The demolition of the former Lotto Department Building at St James Ditch in Valletta, which started last week, will pave the way for the area around the Triton Fountain to be pedestrianised, the Infrastructure Ministry has confirmed.

While no announcement was made on whether this shabby site outside the city will be upgraded, the fountain itself is set for a two-year, €500,000 restoration.

A ministry spokeswoman said the removal of the lottery building at St James Ditch was part of the plan to double the size of the existing bus terminus. This will allow it to cater for about 40 new routes to be rolled out in July as Spanish operator Autobuses de Leon takes over public transport in earnest.

The expanded facility will be able to handle the entire fleet of buses, whereas at present some of them have to be parked around the derelict fountain. The bus bays outside City Gate and near the Phoenicia Hotel are to be removed, giving better visibility to the capital’s main entrance.

Preliminary works to demolish the former lottery building at the lower end of St James Ditch started last month. Though the post-war structure has no architectural value, part of the building is being dismantled by hand so as not to damage two historic coats of arms in the facade, which date back to the Knights of St John.

Works are being supervised by Transport Malta and the Grand Harbour Regeneration Committee.

Meanwhile, the restoration of the fountain will start in summer and be completed by 2018 when Valletta will be the European Culture Capital.

The project will involve repairs to the three bronze statues, the cleaning of the travertine cladding and the upgrading of the mechanical and electrical infrastructure with the use of new energy-efficient light fittings.

A filtration system will also be installed to avoid the water around the statues becoming green and murky.

The 1959 fountain was designed by renowned sculptor Vincent Apap. In 2011, a controversial proposal to relocate it closer to City Gate as part of Renzo Piano’s City Gate embellishment project had to be shelved over the high cost involved, a sceptical public and expert concerns over possible damage to the ageing structure.