Doors thrown wide open in Valletta

St John's Co-Cathedral will today be welcoming the public to view its artefacts between 7 and 11 p.m. as Valletta holds another Notte Bianca.

The co-cathedral foundation will also be taking the opportunity to launch an exhibition of the ongoing plans for the extension of its museum.

The foundation's plans to extend the co-cathedral's museum to the church's courtyard in Merchants Street caused a public outcry, particularly among environmentalists, who say that the project should be scrapped.

The foundation, however, insists that the project aims to safeguard the collections it houses and ease the flow of visitors and protect its tombstones from further deterioration.

Notte Bianca has effectively attracted many institutions, such as Parliament, to open their doors to the pubic. Members of Parliament will be present between 6 p.m. and midnight to welcome the public and explain the parliamentary procedure.

The Malta Transport Authority has made special arrangements to cater for the event. Scheduled services operating to Valletta will run between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. The fare for the services will be €1.16 one way.

Temporary bus-termini will also be set up at the Mosta square and the Qormi health centre between 6 p.m. and 3 a.m.

Additional buses will be dispatched in other termini and other routes as necessary.

Bus route 98 will additionally be circulating Valletta for those who wish to access the lower parts of the city from the terminus.

The Park and Ride service will be operating until 3 a.m. between the car park and Great Siege Road, Floriana. The service will be free of charge.