Artist’s impression of how the bridge between Salina and Qawra proposed by construction magnate Angelo Xuereb (bottom) might look.

Hotelier and construction magnate Angelo Xuereb has proposed building a bridge between Salina and Qawra to ease traffic flows in the area of Kennedy Grove.

With the upgrade of the Coast Road well under way, Mr Xuereb thinks the government is still in time to consider the creation of another access point to Qawra.

His idea is a low, 200-metre bridge with an underlying car park that does not encroach on the salt pans. Since the seabed is shallow, the possibility of having a number of pillars would reduce the cost of this bridge.

Mr Xuereb, the chairman of construction firm AX Holdings, told Times of Malta that although the Coast Road was being widened, something he described as a “much needed and important investment”, the traffic flows at the intersection of the road that leads to It-Telgħa t’Alla u Ommu would still be compromised by a bottleneck. This would create long traffic jams, even from farther back than the Coastline Hotel.

The Coast Road project includes a new small roundabout at this intersection which will not help solve the problem but would possibly make it worse, he argues.

Roundabout will be too small to handle the present traffic, let alone the increase

Having a bridge before one reaches this intersection, to take traffic towards Qawra, would considerably reduce the flow of traffic at this point.

“In my opinion, the government is still in time to consider another access by means of a low bridge between Salina and Qawra, away from the historical salt pans, together with improved traffic junctions,” he said.

Mr Xuereb, who more than two decades ago had proposed a monorail system to help solve worsening traffic problems, said the recent planning authority decision promoting the development of taller buildings in Buġibba and Qawra was set to exacerbate the situation.

“With the bridge I propose, the road next to Kennedy Grove could be completely eliminated and the public gardens, now divided in two, could then be joined up to create a larger public family park,” he said.

The Qawra peninsula is one of Malta’s main tourist areas and therefore a major contributor to the Maltese economy.

This said, he believes that a traffic master plan for Buġibba and Qawra ought to be carried out “without further delay”. This must include accessibility and parking facilities.

On the proposed roundabout at the bottom of the road leading from Naxxar to Salina, Mr Xuereb said this was “too small to handle the present traffic, let alone the increase”.

“I propose to enlarge this roundabout to an oblong shape so as to allow vehicles that need to turn around to ‘weave in’ and at the same time allow free flow of traffic on both sides of the Coast Road,” he said.

Mr Xuereb urged Transport Malta to seriously consider these proposals and, although he understood that they would require additional funding, the long-term benefits would outweigh this.

“I am sure the positive impact on the economy would be huge and would constitute an excellent additional long-term commitment. This connection would also contribute to the much-needed upgrading of this important peninsula to the Maltese economy,” he said.

mxuereb@timesofmalta.com