Residents in the village core of Qrendi, Mqabba and Luqa are in for a bumpy ride with Arriva’s No. 72 bus to Qrendi leaving from Valletta. Commuters using this route bus are systematically being left stranded in Valletta for almost an hour or so under the hardly suitable terminus shelters waiting for their bus to turn up.

On Tuesday, December 20, at 10.35 a.m. I was at bay 15 waiting for the 72 bus. There I found the Żurrieq destination 71 bus picking up passengers. After a while it drove off and a second 71 bus turned up. It left soon after and yet another 71 bus moved in, but no sign of the 72 bus.

This third Żurrieq bus 71 again left soon after and, unbelievably, a fourth Żurrieq bus 71 (registration number BUS 156) entered bay 15 . It was 11.15 a.m.

At this point, a furious middle-aged woman could take it no longer and angrily complained to the help desk staff. She had her way, because soon after, a 72 bus (BUS 136) finally turned up, taking the by now totally frustrated passengers on board, and leaving Valletta at 11.25 a.m.

This meant that passengers travelling to Qrendi and other stops en route had been left stranded in Valletta for over 50 minutes. This is definitely intolerable, and I was told that this happens every day all the time. I wonder whether the duty dispatchers ever report the situation to their Arriva bosses. Perhaps they do, but if so, Arriva should take action without delay.

During that interminable 50-minute wait I observed that buses changed bays every 10 minutes, which I admit is quite an achievement. But scheduling four No. 71 Zurrieq buses in turn for just one No. 72 Qrendi bus is both ridiculous and offensive.

The buses to these two destinations should alternate, or at the most, one 72 for every two 71 bus departures. In this way, nobody would complain.