While more parking spaces are reduced in Valletta for commuters, government employees have now been given exclusive access to a section that is supposed to be a pedestrianised area outside Upper Barrakka Gardens.
Apart from the spots taken up by the residents’ parking scheme, the 69 MPs, the morning market stalls and those reserved for public service workers, parking has also now been banned along Ġlormu Cassar Road, the main road leading to Auberge de Castille, whenever a cruise liner is in port.
During the past week, Castille Place (right next to the Upper Barrakka Gardens entrance) has also been converted into a reserved parking area for employees at the Office of the Prime Minister. The decision is ironic considering in 2006 the government had said the area was meant to be pedestrianised “within four to five years”.
As things stand, most car owners must pay to visit the capital because of the controlled vehicular access (CVA) system.
The other options are to catch a bus, park at the Floriana MCP car park or at the park and ride – which will, however, no longer remain free within two weeks when the new public transport operator, Arriva, takes over.
The only non-payment option close to the city centre remains parking along the likes of Ġlormu Cassar Road.
The parking problems in Valletta escalated when parking spots were lost following the pedestrianisation of areas like St George’s Square and Merchants Street, and the removal of the bridge above City Gate.
According to shop owners, the lack of parking spaces in Valletta is fast becoming a concern to businesses as shoppers are avoiding the capital.
“They are trying to turn Valletta into a Paris or a Rome where people catch buses to visit them. But here we are talking about the capital of a small island and Maltese people have a culture of wanting to go everywhere by car and, if possible, park outside the door of a shop... Until people change their mentality, business will suffer,” said shop owner Edward Chatlani.
He claimed customers in the capital started declining since the introduction of the park and ride scheme in 2006 and the situation was only getting worse. Felix Rizzo, who works in a toy shop, said several people told him they were avoiding entering Valletta because it was “a parking nightmare”.
The manager of a clothes’ shop in Republic Street agreed, saying she hoped the new bus system would save the day.
Vince Farrugia, director general from the Chamber of Small and Medium Enterprises – GRTU, said he had been informed the government would be generating about 70 more parking spaces inside Valletta to compensate for spaces lost as part of the City Gate project.
Mr Farrugia said the parking problem in Valletta was worrying businesses. About 75 per cent of shoppers entered the city by bus but shops had suffered with the introduction of the park and ride and the CVA.
The biggest loss was the high spender who had lost interest in visiting Valletta and was not the type of client to catch a bus or use the park and ride scheme, he said.
Replying to a parliamentary question last year, Transport Minister Austin Gatt said there were almost 2,000 parking spots in Valletta.
Of these 1,414 were used by the public all day, 133 were only for residents and 413 could be used by the public between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. and were reserved for residents the rest of the time.