Traffic accidents last year increased by almost a fifth, with Birkirkara registering more traffic accidents than the whole of Gozo, figures released by the National Statistics Office show.

This year’s edition of the NSO’s Regional Statistics also shows that there was a steep increase in the number of traffic-related contraventions issued by the police, which increased by 102.7 per cent over 2020. Fines issued by wardens also saw a steep increase of 43.8 per cent.

St Paul’s Bay was highest in terms of contraventions issued by both the wardens and Transport Malta officers, with 19,729 and 1,331 contraventions respectively.

According to the figures, reported traffic accidents increased by 18.3 per cent over 2020. with 35.3 per cent of total accidents recorded in the Northern Harbour district. With 993 cases, Birkirkara had the highest rate of traffic accidents, surpassing the 895 cases reported in all Gozo and Comino.

Speed camera contraventions totalled 45,504. The camera which caught the largest number of over-speeding vehicles was the one installed in Triq in-Nutar Zarb, Attard, totalling 7,197 contraventions.

Licensed vehicles in Malta in 2021 amounted to 413,019, driven by 272,333 driving licence holders.

As at end of 2020, the number of vehicles for every 1,000 driving licence holders stood at 1,513. Gozo and Comino registered the highest ratio of vehicles, 1,179 per 1,000 total residents, while the Northern Harbour district registered the lowest ratio with 618 vehicles per 1,000 residents.

Average age of cars is 15 years

In 2020, the average age of passenger cars in Malta stood at almost 15 years. The Southern Harbour district had the highest average age of passenger cars, 16.24 years, followed by the Gozo and Comino district of 15.81 years.

Last year, the number of public transport commuters totalled 35.2 million, with only 4 per cent of these using public transport in Gozo.

Population growth

The statistics also delved into demographics, showing that Malta had a population of 481,537 while 34,563 persons resided in Gozo and Comino. The 30 and 39 age bracket was the highest share of the population.

In comparison to 2014, the highest increases in population were experienced in the elderly population cohorts while the population between 10 and 19 years of age registered the largest decrease in both Malta and Gozo.

The highest increases in the foreign population occurred within the population of 30-39 years of age. The statistics revealed that there are approximately three working-age adults for every person aged 65 years or more. The highest old-age dependency ratio was registered in the Southern Harbour district with 35.8 per cent, while the lowest old-age dependency ratio was at 21.2 per cent and was registered in the Northern district.

Fewer marriages

There were 1,157 marriages registered in 2020, a drop of 1,517 marriages when compared to 2019.

Analysing last year’s sea transport between Malta and Gozo, the NSO statistics revealed that passengers and vehicles travelling between Malta and Gozo increased by 18 per cent and 11.3 per cent respectively when compared to 2020.

Passenger traffic originating from Ċirkewwa was busiest on Fridays and Saturdays, whereas highest numbers from Mġarr were recorded on Sundays and Mondays. Passengers making use of the fast ferry service from June to December amounted to 364,672, whereas total trips amounted to 8,028.

Tourism

Inbound tourists last year reached 968,136, an increase of 47 per cent when compared to 2020. More than half of these tourists came to Malta using low-cost airlines (57.9 per cent).

Inbound tourists had an estimated expenditure of €798 million.

Inbound tourists visiting only Gozo and Comino amounted to 29,889, an increase of 44.7 per cent over 2020. These too mainly travelled by low-cost airlines (51.9 per cent) and by other airlines (47.8 per cent) and spent an estimated €28 million.

Self-catering establishments in Gozo and Comino as at end of 2021 accounted for 79.5 per cent of total bed stock while other self-catering establishments, comprising apartments and villas with pool, accounted for more than half of the total active holiday furnished premises.

In 2020, total domestic trips to and from Malta, and Gozo and Comino regions amounted to 360,460, an increase of 51.9 per cent when compared to 2019. Domestic tourists stayed an average of three nights and the reason for travel was holiday purposes.

Malta residents who visited the Gozo and Comino region for at least one night accounted for 89.8 per cent of total tourists.

The use of non-rented accommodation establishments increased by 107.4 per cent over 2019, whereas those who stayed in rented accommodation increased by 40.7 per cent over the same period. Domestic tourists spent an estimated €57.8 million, 61.2 per cent more when compared to 2019.

On the flipside, Gozo and Comino residents who travelled to Malta amounted to almost 12,000, a decrease of 45.5 per cent when compared to 2019.

A total of 106 cruise liners called to Malta last year, with a total of 141,917 cruise passengers, an increase of 140.5 per cent over 2020. 12 cruise liners called to Gozo with a total of 3,229 cruise passengers.

 

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