A new pedestrian bridge connecting Corradino and the MCAST Campus with the centre of Paola was inaugurated on Monday. 
 
Il-Pont tal-Għaqda (Unity Bridge) spans 25 metres over the busy Dom Mintoff Road, formerly known as Corradino Hill. It was installed last August after receiving planning approval in February.

Speaking during the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Abela said the €1.6 million bridge would reconnect families living in the Corradino residential area with the central part of Paola. 

Before the overpass was installed, pedestrians, bus commuters and cyclists had to cross arterial roads and walk on narrow footpaths with limited accessibility, alongside moving traffic, to reach this area, he said. 

Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg and EU Funds Parliamentary Secretary Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi also addressed the press conference. 
 
The new bridge provides a quicker and safer route for thousands of students who walk, cycle or use public transport to get to the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST) and to the Mariam Al Batool School further up the hill. 
 
The access ramp at the Corradino end of the overpass rises from a small pocket of previously disused land between Dom Mintoff Road and Corradino Street, opposite the MCAST Campus. 
 
Infrastructure Malta’s planning team designed the bridge’s 3.5-metre wide deck and its ramps to be comfortable and accessible to all road users. 

At the Corradino side, the bridge also has a lift. 

As part of this project, the agency also formed a new pedestrian and cycling path in the Mediterranean Gardens area. 

Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

This passageway links the bridge to the existing bus laybys in Paola Hill. 

Surveillance cameras will be installed along the bridge. Meanwhile, Infrastructure Malta planted 151 indigenous trees and 65 shrubs along the pathways leading to the bridge.
 
This project is the third bridge for pedestrians, bus passengers and cyclists that the agency added to the Maltese road network in 2020, following the opening of a similar structure in L-Avjazzjoni Avenue, Luqa in June, and another one in San Gorg Preca Road, Blata l-Bajda, a month later.