Many changes have been made to bus routes and times since Arriva started operating a year ago. The routes, which have since been thankfully modified considerably, had been drawn up without research or consultation with the public. Arriva then had problems due to strikes and a lack of drivers and functioning buses.

Fortunately many of these problems have been resolved but some other issues have now arisen. One of them is the modification of the summer routes. I live in Attard and I can take the 202 or 203 bus to Sliema or Paceville. This route was 45 minutes long before the changes. It used to go to Paceville, then Sliema and back.

Now the bus passes through Gżira and Sliema first. This delay adds a further 15 minutes to an already long route. I would like to know the reasons for this change.

Also, the 54 bus route has been extended to include other bus stops and now takes 40 minutes to reach Valletta from Attard.

These issues should be tackled by Transport Malta. However, I would also like to comment on the electronic signs used by Arriva. We were promised functioning electronic signs by November, yet the signs are still in a mess. Even the signs at the Valletta terminus do not always function correctly.

I believe this problem arises because the signs display times that have been submitted beforehand instead of calculating the actual time left for the bus to arrive.

I expect the electronic signs to work properly by now. Friends who live in England have told me the Arriva bus service there is one of the best. So there is no reason for the system not to work properly here, where the distances are much shorter.

Also, Transport Malta should stop changing the routes or at least consult the public before doing so.