdid. each lane is barely wide enough for 2 cars to overtake and if there is a truck you cannot overtake. Furthermore, there is a 6 inch high by 12 inch wide central strip and trees on both sides of the road and NO CRASH BARRIERS. The road can easily be widened if need be and can be made safer by installing crash barriers. This is just one example, I'm sure we can name more.

I agree that we have some crazy drivers in malta

All these complaints about the lack of good policing in Malta, which aids the Bad & Irresponsible drivers on the roads of Malta, why does the Commissioner of police not give some excuses as to why his force seem so reluctant to apprehend law breakers, or is he also not interested in making the roads safe either?

crash barriers for what?
yesterday as i was going up to san guzepp tat targa someone crossed the double line and went down the road wrong way because on his lane there was traffic .

In my opinion yes more cameras are need to be installed to prevent more accidents.
I agree that they need to be installed on the Tal- Barrani Road stretching from Tarxien to St George's Bay Bugia.
Too many accidents have happened already along this stretch of road.
As soon as the rain starts the danger will double!
What happens is that very often one gets 1 or 2 fuel tanks followed by a long gas delivery van followed by 1 or 2 big trucks moving at a snail's pace and drivers get irritated and try to overtake. The latest fashion is to have some of these heavy vehicle drive on the inner lane and then have some other heavy vehicles drive on the outer lane. As soon as a gap emerges, cars wizzzzzzz through.

@ Victor Vella

True I use to own a Tata Safari and suffered a serious accident at Mellieha three years ago. A driver in an Opel Astra was overtaking on a bend and found me coming on the other side. He ruined my car and his life.The Driver is now paralyzed, I had only some minor cuts due to the shredded glass. I think we need speed cameras that take photos for drivers that either go too slow and too fast.

George Casha,

I agree that some drivers are beyond educating, unfortunately they are in the majority !
My opinion is that hence we have to start teaching the majority from the beginning!
We also have to look at practicalities of such situations and although we all agree that we need an iron fist to rule the standard of driving, but we must understand that we live in Malta and that will never happen for many reasons, including nepotism, politically as well as for many other reasons. We live in the real world and MUST realise that adopting a distator's stance will never work and will never happen, one has to coax people and like a good salesman sell the idea to these idiot drivers, which again I repeat are in the majority!

i am sure that we also agree that the situation has now become so serious, and the time for discussing the subject further is over, and we are now all yearning for ACTION!

The problem lies with enforcement and with penalties. The authorities are much more comfortable handing out fines for wrong parking and hefty fines for car towing.

They would be doing a better service to the citizens if they had to use mobile speed cameras - not the fixed ones which everyone knows about - but ones which are used at random onto unsuspecting drivers... which scope would not be to fine those doing 5 km/h above the limit but to nail down hard those really abusing with speed.

And by nail down hard - I mean months or years without a licence, and really hefty fines. This should also be the case with badly-maintained cars. As with reckless driving - the speed type as well as the drunken type - should also be easily punishable by jail terms.

The introduction of a point system should also be considered.

the only way to educate recklace drivers is by making haevy penalties at our tribunals and court sittings. have any of you ever gone to these sittings that sometimes its like a comedy we see on our tv stations?
we should have lessons from other civilized countries. for example i had been in germany sometime ago, and as i had gone into a friends car he had looked at me to see if i had on the seat belt, if someone is cought without a seat belt by the police, the fine is of about 100 euros and you have to pay the fine on spot, and if you dont have the money on you, you will be escorted to the nearest bank to collect the money without moving your car. let alone if you are cought speeding, that is why in other countries there is more discipline. the fine are high up. ha ha ha, what if this come to force in malta what would we say, maybe the government needs more taxes?

".....going over the central strip and crashing into....."

How many times have we heard of a car crossing the central strip and crashing into car/s (with innocent driver & passengers) coming on the other side of the road?

