The road bridge crossing over Valley Road in Msida will be rebuilt from scratch in a €7 million extensive upgrade for Regional Road that was announced this morning by Transport and Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg.
The project will continue connecting Regional Road between the Tal-Qroqq tunnel and the Santa Venera tunnels. This road will be improved through several interventions to continue improving the efficiency and safety of this same road. The Regional Road upgrade will lead this road to finally have six lanes, three in each direction, while important interventions will lead to the realignment of several junctions which connect to this main road.
In the carriageway from the Santa Venera tunnels towards Msida, the additional lane will provide safer access from the slip road joining Triq il-Wied in Msida, Triq il-Ferrovija in Birkirkara and Triq il-Kappillan Mifsud to Regional Road. At the same time, further up, this same lane will reduce waiting time when vehicles want to exit Regional Road by using the slip road in the direction of Triq Dun Karm, the University of Malta and Mater Dei Hospital.
In the opposite direction, the additional lane will improve vehicles’ journeys along the slip road which connects the Tal-Qroqq roundabout, i.e. the skate park, to the southbound carriageway. This is because the new lane will become continuous towards Santa Venera and will replace the short existing one. This same lane will provide a safer exit for those exiting Regional Road towards Triq il-Ferrovija and Triq il-Kappillan Mifsud, with the two roads becoming one at the Birkirkara-Santa Venera roundabout.
Minister Borg also announced that, “The infrastructural intervention which will rebuild from scratch the bridge passing over Triq il-Wied in Msida will substitute the existing 70s bridge with a new structure which will continue helping to improve the alignment and elevation of this road, as well as to connect the bridge with the new lanes, to continue improving safety.”
This upgrade, which is being led by Infrastructure Malta, will lead to 1.1 kilometres of new lanes for this road and improvement in 7 different junctions, which will see improved safety. This project will lead to improved efficiency which will translate into reduced travelling time.
“This is our commitment – to continue complementing one investment with another, to ensure that we make the best use of our financial resources; in a way that leaves a truly positive impact on all those who make use of our roads. The fragmented planning which was done for decades is no longer the way in which our country looks at infrastructure,” said Minister Borg.
Borg went on to say that together with these investments, Government is carrying out unprecedented work in the residential roads of the country’s towns and villages and reminded those present that a call has been issued for the first 120 residential roads to be done in 2019, while other calls will be issued shortly. He also reminded those present that this budget has invested €100 million in infrastructure.