Updated: 3.30pm
A truck driver was grievously injured when his vehicle overturned, spilling an entire load of construction sand across the road near Mdina on Friday morning.
The accident happened on Triq Buqana in Rabat at around 10am. The spillage caused both carriageways of the main road leading to Mġarr to be closed to traffic.
The driver of the DAC truck - a 35-year-old man from Marsascala - was taken to hospital by ambulance.
In a Facebook post, Transport Malta announced it had closed the road in both directions until the vehicle and the sand were cleared away.
ROTA urges segregation of high-speed traffic, bicycles
In a statement on Friday afternoon, bicycle advocacy group ROTA said the crash flagged the urgent need for better road safety measures, particularly for bicycle users.
The truck, the NGO said, ended up within the bicycle lane, where, had there been a bicycle user, they could have been fatally injured.
"The current road design offers no protection for cyclists, and this tragic event highlights the pressing need for proper segregation between high-speed traffic and vulnerable road users, particularly those on bicycles," ROTA said.
The need for protected bicycle lanes is not just a local issue - the matter has also been flagged in international road safety guidelines such as the CROW guidelines.
These guidelines emphasise the importance of segregation in high-speed areas and the need for roads that are forgiving of human error, the group noted.
"In simple terms, we must ensure that the consequences of mistakes – whether made by a driver or a cyclist – are not fatal. Sadly, Malta is still without a legally binding national cycling policy that will outline clear standards for the design and implementation of safe and effective bicycle lanes.
"We cannot allow cyclists to be subjected to what is, at best, a makeshift effort that often amounts to nothing more than a splash of green paint and some rumble strips. It is not enough. Bicycle lanes need to be designed to protect cyclists – physically separated from traffic in high-speed areas, with sufficient space and barriers to prevent accidents."