Buses will be given priority over other traffic between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m., the public transport task force decided yesterday during its first meeting, chaired by the Prime Minister.
Arriva should strengthen the structure and management of the routes
The police will be deployed to wave buses through and an AFM aircraft will be circling overhead every day to monitor traffic flow and identify bus routes with problems, Transport Minister Austin Gatt elaborated last night in a television interview.
He called the decision a “revolution” with implications whose impact few, perhaps, realised. It was among the decisions taken to bring about a culture change in transport and encourage more people to use the buses, he said.
‘Serious problems’ on 20 bus routes
Earlier, the government had issued a statement saying the police, army, Transport Malta and Arriva have been ordered to draw up an action plan within a week to see how to implement the bus priority decision and monitor progress.
“This decision is in line with the government’s policy of safeguarding the environment by promoting a change in the operation of the country’s traffic,” it added, pointing out that rush hour is from 6.30 to 9 a.m.
The action plan will also propose and analyse the possibility of having more bus priority lanes apart from other measures.
Arriva has also been asked to find ways of reducing the time taken by customers to buy their tickets on the bus. Dr Gatt said the system by which tickets would be sold before boarding should be up and running by the end of the month.
This decision is in line with the government’s policy of safeguarding the environment…
The task force includes, among others, Dr Gatt, Home Affairs Minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici and Parliamentary Secretary Chris Said who is responsible for consumers, fair competition and local councils.
“The task force agreed with the Transport Ministry’s analysis that Arriva should strengthen the structure and management of the routes,” the government said. Therefore, the company was asked to report on the measures it would be taking.
The task force will meet again next week. It was set up by Dr Gonzi on Tuesday morning, a few days after Dr Gatt was saved by the Speaker’s casting vote when Nationalist MP Franco Debono abstained during a vote on an opposition motion of no confidence in him.
The transport reform, spearheaded by Dr Gatt, began in July but was haunted by continuous complaints, requiring various changes to the system that was meant to revolutionise the sector.
Last night, Dr Gatt said the setting up of the task force was not a sign of no-confidence in him but had the power to take decisions that, as Transport Minister, he could not have taken alone.
He said 70 bus routes only had occasional problems but 20 had been identified as having serious problems and needed intervention.