Greens take Transport Minister to task over claims Central Link Project is ‘pro-environment’

Transport Minister Ian Borg and the Labour government of lacking a “forward-looking, modern vision for transport and mobility”, Alternattiva Demokratika said on Monday.

AD was reacting to statements by Transport Minister Ian Borg this morning, where he described the project as one which was pro-environment.

Borg was explaining how the project would see fewer cars driving through village cores, which would in turn mean fewer emissions. He also pointed to the fact that vehicles would spend less time stuck in traffic along the road linking Mriehel and Rabat, which would also contribute to fewer emissions.

Reacting to Borg’s remarks, AD “congratulated” the minister on “inventing a new definition of environmentally friendly policies”.

“Ian Borg can find some examples of environmentally friendly actions and transport initiatives in his Government’s own Transport Master Plan,” AD secretary general Ralph Cassar said.

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He added that “while modern countries and cities across Europe are giving streets back to people, and restricting car access into cities”, Malta was doing the opposite.

“The Maltese Government, even with its huge parliamentary majority is failing to show leadership and courage to take all necessary steps for a sustainable means of transport, to offer truly safe spaces alone all major roads to those who want and can use the bicycle and electric bicycle as a means of transport and to substantially reduce the use of private cars,” AD said.

It added that the Transport Master Plan contained several measures that the Government, “from the Prime Minister down”, was ignoring.

The masterplan, it said, contained a number of measures, including public transport corridors and the introduction of low-emission zones, which it said could contribute a more environmentally sustainable transport network.

“The irony of all this is that in the European Parliament, away from our shores, Labour MEPs talk about sustainable transport, but here in Malta, the Government takes no action,” AD said, adding that “in true Maltese style”, Borg had pinned the blame on past Nationalist administrations.

“The reality is that neither Ian Borg, nor his predecessor have a forward-looking modern vision for transport and mobility,” AD said.

Finally, it said that while the the main focus had so far been on the uprooting of trees, “the real issue was that new roads will increase traffic and pollution”.

“When it comes to trees, Malta needs thousands upon thousands of new trees, not a couple of hundreds. Even here the pledges of afforestation made by the Environment Ministry over a year ago seem to have been be abandoned by the wayside."

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