Residents attack Sliema parking scheme

The Sliema Residents Association yesterday lashed out against the town's proposed residential parking scheme, saying it would not resolve traffic problems.

It said the scheme was a rather lopsided fix that falsely appeared to favour residents but instead seemed to be another "half-baked" and "ill-considered" short-term solution.

"Contrary to town planning logic... no realistic plan has been announced by the planning authority or the transport authority to alleviate the precarious traffic burden," the association said.

"Regrettably, two years after the local council's decision in favour of a holistic traffic management plan, such a plan has not yet been drawn up, much less implemented, to the detriment of residents and stakeholders. In this light, the association urges the council to commission and implement a holistic traffic management plan without further delay."

According to the scheme being proposed by the local council, non-residents will only be able to park for two hours in half of Sliema's roads. Residents will have no such restrictions.

The time limitations will come into force once the Malta Transport Authority (ADT) approves the scheme in each street.

Sliema's business community has also harshly attacked the scheme, but the council has defended the system, saying it came after a consultation process and a number of technical studies, as well as having been agreed upon by the ADT.

Sliema is one of 19 towns and villages that have been selected to have reserved parking zones for residents approved by the ADT.

Yesterday, while noting the council's decision in favour of the scheme, the association called for better consultation and said the proportion of residents' cars and traffic generated by residential and commercial developments had reached absurd proportions.

"Residents returning home from work in the evening find no place where to park their cars. By day, people visiting... for commercial, work related, leisure and other purposes also struggle to find parking," it said.

The association also took a dig at building development in Sliema, which, it said, was slowly killing the town. Prospective visitors chose to steer clear of Sliema because it was impossible to find parking.

This was having negative economic and social implications, especially since relatives did not visit residents due to the parking problem - a problem felt particularly by the elderly who do not drive themselves.

The controversial residents' parking schemes were established following a legal notice issued by the transport authority. However, the authority said the notice only enshrined in law schemes which had already existed in several localities for numerous months.

It said schemes which sought to limit parking among different users when demand exceeded supply, implemented by local councils and listed in the notice, had all been approved by the authority over the past years and had been in force.

"They have now been incorporated in a legal notice to ensure better legal clarity," it said.