A metro and trust: Alex Borg’s high-risk gamble

The Nationalist Party’s metro plan is not an impossible dream to achieve but the proposed five-year timeline to have the first line operational is overly ambitious. 

When unveiling the plans, architect Julian Borg, a PN candidate and the man fronting the project, gave a detailed breakdown of the various processes involved from start to finish. On paper they look fine but how realistic are they? 

Even if we were to ignore legal complications that may arise during the tendering process and assuming no time is lost, there are so many other things that could delay the process. The PN has pledged it will not run roughshod over planning processes, which means geological, archaeological and social impact studies will need to be undertaken. And then there are the problems that may arise during the actual construction phase. 

These are not spurious observations. If we were to look at a very similar underground rail project undertaken in the Italian city of Brescia, the original seven-year timeline had to be extended by almost three years because of archaeological finds that hindered progress. 

The Brescia underground is a single 13.7km line with 17 stations, running beneath the city centre. It services a city of around 400,000 people and its characteristics are very similar to the metro line being proposed by the PN, which will extend along an 11.5km stretch through Malta’s densest urban corridor, connecting the airport, Santa Venera, Qormi, the university area, Gżira, Sliema, St Julian’s and Pembroke. The PN proposal includes 8 stations and intersections for future expansion. 

The Brescia Metro tender was awarded in April 2003 with construction work starting in January 2004. The first line was officially opened and fully functional in March 2013, just under 10 years after the tender award. The original timeframe for completion had been seven years but archaeological findings delayed progress on several stations. 

Even if the PN’s proposal is for a slightly shorter line and contains half the stations of the Brescia Metro, the five-year timeline being proposed appears unrealistic; almost unbelievable in the face of unpredictable developments. 

Having said this, if a PN government can really deliver spot-on efficiency without cutting corners it will be a boon for the country to have such a massive undertaking delivered in five years. It would certainly be an improvement on the light rail proposal unveiled by the government just before the election was called, which posited a 15-year timeline for a hybrid line running from St Paul’s Bay to the airport but which avoids the Sliema conurbation. 

Nonetheless, we are sceptical about the ambitious timeline because we have seen too many large projects missing their deadlines or being put off indefinitely over the past few years. Even the PL’s 2013 flagship project—the Electrogas power station—for which the government had poured in all its efforts and resources—legal or otherwise—had experienced delays to start producing electricity. 

But there were other infrastructural projects of critical national importance, such as the Magħtab incinerator and the Mater Dei Hospital emergency extension, where faulty tendering procedures delayed the process. In the latter case, the government ended up awarding a direct order worth €120 million instead. 

In the more distant past, we witnessed massive delays in the delivery of Mater Dei Hospital that was hounded by overspending. The hospital was started by the Fenech Adami administration in the early 1990s, re-imagined under the 1996 Alfred Sant administration, continued again by the Fenech Adami administration post 1998 and only completed by the Gonzi administration after 2004. 

Traffic may be one of the top concerns for people but Alex Borg is staking a lot of his reputation by hooking up to a five-year timeline for a metro line. Only time will tell whether he can deliver as promised but first he has to convince the electorate to trust him with running the country. To do so, Borg needs to have clarity about his numbers and be able to defend them with reasoned arguments. He needs to be able to rebut the prime minister’s constant criticism of the PN’s workings and show that they are robust. 

Borg needs to show that he means business and that his economic plan can provide a superior outcome from what the country has been experiencing over the past 13 years. 

There is no doubt that the European Commission’s Spring Forecast paints a healthy economic picture for Malta. The headline figures put Malta among the best in Europe and kudos goes to the Labour administration for this success. But quality of life is much more than robust headline figures, something the current administration has only realised over the past couple of years. 

Quality of life is about being able to travel with ease; having open spaces in urban areas; enjoying time with family and friends; earning a decent wage that allows families to live comfortably without the need for government assistance; having a national health service that is efficient; having clean air and clean seas; having a country where enforcement is not a joke; having an education system that does not fail students and values educators; having a country where sleaze is frowned upon and not championed; having communities where the elderly feel safe. 

Having a strong economy is necessary. Having public finances that are in good shape is a must. But money alone does not guarantee quality of life. It does not automatically solve the traffic problem. 

Borg has a relatively hard slog to convince people on the economic and financial aspects because his direct rival has experience to bank on; but in terms of quality-of-life issues both parties start on an equal footing and that is where the PN leader can show he can do things differently. The country needs a new direction—all sides acknowledge this. Can the PN really offer the fresh start it is promising? It’s up to Alex Borg to give a convincing answer.