Proposals to improve new bus service (3)

At 8.10 a.m. I was waiting for a 41 bus at the Mellieħa bus stop, just up the hill from Għadira. At 8.46 an 11 and a 41 bus arrived. The 41 bus was nearly full with about eight people standing. A few passengers came down and were replaced by some of the 15 or so passengers waiting at the bus stop. Hurrah, I was on my way.

On the way, the fare stages at Mellieħa, Xemxija and St Paul’s Bay had a long line of persons waiting. Our bus could not pick any more passengers. It would be at least another half hour of waiting in the sun for those poor people.

When the bus reached the edge of St Paul’s Bay, the driver turned to go inside Buġibba – a circular route of about six kilometres or more. Two passengers descended and another two boarded. On the bus stops of Buġibba, dozens of tourists waited patiently. Our bus was full and could not take any more passengers. The extra tour of Buġibba was simply a time-waster. Buġibba should be served by a different bus. Finally, once out of Buġibba, we were on the old Mellieħa-Valletta 45 bus route. At 9.53, I descended at the Lija stop. The 30-minute journey had taken over an hour.

The people at Transport Malta have not done their homework well. How did they expect two route buses – 11 and 41 – to replace the old routes covered by the 45, 48, 145, 450 and 645? The sooner someone goes back to the drawing board, the better.

A great number of tourists are going home with a sour taste and a very bad impression. Moreover, the Ċirkewwa, Mellieħa and St Paul’s Bay passengers have been dealt a very bad deal – a very long wait to get a bus and a much longer route. Think of the money lost to the economy with such a waste of time. Besides, it’s not fun to stand all the way from Ċirkewwa to Valletta.

These sort of problems need to be sorted out now.