New bus routes: Mixed reactions from mayors

Both Lija Mayor Ian Castaldi Paris and Mosta mayor Shirley Farrugia are disappointed by the fact that they only learned of the new bus routes from the newspapers. On the other hand, Qormi mayor Rosianne Cutajar, Sliema mayor Anthony Chircop and Marsaskala mayor Mario Calleja were largely positive on the assessment of the new routes.

The most disappointed of the five mayors was Mosta's Nationalist mayor Shirley Farrugia. Farrugia complained about the lack of a proper consultation process after Arriva decided to leave the island.

"I had to go online to see the new routes as the routes were not sent to the council before being published...we are now faced with a fait accompli."

She recalled that in a meeting held with Minister Joe Mizzi in September, the discussion centred on how to reform the existing Arriva service, and not on the formulation of routes for a completely new service.

"Our chief grievances on the Arriva service was the fact that many buses coming from Mellieha are full up by the time these reach Mosta. We also requested a circular bus service to cater for outlying areas and a service linking Mosta to Birkirkara. I also had asked the minister to communicate the final decision to the council before announcing the new routes."

From left: Ian Castaldi Paris, Rosianne Cutajar, Mario Calleja, and Tony Chircop

Lija Mayor Ian Castaldi Paris echoes her complaints.

"It would be expected of the minister to send the proposals before these were published," Castaldi Paris said.

But according to the Lija mayor, Transport Malta officials have informed the council that the routes are still at proposal stage and that they can be changed if necessary. Neither was the council informed on the roads from which these buses will be passing.

On her part, Mosta mayor Shirley Farrugia also expressed disappointment over some of the changes made in the routes.

She was predominantly concerned by the fact that no buses will now be emerging from the Santa Margarita area.

She notes that Arriva only introduced this service after pressure from the council and residents.

While welcoming the introduction of bus service from the Mosta centre to Valletta, she complained that at certain times of the day, this will be operating on an hourly basis.

Much more positive was the recognition of Qormi mayor Rosianne Cutajar.

"Qormi was badly served by Arriva because we lacked a specific route leaving from Qormi."

This meant that buses coming from other localities only served Qormi.

She also expressed her satisfaction at the way the consultation was conducted, revealing that two meetings were held with the minister.

Marsascala mayor Mario Calleja also welcomed the new routes, while recalling positively his consultation with the government.

"The fact that I have received no complaints is a positive sign," Calleja said.

His only reservation was the absence of the route 119, which connects B'Bugia and Marsaskala.

"But we have already communicated this to the Ministry and this problem is being solved," Calleja added.

The Sliema council is still assessing the impact of the new routes but "the first indications are that the locality will be well served," mayor Anthony Chircop told MaltaToday.

According to Chircop, Sliema was already well served by the Arriva service.

"There were few complaints on Arriva in Sliema."

He explained that the only problem faced by the locality was that during the peak of the tourist season buses are packed with language students and tourists.

"This problem was partly solved by the bendy buses but these buses also created difficulties in certain streets especially when more than one bendy bus was stuck in traffic."

During the meeting with the minister, the Sliema council had also proposed the re-introduction of the circular bus run by the council before the arrival of Arriva.

"Back then we were told that the operation of this service was no longer possible because every scheduled service had been handed over to Arriva."

Chircop describes this service as a highly beneficial one for Sliema, which has an ageing population, as it would help people to travel within the locality.