Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects Ian Borg inaugurated the reconstruction of Għeriexem road and its promenade which will be creating a safer pedestrian route between Mdina, Rabat and Mtarfa.
Minister Ian Borg mentioned how this day is so important for Rabat residents, as this road, which is synonymous with the Rabat community and which for years had been left in a state of collapse, is now being given back to these residents with safer and high quality infrastructure.
“We felt what these residents were feeling and we took up the challenge. But we have taken another step forward where we also incorporated certain concepts that are new to our country such as solar footpaths where we felt it was appropriate to introduce them as part of this project. Extensive work has been done and today this road includes around 90 additional car parking spaces, an electric car charging station, the first solar footpaths in Malta and greener infrastructure through 40 new trees and plants. I sincerely would like to thank Infrastructure Malta for all the work it is carrying out in order to truly change the face of our country and have Malta truly benefitting from modern infrastructure of the highest quality. It is in this way that we will continue to deliver more positive results across our country with this road being a clear example that showcases this government’s vision for sustainability”, said Minister Ian Borg.
Rabat mayor Sandro Craus said this is a project that was a dream and became true. “We took care of every aspect, from the environmental to the recreational. Environmentally, we have seen the implementation of solar-powered lighting and a number of trees and plants. In addition we eliminated the risks that residents were suffering. From the bottom of my heart I would like to thank Minister Ian Borg and Engineer Fredrick Azzopardi for delivering this project and, last but not least, I would like to thank all Rabat residents.”
Through the work of Infrastructure Malta, Għeriexem road now offers a wonderful belvedere that overlooks one of the most scenic areas of our country, new decorative lighting, new benches, a solar pavement with 36 photovoltaic panels that will generate approximately 40% of this street’s lighting, and a digital display next to the footpath that gives the public a figurative account of the amount of emissions being saved, a government statement said.