Major flyovers planned for Msida, Mrieħel and Qormi are set to start in the coming months.  

Speaking during an interview on the state broadcaster on Monday, Transport Minister Aaron Farrugia said a handful of large and “controversial” road projects are set for this legislature.

“We have four or five controversial projects that will be unveiled soon,” Farrugia said.

He did not provide details of where these projects would be. 

Government sources told Times of Malta that Farrugia was referring to major flyover projects in Msida, Mrieħel, and Qormi.

Another road-widening project is also set to be carried out in Pembroke near the popular Wembley Service Station. 

The Msida project will be the first project to take off, the sources said.

First announced in 2019, the major intervention proposes the elimination of the Msida circus junction, to be replaced with flyovers, allowing traffic to flow uninterrupted but also adding massive concrete infrastructure in the heart of the seaside town.

The project had been shelved during the last legislature after objections were raised by residents and NGOs. 

In a 2021 letter signed by 200 Msida residents and various NGOs, the government had been asked to rethink the project.

The project had been shelved during the last legislature after objections were raised by residents and NGOs

Among their concerns was that one of the only green spaces in the locality would be covered in tarmac. 

A flyover will be developed on the Mrieħel bypass near the pedestrian footbridge. Photo: Jonathan Borg

Meanwhile, the Qormi project includes the construction of a flyover connecting the Mrieħel bypass with the industrial estate. It will be at the large roundabout near the Pavi supermarket which is regularly bogged down with traffic. 

A third major flyover will be developed on the Mrieħel bypass near the pedestrian footbridge.

Traffic regularly builds up at this exit which is one of the main entrances to the popular business district. 

Traffic also plagues the stretch of Triq St Andrija connecting Pembroke to the Coast Road and Paceville. The sources said that a road-widening project will be carried out here in 2023.

While they conceded that the roadworks will likely worsen traffic congestion, they said the final result would be a smoother flow of traffic in the area.