The GRTU, the Malta Chamber of SMEs, is mediating in talks between its members of the Mellieha business community and the local council over measures to reduce the level of pollution in the area and solve the problem of traffic congestion and lack of parking.
The GRTU represents the majority of the outlets in the main shopping area in Mellieha, mainly in George Borg Olivier Street.
The Mellieha local council has proposed to pedestrianise the major shopping area in order to provide a solution to these problems.
A spokesman for the GRTU told The Times Business: “The issue is not an easy one for the GRTU. The local council has put forward an extremely innovative proposal which we thoroughly discussed with our members. We are not opposing what the local council is proposing, however the issue is delicate as the proposals might have negative effects.”
The GRTU, which is concerned that the council’s proposal could lead to a loss of business, has in fact carried out a survey among its members in the area, and intends to discuss the results with the local council.
Fifty-seven GRTU members took part in the survey out of the 67 who were eligible to participate. Thirty-two respondents opposed the idea of Borg Olivier Street being pedestrianised, while only six were in favour of this idea. A large majority of respondents also opposed the idea of a partial pedestrianisation of the road, such as on Saturday afternoons, on Saturdays, when activities are organised in the street, on public holidays or during the Christmas period.
The respondents were almost equally divided, however, over whether the road should be closed to public transport. Twenty-four GRTU members said buses should continue to be allowed to pass through Borg Olivier Street, while 23 were opposed to this.
Twenty-four respondents said the parking situation should remain unchanged while 16 replied in the negative. Twelve of those questioned agreed that parking should only be allowed on one side of the road while 20 opposed this idea. A huge majority of respondents, 43, agreed that Mepa should give the go-ahead for new parking spaces to be made available.
Forty-three respondents agreed that the current two-way traffic system in the street should continue, while 14 disagreed with this.
The GRTU is active at a local level as the majority of its members operate from localities outside the main shopping centres. The GRTU not only has its committees within localities, composed of members of the locality itself, but in certain areas it also has committees at a street level.
The GRTU has devoted a full time senior official, Carmen Borg, to service the business community at a local level.