As such crazy drivers will never learn (yes never, its useless arguing) to drive carefully and at the right speed, CRASH BARRIERS on central strips will help "to contain" the accident on the same side of the road at least!

At least (maybe) save the innocent driver/s & passenger/s on the opposite side of the road!

The same thing happened here...

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080906/local/man-dies-two-in-danger-and-another-seriously-injured-after-traffic-accident

Charles, I don't think you are getting my point. All I am saying is that some people are beyond educating and those are the only ones that need to be targeted. We still have good drivers and thank God for that, otherwise we would be clearing debris and cadavers from our roads on a daily basis. Taking a “ Mahatma Gandhi “ stance towards them is unpractical to say the least.
We cannot waste time and resources on bullies; morons or people that don't value their lives let alone others. The Authorities should go after them and leave all well meaning drivers in peace, not to mention reward them.
As for Victor's suggestion of reporting to the Police I gently invite him to try and make a report one of these days and then come back and tell us what sort of attitude the Police gave him. Also, a follow-up of their (non)action would be in order too.
If I knew it would make a difference I’d put all the abuses on DVDs and forward them to the Police Commissioner.
If we have an incompetent authority what chance is there to solve any of these problems I dare ask?

Please keep to the point , true that there are illegal imigrants driving on our roads now too but they ar enot the ones casueing accidents, niether can we just blame the young drivers alone.nor drink driving alone,in three incidents this week alone I was nearly involved in accidents while driveing a normal speed,One near the exit from December 13 near the police horse stables, a man in his 50's simply tried to overtake me on the inside lane and kept trying to push me out of my lane so much so that to avois an accident I had to deviate to BlataLbajda when I wanted to exit at marsa, another in zabbar a car full of kids the driver I presume the father simply dashed out of a side street at a speed I had to drive onto a pavment to aviod an accident and then today at st Thomas Bay a lady withkids in the car simply kept on overtaking another car when there was no way we could pass and I was coming in the opposite direction .Now I drive a Tata Safari and that weighs 2.5 tons what happens if they crash into me?

Speed has very little to do with unsafe roads and accidents. Remove the hooligans and bullies from behind the wheel and the problem is solved.

The best campaign possible is by the motorists themselves who notice reckless drivers / practises and report to police........only this morning, coming from B'Buga to Tarxien through Tal-Barrani, I marked a 7 year old boy standing near his father/driver of a convertible sports car.....another 7 year old sitting in front as passenger on a 15 year old Honda (tal-fardal) motorcycle cause the driver (presumably his father) being too obese, there was not enough space behind ...!!!

It is useless blaming authorities etc etc .....we drivers have to bring to the attention of other drivers and point out the recklessness of certain practises.......why don't the Police set up a hotline similiar to the exhaust emission line........and yes, more cameras on the road, not necessarily to limit speed but enough to catch these reckless practises.....maybe, some accidents can be prevented.....

Losing control of a car is in most cases a human error.....driving carefully at the right speed is always the best practise....if you're late tough luck but better than killing yourself, let alone someone else !!

This comment is totally un-related to this or any other inicident:-

Nobody is safe on our roads anymore. Not enough is being done to curb road-abuse and large-scale indiscipline. Our streets have turned into veritable death-traps, during day and night , in town and village. Tough corrective action is warranted against road abuse to restore safety on our roads.

Stephen Farrugia: illegal immigrants making St Julians' streets wild? Qed thallat il-hass mal-b***!

I don't feel safe going out on a Saturday night. The streets are wild in the St Julians area. To many people out of control while driving and walking. To make matters worse, we even have people that cannot be reported because we have thousands of people that have no legal status in Malta. They break the law because they already broke it coming into Malta, so why not break some more laws?
How many more people can we lose to this illegal madness in our streets? Driving on Saturday is not safe and walking home at night is less safe, one can bump into someone that is hard to even see with no lights.

