Shop owners in San Ġwann have welcomed traffic arrangements put in place as part of diversions in connection with the Kappara Junction works, according to the Chamber of Small and Medium Enterprise – GRTU.

Though changes in Vjal ir-Rihan aimed at ensuring a better flow of traffic in the area were acceptable to business owners, residents still complain about the impact the project is having on the residential area.

According to a GRTU spokeswoman, shop owners were recently irked at the volume of traffic going through the San Ġwann road, which, they said, was negatively impacting their businesses. To rectify the situation, a number of spots were specifically allocated to facilitate the delivery of goods, she said. Parking for non-residents was also restricted to 60-minute periods.

“The area is now much more organised and shop owners are very happy. We want a good flow of traffic and it seems that the recent changes made – mainly the introduction of more loading and unloading bays – were working,” the spokeswoman said.

The changes implemented had made it easier for shoppers

The changes implemented last month had made it easier for those shopping in the area to access outlets there, she added. Acknowledging that the project did cause some inconvenience, she said business owners seemed to have come to terms with the fact that this was inevitable and they would need to adapt to the changes while works were in progress.

However, the local council was still inundated with complaints by residents.

“When you have a project of this magnitude, it’s only natural that residents complain. We have been having regular meetings with Transport Malta to pass on the residents’ concerns but there is only so much that can be done,” council secretary Kurt Guillaumier told this newspaper yesterday. He said residents had to accept that there would be some changes in the coming months.

“We installed speed bumps at the request of the residents but now some have been complaining about the noise. Issues will crop up and we are trying to fine tune them with Transport Malta,” Mr Guillaumier said.

Works on the €22.4 million project started in April and are being carried out in phases, stretching into the next year.

As part of the project, a number of roads in the surrounding localities were resurfaced and various measures to divert traffic were put in place.