Transport Malta clamped a number of irregular foreign plated vehicles during the weekend in the latest effort to minimise abuse, the entity said in a statement.

A legal notice enacted a few weeks ago enabled Transport Malta to re-introduce clamping in Malta, a tool that will greatly help the Authority to enforce the rule of law on our roads.  Despite numerous roadside checks by Transport Malta and the Police, a number of individuals abused the system by keeping irregular foreign-plate-vehicles on Maltese roads, parking irregularly, causing obstruction and possibly causing accidents that could not be traced back to the perpetrator.  The authorities had no way of tracing the owners of foreign-plate-vehicles in case of minor offences.

Transport Malta will be doing random patrols on foreign-plate-vehicles and follow up on reports to curtail abuses.  Transport Malta officials will clamp irregular cars and affix a sticker with information.  The owner can call a phone number and an official will remove the clamps upon the payment of a fee of €180.  If the owner does not reclaim the vehicle it will be towed and additional fees will apply.

A vehicle with a foreign plate can only be driven by a non-resident and can circulate on Maltese roads for up to 7 months within a period of 12 months.