Now we have heard that there are plans to radically reorganise the capital city – in particular its traffic management system and monti. Not many people will argue with the plans, and one must point out that things finally seem to be moving. Of course, one understands that the government needed a starting block and the completion of the first phase of the Valletta waterfront seems to have been one of the catalysts behind the project.

It seems as if the “Valletta licence” is to be phased out, and genuine residents as well as visitors must be happy about that. Valletta residents have griped for years, complaining that many people (probably about 3,000) pretend they live in Valletta and therefore do not pay anything for their “V” licence – yet they actually live somewhere else.

One of the government’s aims is to tackle the rampant abuse of this system. They have, however, assured the genuine Valletta residents that they will not have to pay.

Many ideas are being bandied about, such as paying a small charge to enter the city and even for this to rise in increments according to the time spent in the capital. This in itself is a good system, but the government might want to take the opportunity to make the park and ride system in Blata l-Bajda better value for money, compared with taking a car into the capital. This will increase the number of people using the electric buses which will run into Valletta.

Another welcome measure is the plan to pedestrianise more of the city. This will result in the relocation of the monti, but this will also be a positive step. It will return some sense of normality to Merchants’ Street, and allow the customer, worker or even businessman to get from one end of the street to the other in at least under 15 minutes – which is precisely the time it can take when the monti is in full swing.

There is, however, one disappointing area in the plan, and that is the fact that St George’s Square in front of the Palace will continue to be used as a parking area. The square in itself is beautiful, but does not quite look that way when one sees it full of parked cars in the morning and evening. Still, we have not yet heard any plans for a decent horse shelter either. Would it be that difficult to build a nice stone one that fits in with the architecture?

Other areas, however, that were not mentioned, yet deserve some attention are St James’ ditch, Bieb il-Belt and of course the Triton Fountain and accompanying bus terminus.

Believe it or not, many tourists take the walk down to St James’ Ditch – mainly to get a view of the bastions, but some also to see the Lascaris War Rooms. There are vast numbers of “shelter garages” in the ditch, most containing fighting dogs – not a pretty sight for any tourists or locals for that matter. Also, problems are created by the filth that literally drips down from the numerous cracked drainpipes from outlets surrounding the terminus. Green slime and excrement is not exactly a good advert for our prized fortifications.

To conclude, one must point out that while all regeneration projects are more than welcome, we must also look beyond the end of our nose. When one walks into Valletta, the first thing to hit the senses is the belching smoke from buses, the hideous Bieb il-Belt and a bombed-out opera house. After that, of course, things get much better as one discovers the hidden gems in Valletta, but these are three areas that must be addressed.