Traffic problems in Attard

In his letter, Jimmy Magro referred to the serious traffic problems in Attard, which lead to traffic congestion and the resultant high level of emissions in various streets in Attard, particularly Notary Zarb Street, Mdina Road, Ħal Warda Street and the lower part of Triq il-Linja.

The reason behind these problems is the amount of through traffic that uses the streets of Attard to get to their destination. This problem has escalated with the opening of the Mrieħel bypass since not only the traffic coming from Rabat and Dingli passes through Attard but also of traffic originating from parts of Żebbuġ, Mosta and even further north up to Mellieħa.

In my opinion the solution to this problem is twofold.

In the first instance, the Attard local council needs to carry out a detailed traffic management exercise to try and implement solutions to mitigate these problems within the existing road network. This can be done by diverting traffic away from certain areas through the implementation of one-way systems.

The only way to solve this problem permanently is by constructing the Attard bypass. This bypass will need to start from a point prior to reaching Notary Zarb Street and lead to Rabat road, probably in the area before Wied Inċita. The exact route would be determined after carrying out the necessary studies. The scope of this bypass would be that of diverting all through traffic away from the residential area of Attard.

It is unfortunate that the minister for roads (Austin Gatt) had declared that he does not consider such a bypass as a priority.

Unless these solutions are implemented, the traffic problems in Attard are bound to get worse to the detriment of the residents of this village.