Temporary speed limit as bridges undergo safety tests

A new speed limit of 30 kilometres per hour is being enforced over bridges in Malta which are being examined by foreign experts.

The Malta Transport Authority's chief executive officer, Mario Falzon, told The Times that a temporary speed limit was being implemented since safety checks were currently being carried out by the foreign experts.

Mr Falzon said the three bridges - one in Regional Road, another in Qormi and a third in Mistra - would be checked by the foreign experts under a project paid for by EU structural funds.

A routine check is underway at the Regional Road bridge and a number of signs indicating the speed limit of 30 kilometres an hour and the presence of speed cameras have been put up.

Mr Falzon said the restrictions were expected to remain in force for between two to three months. He said these types of checks - which were important to determine whether there was any structural damage to the bridges - could not be carried out overnight. He stressed the importance of such checks for the safety of drivers.

A spokesman for the transport authority said it was the foreign experts themselves who asked for the new speed limit to be imposed and said that abiding by this limit was important for the type of tests being carried out. Mr Falzon said the speed limit would revert to 60 kilometres an hour when the routine checks were completed.

Speed cameras have been installed to ensure that drivers abide by the new speed limit. However, a number of drivers seem to be finding difficulty to reduce their speed to 30 kilometres per hour and are instead continuing to drive at a higher speed.

One reader who contacted The Times said that when she came across the sign, she had to take a spur-of-the-moment decision about whether to brake and risk being hit from behind by another car or continue driving at the same speed and risk being fined.

The reader said that when she abided by the speed limit, other drivers were constantly flashing their lights at her. She said she felt "very uncomfortable and threatened" and since other drivers did not have the patience to stay behind her and keep to the speed limit, she was overtaken a number of times.

Asked why motorists were not informed about the change in the speed limit, the transport authority spokesman stressed that motorists have to keep their eyes open for traffic signs.

When contacted, traffic expert Joe Micallef Stafrace said many roads were built without the foreknowledge of the volume of traffic using them today. He said that since the regulation was being implemented for the purposes of a test, one needed to keep in mind that the faster cars went, the more vibrations they caused. He said one should be prudent in the circumstances.