Contractors have started preliminary excavation works as part of the €55m Central Link road project between Mrieħel and Ta’ Qali.
Plans by Infrastructure Malta were approved by the Planning Authority, reviewed by the European Commission and confirmed in November by the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal following an appeal by NGOs.
The Civil Court also turned down a request for a prohibitory injunction made by the same groups.
The project is earmarked to take 18 months, with completion in the middle of next year.
The works have been taken in hand on two sites in Mrieħel and another two closer to Ta' Qali.
Infrastructure Malta said the project will halve travel times in this area and drastically reduce pollution in nearby residential areas.
Transport Minister Ian Borg said on Facebook that the authorities had listened to everyone's views about the project, and now was the time to get on with it, although further changes would be made if needed.
He said Infrastructure Malta would work on the project in the best and fastest way with the least inconvenience to neighbours and the least detriment to the environment.
Infrastructure Malta said seven kilometres of new lanes will be built along a 4.3 kilometre road corridor. Thirteen junctions will be reconstructed and four traffic lights systems will be removed.
There will be over 10 kilometres of pedestrian footpaths and segregated crossings, bus lay-bys and the longest segregated cycle track in the Maltese Islands, connecting Mriehel, Birkirkara, Balzan, Attard and Ta’ Qali.
Infrastructure Malta said it will also develop over 24,000 square metres of new green landscaped areas along the project route.
The Initial works this week include excavations for the foundations of the new lanes, footpaths, bus lay-bys and cycle tracks.
During this initial stage of the project, all existing lanes of the Mriehel by-pass/Rabat road will remain open.
"The agency’s projects team will communicate any works necessitating lane closures to road users in advance and will make sure that such disruptions are scheduled to off-peak hours, with adequate diversions and alternative routes," Infrastructure Malta said.
Appeal is still pending
Meanwhile, the Bicycle Advocacy Group in a statement on behalf of NGOs that had filed a court case against the project, said Infrastructure Malta was bulldozing ahead with the project even though the Court of Appeal had not yet decided on the case. A decision is expected next week.
They said this was a travesty of justice as stakeholders' rights could not be reasonably respected if fields were asphalted over, trees uprooted, vernacular structures demolished and the central vista leading up to Mdina forever destroyed to be replaced by a four-lane busy car highway.
Infrastructure Malta threw thousands of euros at this PR campaign making all kinds of unsubstantiated claims about the project being necessary to stop the area from "total gridlock" within 20 years.
It was a pity that this statement was accepted blindly by all permitting authorities, only to be contradicted by Infrastructure Malta itself during the hearing before the Environment and Planning Law Review Tribunal.
This project was yet another textbook case of creating "induced demand" whereby roads were widened creating even more demand for car-traffic in a never-ending vicious cycle.
As to why works were starting now, before the Court of Appeal has had the opportunity to decide on the matter, it was yet another clear sign that this was always a "fait accomplit" - a done deal, from when it was conceived, the NGOs said
Tenders for the project were issued long before the planning permit was issued - in a clear bid to pressurise the Planning Board and all other permitting entities to get onboard with the plan.
The appellants in the Central Link case got wind that works were about to start before Christmas and filed a prohibitory injunction to try and stop them - at least until the Court of Appeal could decide on the matter.
But the First Hall of the Civil Court decided that since the Court of Appeal judgment was imminent, any works carried out would not be irreversible and there would be no irrevocable prejudice.
The fact that Infrastructure Malta did not respect the spirit of the decision, and was trying to force as much work through before the appeal hearing next week, was indicative of its modus operandi.
“But then - this is the same entity which is causing havoc in Wied Qirda without a permit. What else can we expect?”