'Too big, too ugly, too much': Swieqi residents protest footbridge plans

A proposed footbridge crossing a busy thoroughfare feeding the Coast Road is “ugly and does not lead anywhere”, Swieqi mayor Noel Muscat said on Saturday.

Muscat was addressing a group of residents who voiced their opposition to Infrastructure Malta’s proposal to connect Swieqi and Pembroke via the footbridge.

Those gathered held placards reading “Too big, too ugly, and too much”, “Stop lying to us, we were never consulted”, "Build what we actually need," and “We need solutions, not showpieces”.

Speaking at the end of Saturday’s gathering, Muscat said the bridge, planned a few metres north of the Greens supermarket entrance, would connect two areas that people do not pass through and would end up not being used.

Planning application PA1595/26, filed by Infrastructure Malta, requests the construction of a pedestrian footbridge along Triq Sant Andrija, connecting Swieqi with parts of Pembroke.

The road was redesigned and reconstructed just a couple of years ago as part of a major roadworks project.

The Swieqi Local Council was never consulted about the project, and Muscat said he only got to know about it after Pembroke's Labour mayor Kaylon Zammit praised the project on Facebook.

Swieqi mayor Noel Muscat. Photo: Chris Sant Fournier

“They say it is because the bridge is part of Pembroke, but how can you not speak to the community of 16,000 residents that will also be affected?” Muscat said.

“By ignoring us, the government is showing its arrogance,” he said.

Mayor: Infrastructure Malta dropped underpass plans

Swieqi's council says it is in favour of a pedestrian link between the town and Pembroke but argues this should take the form of an underpass closer to where the two town centres meet, rather than the footbridge being proposed. 

Muscat said plans for such an underpass were already in place but were shelved when Infrastructure Malta CEO Steve Ellul took over from Ivan Falzon.

Nationalist Party MP Albert Buttigieg and Momentum chair Arnold Cassola also addressed the protest.

Photo: Chris Sant Forunier

Buttigieg said the government has adopted a mentality of ignoring residents and pushing ahead with projects “like a bulldozer”.

He questioned why Pembroke's council was consulted about the plan, but Swieqi's was not.

Cassola, a Swieqi resident, said the project would accommodate more speeding on what is already an infamous road in Malta, and would severely affect the quality of life of those living in the area.

He added that citizens need to unite and show solidarity with other communities facing similar situations, including in Msida, where Infrastructure Malta is planning another pedestrian bridge.

Astrid Vella of Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar said building the bridge would mean felling trees that currently protect a nearby school. Those trees stop dust from Triq Sant Andrija from entering schoolchildren’s lungs, she argued.

The footbridge will cut across Triq Sant' Andrija, which links to the Coast Road. Photo: PA

The proposed footbridge linking Swieqi and Pembroke across a main road. Photo: PA