Transport Minister Joe Mizzi said today that he would be meeting Transport Malta to bring forward road works currently in hand in Msida, in order to ease traffic congestion. He did not give a completion date.

He said the plan was for work to be carried out over a longer period during the day and the night so that it could be completed quicker.

In comments to the press during the commissioning of a new Marsamxett ferry,  the minister said that road works sometimes could not be avoided, but further efforts would be made to ease problems for motorists, and talks would be held with the police.

Among other short-term measures, he said he would propose that bus lanes should also be open for car pooling and electric cars

It was clear, he said, that the traffic infrastructure was not adequate. It was not good before and it was not good now, with 11,000 new vehicles having been registered in one year alone, he said.

The government was carrying out various major works to improve the roads, but the crucial point was to bring about a shift away from cars and on to public transport, particularly the buses.

Once a new, efficient bus service was introduced the government would be taking measures to encourage people not to use their cars, he said.

Mr Mizzi made his comments at the introduction of a catamaran, TopCat One, which has a capacity of 160 passengers. It is replacing the current ferry that can take only 90 passengers to Valletta from Sliema and back.

The number of trips - around 50 - and the ticket fee will not change, and in December a second catamaran will replace the ferry currently operating to the Three Cities to increase the capacity to 160 commuters.

The Minister said taking the boat was one way of reducing congestion.

LABOUR MP DISAGREES WITH TRANSPORT MALTA PROPOSALS

Meanwhile, Labour MP Joe Sammut, the party’s former spokesman for transport, this morning expressed disagreement with solutions offered by Transport Malta chairman James Piscopo in an article in The Sunday Times of Malta yesterday.

Writing on Facebook, Dr Sammut said various ‘intelligent’ schemes had been mentioned as well as flyovers 'and whatever'.

He said this would only be putting the cart before the horse and transferring traffic congestion from one corner to the other.

He felt that an effective, lasting solution to cut travelling time for the people was to gradually create an underground system.

While a fully fledged system was not feasible,a combination of an underground system with buses to carry passengers to drop off points, was.

“Let us not continue to waste time chasing around the same table and lets open the debate on a new, efficient transport system” Dr Sammut said.

The catamaran deployed on the Valletta-Sliema route.The catamaran deployed on the Valletta-Sliema route.

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