A little-known sally port hidden deep in the Valletta ditch will start being used as pedestrian access to the city, generations after it was blocked.

The sally port is located at the foot of St Michael counterguard, half-way along the ditch that leads to the area below City Gate from Marsamxett.

Resources Minister George Pullicino yesterday said an application had been filed with the planning authority to reopen the sally port and a wide, 75-metre tunnel that from the sally port leads to the square at the Marsamxett end of South Street in Valletta.

He said opening the tunnel would be especially ideal for motorists who parked in the Valletta ditch. Valletta, like other walled cities, has a number of sally ports, which were used to facilitate entry for people and the transport of weapons. Most were built in secluded areas of fortifications and kept secret.

They could be easily blocked if their location became known to invaders.

Mr Pullicino said the planning application included the restoration of the square at South Street, near the House of the Four Winds.

The minister said the €1 million project became possible after an illegal structure, which had blocked the area of the sally port, was removed.