Expression of Interest for public transport finalised

Transport minister Joe Mizzi announced that the expression of interest for the public transport sector was finalised and will be published tomorrow.

Speaking at a political activity in Zebbug , Mizzi said that, even though government had given Arriva many chances to solve its problems, it had proved to not be feasible.

"We need an efficient and punctual service.... And Arriva showed us clearly that they were not in a position to do that," he said, stressing that more than three-quarters of the debt incurred by the company had already been there when the Labour Party got elected.

The minister said that government was now delivering on the promises it had made prior to being elected to power ten months ago.

"This government means business, and it will continue to deliver for the remaining years of this legislature," he said.

Mizzi also said that the 'Park-and-Ride' scheme would be re-introduced at a cost of only 40 cents a day.

He said that Arriva - who had taken over the Park and Ride - had been expecting to make €390,000 from the park and ride sites but in reality it had only managed to generate €46,000.

Arriva was given the concession to operate them in 2011 but witnessed a sharp decline in users after it imposed a daily fee of €2.50 for parkers.