The junction that allows motorists to leave the Mrieħel bypass and cross lanes into the Central Business District may be shut down for good.

The traffic lights junction is temporarily closed due to roadworks taking place on the bypass, but Infrastructure Malta is using this period to look at whether traffic flows better without it.

“That turn is temporarily closed to permit upgrades in this road but, at the same time, we are taking the opportunity to study how traffic performs with the closure and with the upgrades,” IM CEO Ivan Falzon told Times of Malta.

“After we have the study in hand, we can give our recommendations to the regulator (Transport Malta).” 

Before traffic lights were installed, that stretch of road was known as something of a black spot.

Upgrades to the Mrieħel bypass will include re-asphalting, the installation of a stormwater system and safer ways to enter and exit the bypass, Falzon said.

Motorists on their way to the Central Business District often find themselves in long queues waiting for the traffic lights to turn green so they can cross lanes. Those on the opposite lane of the bypass, which is a fast road, are then held up.

Since the closure, motorists need to drive in the direction of Rabat to the newly constructed roundabout about half a kilometre up at the top of the bypass and access the business district from there. Controversial plans to build a flyover to replace the junction were announced in December 2020 but shelved last year, with Transport Minister Aaron Farrugia saying the project was not a priority. 

Times of Malta reported that a freeze was ordered on nationally funded infrastructure projects as part of the government’s attempts to rein in spending in the face of spiralling energy costs.  

Environment activists, Qormi residents and farmers had also objected to the project because of the impact to some land nearby.