George Casha

I understand where you are coming from, but I am of the opinion that enforcement alone will not suffice to educated Maltese drivers. Seeing some horrific examples of driving standards on our roads on a daily basis, I do think that a good 90% of Maltese drivers have no clue WHATSOEVER when it comes to the laws of the roads and since the Highway Code is the driving laws of the land, I am sure that this will contribute positively to a good % of the drivers.

I do not ever remember that the ADT has send a copy of the Highway Code to individual homes and yes we badly need to make a massive effort to give the driving population the opportunity to read the Highway Code, we know it will not educate all the drivers overnight, but I strongly believe that this along some sort of a positive TV campaign it could have the desired effect.

As always, a speed camera will be installed shortly. This happens everytime a serious accident happens.

When will the government enforce the laws in Malta?

Where is the police, the breathiliser tests, the road blocks, the speed cameras and road safety?

Both accidents in a 24 hour period happened in an entertainment locality and at night. Both cars crossing to the opposing lane, the loss of car control is probably indicative of over speeding, unless the car sustained a front blown tyre or steering/suspensions break down.

It is possible that accidents in such localities and especially at night might also be due to slow reflexes, either from drowsiness or alcohol stupor. The latter could be a major contributor to traffic accidents; therefore police traffic supervision is mandatory. Also the ADT should check this stretch of road to establish if a traffic barrier will prevent further accidents.

The tunnel lighting must also be upgraded on the basis of three stages; entrance –middle – exit; in accordance with the luminance outside the entrances. The lighting system should have an emergency backup.

@Charles Micallef

With all due respect Charles the ADT already tried to educate drivers some years back by sending out leaflets, a copy of the highway code, TV adverts, introducing the points system, etc., etc.,.

Have we seen any improvement after all that? I think we have gone past educating morons a long time ago and trying to do so is a waste of time and resources.

I agree with you that this is Malta and by that you should also know that a good percentage of Maltese refuse to be educated. Just take a look around you and count how many laws are broken every day and not just on the roads mind you.

Over time we have come to a situation that the Authorities are either oblivious as to what’s happening around us or choose to remain passive, as they might be too busy elsewhere looking after their own interests.

If you see someone breaking the law with impunity then this will breed new lawbreakers and it goes from bad to worse. This is the true reality the Country is facing right now.

Another very serious traffic accident and the traffic police and local wardens who are directly responsible for the enforcement of the Traffic Regulations are nowhere to be seen. Take Tower Road, Sliema, for example. For those like myself who try to spend some leisure time with the family or friends along this promenade, especially during summer evenings, are constrained to watch speeding drivers oblivious to the existence of the several zebra crossings and even the pelican lights. The only police officers to be seen are two members walking their dogs impotently watching these racing drivers. Commissioner of Police please note and take early action before another fatality occurs like the one that happened recently.

accidents in swiegi,regional road,paceville,st julians on an evening..ever thought of drink or drugs as possibly causing them???

George Casha,,

You first educate, then advise, then enforce, and then the ones that do not want to learn will soon learn, as then and only then, they will find out that ignorance of law is no defense at all!

I fully agree that we need an iron fist, but please this is Malta where we get enforcement for a week and then, all is calm again!

So let us all try to be more practical! and take some concrete action that lasts!!

Re comments by Andre Xuereb
Thanks for bringing that web site to the attention of all. I found it very interesting and informative.

The various accidents that are happening are usually the cause of either one or the combination of driver error, bad roads, overspeeding, & non adherence to traffic rules. It is true that older cars pose a greater risk to travelers as compared to newer cars, but if the traffic rules are observed, they will still be safe. It is not financially possible for everyone to change his car every five years, and as long as the car is very well maintained, and road worthy, it should be left on the road. However, traffic calming devices should be introduced. In Sutton, UK, where I recently was, there were traffic obstacles on the roads in built up areas which make it impossible for anyone to speed. Something similar should be introduced here. I live in TaXbiex Seafront Msida and the overspeeding that occurs there is unbelievable and dangerous, resulting in various accidents. These traffic calming measures are required urgently on roads like these. Finally, let's hope that the injured persons recover soon.

