Malta’s ‘spaghetti junction’ is nearing completion, promising relief to the 100,000 motorists who face the daily ordeal of driving through the congested Addolorata area in Marsa.
Costing €70 million, the project has been three years in the making and is expected to be completed by the end of this year, Infrastructure Malta said.
The state agency, entrusted with what is considered to be the biggest infrastructural project ever, is pledging that once completed it will reduce travelling time by nearly four-fifths: a five-minute journey would be cut to just 60 seconds.
The project involves direct links for northbound and southbound traffic by means of seven flyover structures across three different levels with an overall footprint stretching 12 kilometres.
From an environmental perspective, the biggest impact was the destruction of 153 trees, with a further 78 being transplanted nearby. Infrastructure Malta is pledging to compensate for this by planting 600 trees in Marsa and another 270 at the new section of the Ta’ Qali National Park.
The area taken up by the flyover network measures 97,000 square metres, mainly on the footprint of the old road network and the adjacent industrial zone.
Works started in November 2017 and a number of flyovers are already open for traffic. The rest are expected to be in operation over the coming weeks.
The agency also says the project will cut pollution: particulate matter and nitrogen oxide emissions – two main causes of respiratory diseases – will go down by up to 70 per cent and 52 per cent respectively within the next 25 years.
A study by economist Gordon Cordina says that for every €1 million invested, Malta would get back €4.2 million in terms of reduced travel times, lower fuel consumption, reduced accidents, increased labour force productivity and air quality improvements.
On the other hand, there has been criticism new roads only increase dependency on private cars, while discouraging environment-friendly modes of transport.
There will be two pedestrian bridges, an underpass and dedicated lanes for cyclists, bus lanes as well as an area for a park-and-ride services.