The Highway Code is set to be updated and regulations for e-scooters are planned for the near future, the senior inspector of the police traffic branch, Nicholas Vella, told The Malta Independent on Sunday.
The inspector was interviewed on aspects regarding road safety last Thursday, one day after a 23-year-old Serbian woman became the 18th road fatality of the year. Last year there were nine deaths and 12 were recorded in the whole of 2020.
The last time the Highway Code was updated was in 2001, long before drastic changes were made to the road network. Moreover during the past few months we have seen an exponential rise in the use of e-scooters on Maltese roads.
Vella said that it is always a tragedy when someone dies in a traffic incident. He emphasised that “the most important thing is that we increase safety on our roads".
"When we compare the statistics of fatal traffic accidents in Malta with other European countries, Malta has one of the lowest fatality rates. This is not necessarily good, even though we are ranked as one of the safest countries with regard to traffic accidents. All lives are important, even when there is an accident where someone is grievously injured," Vella said.
When asked whether widening roads has helped to prevent major traffic accidents he said: “Widening or narrowing roads isn't going to have an effect on the frequency of incidents.”
He also emphasised the importance of education – of the driver, passenger and pedestrian. This was a point that he brought up frequently throughout the interview.
“What's important is that there is good signage, the road is designed properly and that the speed limit caters for the road in question," he said.
Additionally, Vella pointed out that Transport Malta does studies on the type of signage that should be used on the roads." Today everyone goes abroad and sees the signs outside Malta. People say places outside Malta have more signs, but the roads outside Malta are many kilometres long."
“If there had to be the same amount of signs in Malta for the roads that we have we'll end up having a bunch of signs next to each other. Instead of helping drivers, it will confuse them even more because they will be overwhelmed by all the signs, instead of being focused on the road," he said.
Vella said that is why studies done by TM are important because they cater for our roads, which are different from roads found in other countries.
Following the European study revealing that Malta is the angriest country in Europe, he asked about the effect aggressive drivers have on the road.
"With regards to aggression, we are the same as the Sicilians, the Italians, this is our nature. A human gets frustrated and becomes a bit aggressive," Vella said.
Vella added that it could be that there are fewer deaths in Malta because we do not have the same high-speed roads as the ones that there are abroad.
He also said that the huge traffic jams experienced in Malta could also be a contributing factor as to why there are fewer fatal accidents, because drivers are not moving at high speeds.
"That is one of the reasons why we have fewer incidents… because it is difficult to have a large accident in traffic. Usually, they'll just be small incidents, in fact, we see a lot of bumper-to-bumper accidents, where people don't get hurt," Vella said.
In addition, he was asked about whether the number of reckless drivers had to do with people not being taught how to drive properly.
Vella noted that he and his team were taking note of how student drivers were being taught. He added that they have been having multiple meetings with LESA and TM about laws that should be changed and what student drivers need to be exposed to when being taught how to drive.
The main thing he pointed out was that the Highway Code needed to be updated. He made it clear that they were actively working on this to be updated so that drivers will be more conscious about driving safely and how to act during an accident or an emergency.
"What happens when it's raining, when you need to emergency break, if you have an incident, or you lose control of the car? We're trying to include these concepts," Vella said.
He was also asked which roads were considered to be the most dangerous roads to drive on.
Vella said that with the installation of more speed cameras there has been a “decrease in incidents” on the Coast Road.
Furthermore, he went on to say that the three contributing factors that lead to accidents are distraction, alcohol and speed. He said that if a driver abuses any of these three then they are risking causing an accident, which could potentially be fatal.
When talking about the types of distractions he listed the mobile phone as being the most dangerous object that is used on the road.
"I believe that even with hands-free there's a distraction, even more so holding the mobile in your hand," Vella said. He said that you lose focus while talking and thinking, but he made it clear that the worst is texting because not only do you lose control trying to simultaneously text and drive, but you are also diverting your eyes from the road.
He said that even having the phone stuck to your dashboard to navigate maps is still a distraction, even though it is legal if you do not touch your phone.
The Malta Insurance Association recently criticised the police for “encouraging” people to drive while drunk because random breathalyser tests are not being done and the police are advising traffic accident victims to not report intoxicated drivers.
He responded by saying: "I don't only disagree with that article, but the police have never encouraged people to drive under the influence of alcohol.”
Moreover, he said that the law states that in order to use the breathalyser there had to be reasonable suspicion first; it is not as easy as stopping everyone we see and conducting a breathalyser assessment. However, he also said that reasonable suspicion is up for debate, and this also depends on the officer on duty.
"In the near future, there are talks to change the law on the use of breathalysers so that they are easier to use,” Vella said.
When asked about the increase in the number of accidents involving electric scooters, he said that this is the case because there are more scooters on the road.
"If regulated, I believe that it is a good mode of transport. Obviously, we still need to continue pushing for education," Vella said.
He also stated that there are ongoing discussions about the laws on e-scooters and how they should be incorporated into Malta’s roads.
When he was asked about the use of portable speed guns he said that they are not used constantly because of other commitments the police have. However, he explained that when they are used, the police usually pick a time and a place where over-speeding is likely to take place.
He said every year around 1,500 drivers have their licence suspended. This year, the total so far is around 900.
Inspector Vella made it clear that "it is not enjoyable for (the police) to give out a fine. (Our) interest is to improve road safety”.
Sabrina Zammit contributed to this report