There is no doubt that the all-important commute to work has become daily torture for most of the island’s drivers.

Whether it’s because of road works, Arriva’s new routes or sheer weight of traffic, the truth is most drivers these days are either spending lots of time at a standstill or exploiting inventive ways of beating the traffic. Some no less bizarre than those Kristina Chetcuti described (‘How to beat the traffic jams’, The Sunday Times, October 9).

Some are rising at the crack of dawn to beat the traffic or find a parking space, despite starting work at 8.30 a.m. Others leave later, as the Chinese saying goes, “you can’t buy an inch of time with an inch of gold”, and combine time in jams with ‘lip maintenance’ or business calls. Others still circumnavigate Malta to avoid hot spots and choke points.

Talking of choke points, there’s also the issue of Arriva’s bendy buses. Super-sized up to the legal limit, there’s no doubt these do a fair bit of traffic snarling themselves. Yet we can’t just blame Arriva for that as following obesity statistics, our cars have in recent years followed the trend of our backsides and got wider.

I can’t help feeling that those complaining about being stuck in Mrabat Street, Sliema, for instance, are those who have opted for huge SUVs.

Arriva’s claim that bus passengers increased by 22 per cent over last year is all well and good, but rush-hour buses tend to be full.

This is not uncommon in other countries, yet Maltese roads are more crowded, even though Arriva is theoretically absorbing a fifth of the previous year’s commuting public. Our oversubscribed roads can only get worse.

Strangely, although Ms Chetcuti mentioned everything else under the sun, the bicycle, a humble yet legitimate mode of transport, was conspicuously absent. Cycling is becoming the intelligent way to travel in traffic-logged cities. It combines time spent exercising with commuting.

It’s often exhilarating and that means every journey to work is fun and enjoyable, even in the rain. It’s good for other drivers too, as it frees up traffic and parking space, a far cheaper way for the state to get drivers off the road than Arriva.

It’s also good for the environment, your waistline and general health, something employers are also happy with. Admittedly, pollution does knock a few days off your life-span and the same can be said of accidents, but the exercise improves quality of life and adds months.

Sure, you need to be two or three steps ahead of what the traffic is doing around you. You just need the right mind-set. In fact, Maltese cyclists are more likely to die in a car, as a driver or passenger, or even as a pedestrian, than on a bicycle. So cycling can actually be safer.

Cyclists have to be actively thinking all the time, which can make the experience mentally stimulating, if not ultimately exciting.

Thus, you can actually enjoy your commute to work rather than loathe it.

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