The transport authority is “investigating the possibility” of reinstating the ferry call at Senglea after the service was discontinued earlier this year, leaving only a single stop in Cospicua.

More than 400 Cottonera residents have signed a petition calling for the Senglea stop to be reintroduced, to make the ferry a more attractive proposition for residents and to ease traffic congestion.

A Transport Malta spokesman told the Times of Malta that discussions with the operator were ongoing, but that the berthing site would require infrastructural changes to cater for the larger ferry introduced last year.

The ferry service has been touted by the government as one way to alleviate the traffic problem. Transport minister Joe Mizzi announced earlier this week that improved ferry services around the capital were one of a number of measures to be implemented soon. The half-hourly service between Valletta and the Three Cities currently stops close to Dock One in Cospicua, but previously included an additional stop close to the Maċina bastion in Senglea.

Transport Malta noted that the Cospicua stop can be accessed from Senglea via the new footbridge built as part of the Dock One regeneration project.

Caroline Said Lawrence from the Friends of Cottonera Forum, the residents’ group behind the petition, said dropping the stop had curtailed a “fantastic initiative” which had encouraged many people off the roads. “The current system cannot adequately provide for residents of the Three Cities. It is a long walk from Vittoriosa and an even longer one from Senglea, which puts many people off.”

Residents believe that overlapping interests between different groups, including the operators of the yacht berths in the area, were to blame for the situation.

Ms Said Lawrence said she was hopeful a compromise could be reached, and pointed to the possibility of moving the mooring to the existing slipway near the food kiosks at the beginning of Siren Street.

Senglea mayor Joseph Casha said he had been informed that the stop was dropped because of the inadequacy of the previous mooring and the short distance to the Cospicua stop.

Mr Casha said the council had held meetings with the relevant authorities and was “insisting” on the reinstatement of the stop for the benefit of residents.

The Senglea Residents’ Assocation, a new group set up last month, has also made the ferry situation its first priority.