Transport Malta has published a Request for Proposals (RFP) Concession Contract for the Operation of a National Car-Sharing Programme for the Maltese Islands. Through this call, interested parties can submit their proposals to provide a fleet of vehicles to operate a car-sharing service in Malta and Gozo particularly in strategic locations. Through a web-based application, users can pre-book a vehicle to carry out a trip from an exclusive designated public car-parking space to another exclusive designated car parking space.
50% of the minimum suggested fleet would have to be composed of electric vehicles.
For the purpose of this RFP, car sharing service is defined as the sharing of a fleet of vehicles made available for the use of registered members participating in the service who would want to book a vehicle to carry out a trip from an exclusive public car parking space to another. The service will be regulated in accordance with the conditions laid out in the RFP. Car sharing is encouraged to be used in conjunction with other modes of transport in a given day such as the use of Bus Public Transport or Ferry public transport.
The service offers advantages to users of the service as well as to the environment and the economy. Exclusive car parking and car sharing contribute to the improvement of air quality in urban centres and improved energy efficiency of fuels. Driving less for car parking space means less fuel spent and burnt, hence less carbon based emissions as well. It will also contribute to less traffic congestion because its goal is to have less privately owned vehicles on the road. It is a fact that between 90 and 95% of the lifetime of a privately owned vehicle stays parked and idle, thus implying that the investment in it together with high operational costs are far more than actual paying for the use of a car only when one really needs to.
Transport Malta will be carrying out an educational campaign to explain the service to the general public.
Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) on National Transport Master Plan up for consultation
Transport Malta launched a Public Consultation for the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of the National Transport Master Plan 2025 and the National Transport Strategy 2050. The SEA follows a period of public consultation on the National Transport Master Plan and Strategy where over 60 entities and individuals submitted close to 600 comments.
Various entities, including Government Ministries, the University of Malta, the GRTU, Chamber of Commerce, Kamra tal-Periti, NGO's and various others supported the document and measures suggested. They contributed constructively throughout the consultation process. A number of suggestions were taken on board and included in the document. Transport Malta published all feedback on its website. (http://bit.ly/2dBqmnv)
The Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) protects the environment and promotes sustainable development by including environmental considerations in government and public authority plans and programmes. The Environmental Report is open for consultation until Friday 9 November 2016. The documents can be downloaded from the website (http://bit.ly/2eah4E9), or can be viewed in hard copy at the Transport Malta offices at Sa Maison Road, Floriana, by prior appointment calling on 21663069.
The Transport Master Plan 2025 presents a robust strategy to improve roads, build new ones and give incentives for people to use public transport. It also sets out to prioritise transport infrastructure investment, focussing on the removal of the most critical traffic bottlenecks on Malta's strategic TEN-T network (road, maritime ports and airport), where national, EU and private funding could be most effectively targeted over the next 10 years. A significant portion of the Transport Master Plan, 2025 tackles sustainable mobility, for which a comprehensive list of measures has been identified that aim to encourage greater use of alternative, more sustainable modes of transport (buses, cycling and walking) instead of the private car.
JASPERS and Ineco-Systematica Consortium are supporting Transport Malta to develop the Strategy and Master Plan. JASPERS provides support for government projects with the aim is to improve the quality of investment supported by EU Funds. Ineco are global leaders in infrastructure engineering and Systematica are global experts in planning and designing transport systems.