Every day we shuttle to work in our car, do the school run, drive to the shops, ferry our children to all their extra-curricular activities, etc, etc. In the process we’re letting out tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere, which is said to be the cause of climate change.

Now, I am not one who supports entirely the belief that us humans and our smoke-belching cars are the main contributors to climate change. There are other natural factors that contribute to this. However, the fact that our roads are clogged with cars, vans, trucks and buses, and the fact that the island is plagued with diminishing air quality standards, and noise pollution, is something we need to address, immediately.

Gone are the days when, as children we were allowed to play football in the streets, cycle around the block, or career down the street in home made go-karts.

International Car Free Day (CFD), being celebrated today, will definitely have no impact on the above, but it is definitely a positive initiative that must be commended and encouraged, and I advise everyone to participate and co-operate with this initiative.

CFD first started in Europe in the 1990s, with the aim of promoting awareness of alternative forms of transportation. It is now celebrated in over 2,000 towns and cities in over 30 countries, Malta included.

In Malta, 10 councils and five non-governmental organisations will be taking part. The councils are Santa Venera, Dingli, Kalkara, Mellieħa, Għajnsielem, Lija, Floriana, Fgura, Attard and Vittoriosa. Specific roads will be closed to traffic in these localities.

Cars are here to stay, and the solution is not to ban them from our roads

Let’s face it. Can anyone imagine a world without cars? Cars are here to stay and the solution is not to ban them from our roads but to provide alternative and cleaner means of transport.

A car-free day is really a way for us to address our sense of guilt in the same way we pledge a €10 donation to l-Istrina at Christmas. We cannot stop there.

It is encouraging to note that the Government is implementing initiatives for cleaner modes of transport. Transport Minister Joe Mizzi recently stated that a feasibility study on the introduction of electric cars would begin soon and 100 public charging points would be set up across Malta and Gozo in the coming weeks. On a separate occasion, Environment Minister Leo Brincat said that Government was committed to only using Euro 5 quality vehicles.

However, the Government and the private sector must do more than that. We need to have a safe infrastructure and incentives to use public transport. We need to encourage walking and cycling. There needs to be more investment to improve the quality of service of our public transport, and by this I don’t just mean Arriva. We need to think outside the box, underground, overground and around our waters. Nine out of ten people in Europe believe that increasing public transport is a priority in combating air pollution.

We need to have decent and safe bicycle and walking tracks instead of building more and more roads to accommodate more and more cars. Forget the blessed bridge across the Gozo channel. This is where the investment must go!

motoring@timesofmalta.com