The authorities have descended on Mistra Bay to warn a number of caravan owners to get in line with the law, after several parked their campers there illegally.

Caravans can only be parked on roads and only if they have an inbuilt engine. Non-motorised campers and trailers can only be parked on the road if they are secured to or towed by a vehicle. 

Over the past week, caravans started appearing at and around Mistra Bay to the annoyance of bathers and a businessman who is considering closing his restaurant and leaving Malta.

Restaurateur Claude Camilleri said he has been losing clients since campers started parking their caravans just outside his terraced restaurant around 2008.

Read: 'I'm packing up and leaving the island' - Mistra restaurateur gives up

Despite reports to several authorities, the caravans appear at the site every summer, with Mellieħa mayor John Buttigieg insisting it was an issue of enforcement. After the Times of Malta reported the return of the campers for the summer, Transport Malta and Planning Authority notices appeared on some of the caravans.

Photo: Johnathan Borg

A spokesman confirmed that TM had put up notices to ensure the owners of a number of vehicles did not “encumber the bay to the detriment of others”.

The notices allow the authority to take further action against those who do not have the necessary requirements to be in the area, including non-motorised caravans that are not attached to vehicles.

While the transport watchdog can issue fines for illegally parked vehicles (motorised campers), this is not an option for non-motorised ones. The notices enable the authority to tow them away at a later date if the encumbering persisted, he explained.

The owners have seven days to remove the “encumbering” caravans – if they do not, they will be removed by the authority at the owners’ expense. The Planning Authority has also affixed enforcement notices on caravans – motorised or non-motorised – that are not parked on the road, a spokesman confirmed.

In 2011, the PA issued a notice warning campers not to park their caravans or set up tents at Mistra Bay without permission. A copy of this notice was affixed to a number of caravans on Friday, urging the owners to call a Planning Authority officer within three days. 

Some caravans were slapped with notices by both the Planning Authority and Transport Malta.

Earlier this week, the Mellieħa mayor had explained that while motor caravans could park by the side of the road as they have a road licence and insurance, the owners could not place barbecues, chairs, tables and other beach furniture beside the vehicles, or pull out an extendable canopy.

The Transport Malta and Planning Authority notices which have appeared on some caravans at Mistra Bay. Photo: Jonathan Borg