Some statements made by Dr Austin Gatt, as reported (“Agreement with bus drivers ‘landmark’ achievement”, TMID, 25 March), are not very reassuring to those who are concerned about the threat to health from poor air quality in our streets – or to the countless children and adults who live in densely built-up areas and suffer from asthma.

Dr Gatt is reported to have pointed out that 90 per cent of our roads did not have a pollution problem. This figure is not based upon air quality data but, presumably, quoted off the cuff. Even if it were not an underestimate, the remaining 10 per cent of roads which are polluted should be a source of worry because these will inevitably be represented by polluted roads in densely built-up areas where large numbers of people will be heavily exposed to traffic fumes, especially from public transport and heavy goods vehicles.

Turning to “minimising emissions”, Dr Gatt tells us that controlled emissions of “modern buses” will help ease the pollution problem. This is very doubtful because Malta’s “new” buses will not be “modern” at all. It was announced to the press on 12 May 2009 that Malta’s “new” buses would have to be up to Euro 3 standards and “less than 15 years old”. Thus our new fleet of buses will be purchased second-hand to dodge EU rules according to which all new vehicles now have to conform to EU 5.

Thus, instead of investing in modern, relatively clean, EU 5-conform diesel buses, Malta will be literally importing another country’s pollution problem by buying up second-hand, old diesel buses which will merely set the scene for future pollution in our streets as they age even more over the next few years. This so-called transport reform with second-hand diesel buses is a retrograde step which shows very little respect for the health of those who live in urbanised traffic-congested areas.

G. G. Debono

Sliema