Visitors and commuters are forced to wade through dangerous obstacles, dust and potholes as the makeover of Valletta’s Castille Square takes place ahead of November’s Commonwealth summit.

The €1.6 million revamp, announced in March, was a rushed project from the start with the planning watchdog giving the green light through a simple development notification order (DNO).

And although the project includes major structural changes to this landmark spot in the capital city, no application for a full development permit was ever submitted, a move the Prime Minister has defended as “legitimate”.

Contradictory directions to two places on the same side of the road.

Every day, thousands of tourists descend on Valletta to get a glimpse of the capital’s historic gems, but instead they are in for a dusty surprise, with no forewarning of the works ahead.

There are no signs anywhere apologising for the major inconvenience the project causes – people have to navigate thick pipes and wooden boards – nor directions for how to get to the city centre or the Upper Barrakka Gardens.

And when temporary signs are put up, the information is not always right.

An A4 sheet of paper stuck to a plastic barrier sends tourists seeking a visit to the gardens or the Castille Hotel in opposite directions, even though both happen to be located on the same side of the road.

Heavy machinery claws its way through the square’s core, and instead of feasting their eyes on the restored Prime Minister’s Office, the Stock Exchange and St James Cavalier, visitors are faced with thick, opaque hoarding.

Commuters say the shoddy hoarding is a far cry compared to the barriers erected for the Renzo Piano project. The place has been converted into one big, dangerous maze, where the first impression tourists get of the city risks being permanently marred. Motorists too are at a loss, as new diversions crop up every day.

And while Transport Malta officials do their utmost to redirect the traffic, once they clock off at 5pm motorists have to figure out the puzzle on their own.