• This main thoroughfare had an unexplained wall erected right across Triq it-Tiben, Swieqi, literally blocking all access to and from Triq il-Qasam. Despite the wall having been removed after complaints, iron barriers and the state of the road surface itself still make access impossible. Why have these obstructions not been removed?

Sitcom

• Jerry cans can often be seen “reserving” parking spaces close to a car wash on Marsamxett Road, Valletta. However annoying this may at first appear to be, it seems not everyone is angry about the situation because both the police and the local council said they had not received any complaints!

Stoned

• The good news is that Għadira Bay has obtained the Blue Flag, indicating that the sea there is excellent for swimming. The bad news is that in order to get in and out of the water, by way of one of the two ladders, one has to tread on hundreds of stones. This makes nautical footwear necessary, even for those who do not like it.

Service

• It was a very good idea to institute the bulky refuse service, which most local councils operate on a very efficient basis such that one rarely has to wait longer than four days to get rid of large objects such as furniture or white goods. It is therefore a pity that some people still think the better option is to dump their rubbish the dirty way.

Sadly

• The pavement across the road from the Bank of Valletta branch of Fleur-de-Lys is broken in two places, with different makeshift repairs to each place. This has led to stubbed toes, bruises, stumbles and even a bad fall or two to the hundreds of people using this street daily. Will it take a drastic accident for this to be remedied?

Solidarity

• One company has proven its mettle and earned tonnes of goodwill for itself through standing by an employee who acted rashly owing to dire personal circumstances. It would be a good idea were the public to reciprocate this by patronising this company.

Speed

• The drivers of certain vehicles, such as quad bikes and bicycles fitted with motors, sometimes seem not to be in complete control of their vehicles. Just because they do not drive cars, it does not mean that they have the right of way and can get away with not wearing crash helmets just because they are not using motorbikes.

Sentences

• The time has come to stop giving those found guilty of manslaughter slaps on the wrist by way of fines and suspended sentences. Making a person give something back to the nation, by way of sentencing him to community services, brings the message home better.

Signs

• Many Maltese expatriates return home for summer, usually with foreign friends or family members in tow. If the latter are here for the first time, the chances are that they try and show them out-of-the-way places that are not usually signposted or even shown on maps. It would be a good idea were some signs to be put up to make arriving at one’s destination more efficient, faster and safer, even for Maltese people who live here year-round.

Sometimes

• On June 7, it being a national holiday, entrance to four Heritage Malta museums – the National Museum of Natural History in Mdina, the Malta Maritime Museum and the Inquisitor’s Palace in Vittoriosa and the National Museum of Fine Arts in Valletta - was free. This was an excellent initiative to make people who would otherwise never visit become aware of our heritage. How about making this free entrance bonus happen once a month, say every second Sunday?

Sinful

• Not even the commencement of works to redo Ganu Street, in Birkirkara, have been successful in getting the police or the local council to remove a red KIA vehicle that was reported in these columns as having been illegally (long-expired road licence!) parked there since at least last December. This featured here on April 9 and still the vehicle is there, with the police yellow sticker threatening removal, accumulating dust, accumulating wardens’ tickets, flat tyres, rubbish around it... A very bad example of inertia.

Streets

• The same can be said for delivery trucks that double park on the main road between Ħamrun and Sta Venera during the morning rush hour. The situation has been raised in these columns many times but neither the Ħamrun district police nor the local wardens seem to bother. Can Transport Malta please intervene?