Repair work by Polidano Brothers on the St Paul’s Bay bypass are underway while the Malta Transport Authority and the Contracts Department are deliberating the extent of fines to be imposed for delays on the Manwel Dimech Bridge, Urban Development and Roads Minister Jesmond Mugliett confirms in an interview in today’s issue.

But the estimated Lm500,000 damage caused by Polidano is only being rectified after the government threatened to expropriate the land adjoining the bypass, which was damaged by excavation work carried out by Polidano.

Expropriation procedures, Mr Mugliett confirmed, were at “an advanced stage”, and have only been temporarily halted until the repair work is completed and all damage to the road, rebuilt at a cost of Lm3 million, is made good.

“We had begun the expropriation procedures and they had reached quite an advanced stage,” Mr Mugliett commented. “We have now put them on hold and we will only fully retract the expropriation procedures once Polidano finishes the shoring work. If something happens and the work is stopped midway, we are still holding that ace up our sleeves.”

While it is being alleged that the authorities have been reluctant to impose penalties on parties responsible for delays on the Manwel Dimech Bridge, Mr Mugliett is adamant that the weight of the penalties, as well as the ways and means of imposing them, are being discussed.

“No one has said the penalties would be waived,” he commented. “The ADT and the Contracts Department are, in fact, discussing when and how these penalties should be imposed, which could be done during the contract or further toward its completion date.”

Upcoming projects for which tenders are to be released in the very near future include the Marsascala Bypass and the Ta Qali Crafts Village roads.

Meanwhile, two major projects aimed at solving long-standing traffic bottlenecks – multi-level junctions at the Kappara and Addolorata junctions ? are both on the table. The Kappara project, Mr Mugliett says, will be tackled in 2009 with a call for tenders to be issued sometime next year. The Addolorata project, meanwhile, could be expected to come on stream one or two years later.

Another project in the pipeline addresses traffic management and envisages the monitoring and management of traffic by the ADT through a network of CCTVs and information systems aimed at seeing the ADT become more hands on in managing traffic, public transport and parking.

See interview on page 6