A St Paul’s Bay resident is campaigning to convert old bus stops and lanes which became redundant when Arriva started operating the new system into much-needed parking spaces.
Michael Scicluna points out that upgrading works around St Paul’s Bay’s promenade have cost residents a significant number of parking spaces.
He therefore cannot understand why the places reserved for buses at defunct bus stops have not been converted into parking spaces as a matter of urgency, particularly as the area has had to cope with the usual influx of summer visitors.
“I have been drawing attention to parking problems since 1998 and I do not think I was ever taken seriously, and now I despair when I see what is happening not just St Paul’s Bay, but all over Malta.
“Look at Sliema at Tigné and the seafront, although the residents there at least have some consolation with the residents’ parking scheme,” Mr Scicluna told The Sunday Times.
He showed this newspaper several photos of bus stops and bus lanes in St Paul’s Bay and Buġibba which are no longer in use and which he believes could easily be converted into parking spaces.
Mr Scicluna also showed The Sunday Times e-mails which he sent to the Malta Tourism Authority, which is overseeing the upgrading works in St Paul’s Bay, regarding the need to replace lost parking spaces, but he says no action has been taken.
A spokesman for Transport Malta said that just over 200 bus stops countrywide from the old network were no longer in operation after July 3, when Arriva began operating the new system, while just under 600 new bus stops were created.
“Some of those (defunct bus stops) are being reactivated in the current network enhancement. Typically a bus bay occupies between two and four parking spaces which can be freed up when a bus bay is deactivated, though clearly not all bus bays are automatically replaceable by parking spaces as several are marked right on the carriageway,” the spokesman said.
After the completion of the network enhancement programme, Transport Malta will be working with local councils to update road markings and, where appropriate, to reorganise parking, the spokesman said. However, no timeframe was given.
The spokesman added there are no immediate plans to allow two-way traffic in the portion of Buġibba where there used to be a bus lane, and that a broader reorganisation of traffic management would be needed if a decision on traffic re-orientation was made.
pcooke@timesofmalta.com