NGOs urge revision of Msida Creek plans in line with years of consultations
NGOs have called for a revision of the plans for a new traffic system in Msida, saying the project has fundamentally wrong objectives and would attract more traffic to the area.Their call comes after the Kamra tal-Periti (KTP) (Chamber of Architects)
NGOs have called for a revision of the plans for a new traffic system in Msida, saying the project has fundamentally wrong objectives and would attract more traffic to the area.
Their call comes after the Kamra tal-Periti (KTP) (Chamber of Architects) presented their proposal for the Msida Creek area, suggesting a nature-based solution consisting of human-centric streets and a wooded green area as an alternative to Infrastructure Malta’s plans for the mega flyovers which will dominate Msida. KTP’s visuals have been met with widespread support from the public and civil society. Infrastructure Malta (IM) quickly replied saying it was “too late” to change their plans.
KTP’s proposal is just the latest in a string of alternative proposals which civil society groups have illustrated and discussed with IM over the past three years, the NGOs said in a statement on Thursday. Regardless of these discussions, IM appears to have always been determined to proceed with the mega flyovers plans since their inception, which will suffocate and further fragment the Msida community in favour of more vehicular traffic.
Since sending an open letter to the Prime Minister and the Ministers for Environment, Transport and Health in 2021, Friends of the Earth Malta, Rota, Moviment Graffitti, and various resident groups have consistently offered viable, improved alternatives to the current model of urban transport being pushed forward by IM. Projects like the Msida Creek project in its current form commits the country to a future of car-centric transport.
It is absurd that as Europe and the rest of the world is dismantling flyovers, as they are now recognised as outdated “solutions” that worsen issues such as; respiratory diseases, over-reliance on private cars, heat island effects and high emissions of greenhouse gases - Malta continues to push forward with short-term solutions from the 1950s which have been proven to fail, the NGOs said.
For every major project, IM issues a call for “consultation”, where residents and civil society members have the opportunity to express their concerns and reservations or offer alternatives to their proposals. Civil societies have presented in-depth feedback and alternative solutions to this project from the very beginning, but suggestions have always fallen on deaf ears. Thus, IM CEO Ivan Falzon's comments that the KTP’s proposal is 'too late' and ‘a desperate attempt for media attention’ is a clear refusal to address the issues. This is not too uncharacteristic of IM, sticking to the status quo of listening but having no real intention to accept or integrate constructive feedback into the project. In essence, consultation exercises appear as if they are carried out as nothing more than a tick-box exercise.
Despite some cosmetic changes, IM’s Msida Creek megaproject, approved by the PA in October 2023, still lacks basic connectivity for alternative transport users, including pedestrians, bus users and cyclists. The project has fundamentally wrong objectives, inviting more through-traffic in the middle of a residential and urban area, even going against the government’s €35,000,000 commitment to create a bicycle-commute network in the central region of Malta.
The NGOs hope that the government recognises that there is still time to take two steps back, and fundamentally change the desperate Msida Creek megaproject in favour of a project rooted in the correct fundamentals. As NGOs active on the subject matter, and with experts among our ranks, we also reiterate our openness for further dialogue around our alternative plans presented over the past years and invite the politicians to take this golden opportunity to walk the talk; to remain close to the people, to listen and most importantly to adjust, the statement said.
Organisations
Moviment Graffitti
Rota
Friends of the Earth Malta
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