Traffic experts have slammed the permanent closure of the lower part of Mdina Road in Qormi to traffic heading towards Marsa from the north.
The decision, which was taken recently, has led to numerous complaints from motorists who have ended up gridlocked during rush hour.
Motorists coming onto the Qormi roundabout from Luqa or Żebbuġ now have to take Manuel Dimech Road and enter the next busy roundabout just up from Pavi Supermarket.
The situation will only get worse when schools reopen in September
From there they have to switch lanes and double back down Manuel Dimech Road towards the Qormi roundabout again before taking the first exit that heads towards Marsa.
Hugh Arnett, a former consultant with the transport watchdog, acknowledged that this junction could no longer cater for the huge volume of traffic passing through.
He said the roundabout, along with those at Kappara and the one in Lija next to the Birkirkara bypass, were not functioning properly.
“In each case motorists do not treat these junctions as proper roundabouts and they simply dash from one side to the other without observing basic rules or using indicators,” he said. The only long-term solution at Qormi would be to build a flyover but such projects never took off in Malta due to lack of funding, he said.
He cited the case of the Kappara junction (see story on page 6) and the one in Marsa next to the Addolorata Cemetery, which have been in the offing for years.
Mr Arnett said in the UK this problem was addressed by installing traffic lights that would only be operational during rush hour to let traffic flow freely during the rest of the day.
“The same could be done as a temporary measure in Qormi until this junction is redesigned,” he proposed.
However, he said, diverting traffic through Manuel Dimech Road was “a pointless exercise”.
Simon Micallef Stafrace, another traffic expert, echoed the same concerns, describing the Qormi change as a “non-starter” and a “pointless exercise” that only served to create a bottle-neck further down in Manuel Dimech Road.
“The diversion has doubled the problem as motorists coming from Mdina Road, intending to proceed to Marsa, have to enter the busy Qormi junction twice,” he argued.
While acknowledging that flyovers were a costly solution, Dr Micallef Stafrace argued that with proper budgeting spread over a number of years the financial burden could be eased.
A Transport Malta spokesman justified its decision, saying it had acted after numerous complaints from the Qormi local council and a number of parliamentary questions on this accident blackspot.
He said between January 2011 and December last year, 72 road accidents were reported at the spot.
“The measure is in line with the principles of the road safety strategy to improve safety through good-practice engineering measures,” the spokesman said.
Reacting to a proposal put forward by the council to divert some of the traffic through Triq l-Iljun, the spokesman said this was not possible due to a bridge and a number of trees which would have to be sacrificed.
Qormi mayor Rosianne Cutajar said the council had not yet received any feedback on the proposal.
While commending initiatives to make roads safer, she said the council had been inundated with complaints from both motorists and residents.
“The situation will only get worse when schools reopen in September,” she warned.