[WATCH] Finance Minister non-committal on €6 billion price tag for metro

Clyde Caruana is non-committal on the €6 billion price tag for a three-line metro system with 25 stations proposed by government consultants.

The Finance Minister said there will have to be an “extensive discussion” on the financial aspects but insisted the proposal so far was a matter for public consultation.

“The issue will eventually boil down to taking the necessary decisions and on how realistic certain commitments will be,” he said when asked by MaltaToday whether the exorbitant outlay was a headache he would want to avoid as finance minister.

Caruana insisted the public discussion on the proposed project should continue. “When the time comes for me to delve deeper into the matter, I’ll have no problem to pronounce myself on the issue,” he added.

On Saturday, government unveiled the results of studies carried out by Arup, a British advisory firm, on a light-rail underground mass transport system. The studies have been in the making since 2016.

Dubbed the Metro Malta, the proposal identifies three routes that will be built in stages over a 20-year period at a total cost of €6 billion.

Metro Malta will have 25 stations and will operate in the urban areas around the Valletta ports.

Consultants gave an overview of their findings and proposals but the full studies are not yet published.

The findings state that from the different mass transport options analysed a light-rail underground system is best suited for Malta.

This is the first comprehensive study of a metro system in Malta with clearly defined routes, station locations and costings.

One of the largest problems identified by the consultants is the large volume of excavation waste that will be generated and which will have to be dumped at sea or used in land reclamation projects.

Prime Minister Robert Abela has said that a national discussion was required on a mass transport system, its benefits and implications.

But government has so far stopped short of committing itself to moving ahead with implementing the plans, suggesting that the discussion should happen over a span of years.