She was not waiting at a bus-stop. Instead Rita Gatt was picked up right outside her front door in Tarxien, and the destination on the bus display read Getting Married.
I laughed and said I’m too old to celebrate in any grand way
Ms Gatt, 42, an Arriva bus controller, boarded the bus in her pink wedding dress and the wedding party set off to the registry in Valletta. The bridegroom, Mario Azzopardi, an Arriva bus driver, was waiting for her there.
Commuters waiting on the bus stops actually applauded and cheered when the bus – dressed up with white wedding bows for the occassion – drove by.
“It was such a surprise; it was all organised for us,” said Ms Gatt.
The Azzopardis got married on June 23: the very first couple to get married in the Arriva family.
The couple, who had been dating for six years, have worked for Arriva for more than a year. They had initially planned a low-key wedding.
“In fact, I booked a couple of days off and that was it.”
But she had not reckoned with her colleagues’ enthusiasm. “When I told them I was getting married, they wanted to know the details. I laughed and said I’m too old to celebrate in any grand way.”
Her colleagues Angela Embury and Romina Libreri declared themselves her “wedding planners”, and from then on it was one surprise after the next.
The wedding bus was driven by Carlos Sultana, a friend of the happy couple who also works for Arriva, and all along the way to the marriage registry in Valletta, well-wishers beeped their horns.
The control room had notified all bus drivers about the vehicle with the special destination. “So on the way all dispatchers were waiting for us, to congratulate us,” Ms Gatt said.
When they got to the registry in Valletta, they were warmly greeted by the staff.
It was the first time a bride and groom had dropped by to get married on a bus, so they too snapped pictures of the momentous occasion.
With the wedding ceremony over, the couple then boarded the bus together with their witnesses, family and friends – for a big on-board party.
It was just the ticket for the Azzopardis: “It was just great fun. We were elated – I can’t even describe the feeling. It was the biggest surprise ever!”
On the way to the wedding reception in St Julians, the display screen on top of the bus was changed and this time it duly read: Just Married.