• Over the past weeks, pipes were being laid in the lower part of St Joseph High Road, Ħamrun, on the Blata l-Bajda side. Compared to what usually happens, this was a splendid job. They dug up the road gradually, closing the trenches immediately once the pipes were laid. Apart from the parking spaces taken, the works did not cause undue disruptions to traffic. Well done.
Rubble for an arch
• The roundabout at the Fleur-de-Lys junction was torn up last year as the locality’s administrative committee and Birkirkara local council unveiled plans to build a replica of the Wignacourt Arch that was demolished after having been damaged by a Royal Air Force crane in an accident in 1943. As expected, nothing has happened since and a mound of rubble and debris stand there instead of the much-vaunted archway.
Chaos galore
• The traffic situation near St Paul’s Square, in Ħamrun, where the Fra Diego monument is located, remains as chaotic as ever. Cars park haphazardly on the main road, bringing traffic to a standstill, especially in rush hours. The local police station is just metres away and officers must surely rush out to get refreshments from the kiosk there. Does it take a direct order from the Police Commissioner to do something about it?
Bumpy ride
• Tat-Torba Road and Pantar Road, which from Attard lead to Valletta Road, Mosta, cries out for surfacing. Also, Also, Transport Malta must decide whether the traffic lights at the junction between Pantar Road and Valletta Road is to remain restricted for buses or is available to all. As it stands, light cars keep using the facility notwithstanding a notice saying only buses should cross through Valletta Road.
Amazing footpath
• This area in Olive Street, St Julian’s, is used by the public as a footpath. Yet, although the local council has known about it for well over a year, it has not only never ever been turned into a decent footpath but also all sort of rubbish is dumped there. After a heavy rainfall, the rubbish is carried directly into the middle of the road.
Rubbish park
• When will the powers-that-be send a group of people to give a thorough clean-up to Ta’ Qali where the National Park is situated? The rubbish there has to be seen to be believed. A dead cat in a very advanced stage of decomposition indicated how long it takes for the place to be cleaned up.
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