A solution to the problem brought about by the government’s decision to pedestrianise Bisazza Street in Sliema cannot be found overnight and Arriva is working hard on finding a way out, according to managing director Keith Bastow.
Asked if buses will go ahead and drive through Bisazza Street come July 3, Mr Bastow would only say talks were under way with Transport Malta to find short- and long-term solutions.
This problem, he said, emerged months after the 10-year contract with Arriva was signed, stipulating buses would pass through the shopping hub.
Mr Bastow said a long-term solution could not be found overnight as this involved rerouting, analysing and tweaking the operation times of several routes and not just those eight that would be directly affected by the Bisazza Street pedestrianisation.
Asked about the compensation element, Mr Bastow was reluctant to divulge the figure involved but said there were no diverging opinions on compensation between Arriva and Transport Malta because this was stipulated in the contract.
“The contract is clear on what would happen if they altered the specifications laid out in the contract. Transport Malta drew up the network, routes and times. We discovered all this about Bisazza Street a week after we printed and distributed a booklet with the detailed routes to 166,000 households,” he said.
Asked whether this was not the same situation that many buses would have to face if a road was closed for construction work, for example, or any other diversion, Mr Bastow said in that case, the closure would be for hours or a day not forever.
Asked about complaints by possible commuters on the complications of the new routes or longer journey times involved, Mr Bastow said the network, routes, frequency and start and finish times of the service were specified by Transport Malta prior to the submission of the bid. However, it was intended to conduct a full review of the service after six months.
Addressing the company’s weekly media briefing in the run-up to starting operations on July 3, Mr Bastow said Malta Land Transport, the company set up by 193 bus drivers prior to the submission of the bid, had turned down the possibility of purchasing a 10-per-cent share in Arriva Malta Ltd. This left Arriva with a 66.6 per cent shareholding and the Tumas Group owning the rest.
He said a meeting was planned between Arriva, Transport Malta and the Public Transport Association, the present operators of the service, over the training of drivers for the new operation.
Since about 220 drivers, engaged by Arriva, are still working on the service, there is a problem on when these can attend the training sessions but Mr Bastow said Arriva was prepared to offer a flexible training schedule.
He said Arriva was concentrating its efforts on informing the public on the new routes and the service it would be offering as the company prepared for the “transformational change”.
He unveiled the branding with different coloured routes on the buses, making it easier for people to identify which route was suitable.