As far as I can understand, the justification for the flyover in the centre of Msida is driven by the ever-growing demand for car traffic and speed.
In the 2019 junction (not network) study, the traffic is projected to grow by four per cent in 2023, by 15.6 per cent in 2033 and by a whopping 31.5 per cent by 2048.
That’s a lot of cars when you consider that the objective should be to focus on reducing traffic (and emissions), not increasing it.
We should be fully decarbonised by 2050, right?
Even the recent European Commission recommendation to start excessive deficit procedures against Malta includes a reference to transport and the need to tackle traffic by improving the quality and efficiency of its public transport system and soft mobility infrastructure. So why is a park a good idea for Msida?
The ideology of predicting traffic and providing for what is an absurd amount of traffic is old and has been surpassed by more modern, sustainable ideologies which put at their centre people, rather than cars and speed.
In this case, Msida centre is where people live, work, study, and enjoy their leisure time on the waterfront. This is not at the edge of the built-up area where the impact is perceived as less (it is not!), but this is at the heart of our towns.
And it seems that the plan is to increase traffic in the town centre by 31.5 per cent. The people in Msida and those that work and visit there deserve better.
They deserve that their town centre be designed to help mitigate against traffic pollution; that their town centre be a place where people that do not have access to private gardens enjoy outdoor space; that their town centre be a safe place from flooding when the rains come; and that Msida, a coastal town with a beautiful promenade, becomes a centre of attraction for all sorts of social activities.
Msida deserves to be regenerated through a sustainable transport solution, not the other way round.
The proposal to convert Msida junction into a park and rethink the transport network (not only the junction) is a golden opportunity.
If this opportunity is missed, we are stuck with an infrastructure that will be difficult to remove and will come at a huge environmental, societal and economic cost- Maria Attard
Again, so far as I can see, the opportunity to integrate bus rapid transit from the hospital, university and Junior College, all the way to Valletta and Sliema, presents itself once we shift the traffic elsewhere.
The park can be engineered in a way to absorb and handle the flooding in a much better way than any asphalted surface can. It is not an exercise in punishing traffic (and car drivers) but an exercise in providing a more efficient link which offers an opportunity for people to shift to public transport and, for those unable to do so, a more pleasant environment through which to drive.
If this opportunity is missed, we are stuck with an infrastructure that will be difficult to remove and will come at a huge environmental, societal and economic cost. If there are plans to revise Malta’s transport strategy, as was the case a year or so ago, then this should be part of it.
Let’s broaden our view, establish where we want to be as a country and set targets for well-being, not speed, and then let’s plan together the best way forward for our urban areas.
We can do this by integrating traffic with public transport and with soft mobility infrastructure like good pavements where people can walk.
Maria Attard is the director of the Institute for Climate Change and Sustainable Development, University of Malta, and has researched and published widely in the field of transport.