Amplified music in Valletta’s popular Strait Street is reaching levels double the internationally accepted limit, a recent study has found.

Sound readings recorded by the Noise Abatement Society in frustrated Valletta residents’ apartments have finally given credence to complaints of sleepless nights in the capital.

“I’m just not sleeping on the weekend. There’s people shouting at each other instead of talking, moving tables and chairs – not to mention the music blaring out of speakers. It’s unbearable,” resident Josephine Cauchi told The Sunday Times of Malta.

She is one of several residents at her wit’s end after the planned revitalisation of Strait Street “brought Paceville to the neighbourhood”.

Concerns over Valletta’s Strait Street being turned into a miniature Paceville were first raised back in 2014, when Valletta 2018 Foundation Chairman Jason Micallef said the area would attract youths away from Paceville and towards Valletta.

There’s people shouting at each other instead of talking, moving tables and chairs– not to mention the music blaring out of speakers.It’s unbearable

Although his remarks had raised eyebrows as many questioned whether the island needed another Paceville, and whether this should be located in Valletta, they turned out to be prophetic as the area has seen a number of bars open in recent months, with several more on the way. Mr Micallef has since insisted that although bars will continue to operate in Valletta, nightclubs would not be tolerated.

John Fenech, who heads the Noise Abatement Association, conducted the sound surveys at the end of last year and explained his findings to this newspaper. Noise levels of nearly 90dB were recorded on a number of occasions. During the day readings reached 74dB. According to the WHO, exposure to levels that high at night can not only disrupt sleep but also have long term psychological and physical implications.

 

The levels are many times higher than the World Health Organisation's reccomended 45dB maximum level.

According to the WHO, exposure to levels that high at night can not only disrupt sleep but also have long term psychological and physical implications.

“We need to rest. The issue of noise is one that we cannot continue to ignore. Someone who lives near a bar shouldn’t be expected to put up with sleepless nights,” Mr Fenech, a long-time campaigner for noise abatement, said.

He has previously conducted similar sound tests for residents in Pembroke and a study of the noise generated by the fireworks let off during village feasts.

Mr Fenech said his society had teamed up with Valletta residents, holding a meeting with Strait Street bar operators, the Valletta local council, and police to try and find a solution to the noise being generated. Although many had started to comply, others had not, he said.

The association had also written to the Tourism Authority questioning why several establishments were playing amplified music, when these did not appear to have the adequate licensing.

In a joint declaration, the Valletta local council, the residents, and the society are calling for monitoring of the area after 11pm. If this is not possible, then sound readings should be taken by installing recorders to CCTV equipment already in place, the declaration reads.

This article was amended at 10.20pm. 

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