The Prime Minister’s announcement that the ferry service between Cottonera, Sliema and Valletta will be free of charge for tallinja card holders as from today is a welcome one.

Incentivizing the use of forms of transport other than private cars is a must if the government wants to reduce the country’s traffic problems, but this alone will not be enough.

Public transport was already made free for tallinja card holders, yet traffic congestion still remains a problem. While hopefully this addition will help slightly, it certainly is not enough to solve it on its own.

What the country needs is the implementation of a holistic strategy with different initiatives which, collectively, will have an impact. The issue is that the government is out of time. Traffic is a problem now, and planning five or ten years down the line is already too late.

The public transport system needs to be made more attractive for use, while at the same time people need to be incentivised to give up private car use and measures need to be implemented which in some way make it worthwhile for people to use alternative transport.

The Malta Chamber of Commerce had, for instance, recommended the introduction of an e-mobility wallet which people can use for other forms of transport such as taxis or car-sharing services, and the introduction of on-street parking fees in central urban areas which would go directly into the driver’s e-mobility wallet. It is an idea worth exploring. The PN also had an idea that the government should study and see if it’s worth taking onboard - giving a sum of money to families that give up their cars. The government itself was toying with the idea of having different services operate at different times during peak traffic hours. Then there is also the idea of improving the public transport system itself. As for cycling, work on lanes has been carried out, but people still see it as being a dangerous form of transport.

It is unlikely that any single measure will solve traffic in Malta, but a collection of measures might be able to have a real impact. What the government needs to do is gather the different ideas out there, come up with more of its own, and get moving on a plan.

There isn’t any time to waste and as the country’s population continues to grow, so will the number of vehicles on the road. As things stand now, its not only during the peak hours that people experience traffic, but at many times of day. It is unsustainable, and widening roads was only a temporary solution.

So while the announcement that the ferry service will be free is a welcome move, one hopes that the government has many more measures coming up to tackle the traffic issue.