@Charles Micallef
Trying to teach people that already possess a driver’s licence the driving regulations is in my opinion pathetic and reflects the grave situation we are faced with today.
How did they get their licence if they didn’t know the regulations in the first place?
Was it by corruption and knowing this person or that?, or some kind of lottery where your number comes up?
Do you think that the majority who receive the ‘ Highway Code ‘ at home are going to give it much notice? How many of them would just dump it in the bin or right outside on the pavement just to show their couldn’t care less attitude.
It is beyond educating people now. It is time to use an iron fist with the undisciplined just like everything thing else.
Action always speaks louder than words.
I am starting my action by giving my general election vote to only those persons that honestly want to do something and ignoring those that remain silent and never get anything done.

Mr Minister responsible for Road Safety, ADT, please please, pleaeeeeeese, help to save some lives and broken bones, and start the biggest 'ROAD SAFETY' campaign ever, because by God we need it BADLY!

Please start with the basics and send us all a copy of the highway code to our home addresse, so we can all start to learn, (as some of us never did) not just how to drive a vechicle, but the equally important traffic rules, regulations and laws.

Please teach us some good road sense! we know you can do it!

@ Philip Paris
Philip, please rest assured that no Government or Police Authority will ever do anything to make our roads safer from these irresponsible persons unless someone close to them gets killed or maimed!. Only then they might start realizing the true disastrous situation us careful drivers are faced with everyday on our "roads". You see drivers breaking all kinds of regulations in every corner of the Island daily and I am pretty sure most of them are totally oblivious to or could not care less for any driving laws.
I am sure with today's technology this problem can be reduced by putting small dashboard mounted digital cameras on unmarked police cars and have them drive through traffic recording abuses. Heck, you could solve our national Deficit with the amount of fines these reckless drivers would get. This should not stop there. Anyone caught seriously abusing should have his licence revoked and vehicle impounded.
Laws have to be changed and hefty fines imposed especially where dangerous driving is involved. Only then shall we start seeing some discipline on our roads.
However, this of course is just a dream…………

The article fails to point out that the Daihatsu was thrown back in the direction opposite to its original travel path, and into a car parked in front of a polpular pizza place near the accident site. Unfortunately this particular area is a well know accident black spot, and this time was no different. Had the events been different, the Daihatsu could've been throw back right into unsuspecting diners, causing untold injuries and possibly deaths. Informed sources state that, being aware of this danger, the owners have apparently been applying for a suitable crash barrier for the past ten years, with the only response from the relevant authorities other than a pair of risible bent tubing bars which would barely stay up from being hit by a septagenerian wielding a high speed zimmerman frame, let alone a crashing car. At this risk of sounding like the thouroughly cliche'd timesofmalta commenter, I must pose the age old question - What are the authorities waiting to install the requested crash barriers? The dangers have been proven time after time, must our actions towards safety in this country be of the post-mortem type?

Two serious accidents within 24 hours in St. Andrew's Street! Both could have been avoiding if a simple barrier was put in place.

@ Andre Xuereb - thanks for the site - worth viewing. I suggest other readers give a look especially before buying.
May the boy get well soon and if accident was caused by true negligence then may the guy who caused it pay for it.

Speed Kills.
When is the government going to walk up and see there is a mojor problem with speeding.
If I am ever hit by one of these guys, I will sue the pants of the driver and the government for not inforcing my rights to safe roads,

I do not want to comment on how/why this accident occurred, because I was not there and therefore I can't be the judge of things. I would like to bring the Euro NCAP website (http://www.euroncap.com/) to the attention of the Times readers, however. This website offers an objective comparison of the safety features in several different models of cars and makes for quite interesting (and disturbing, knowing the cars one sees around Malta) reading.