Although the authorities may have shelved the proposed Gozo tunnel project, recent remarks from the CEO of the Gozo Business Chamber - GBC resurrected the issue in a surprising manner. The state of affairs with Gozo Channel and its aging fleet has drawn criticism, with concerns raised about the efficiency and safety of the ferries currently in operation. The CEO’s attitude is like that of a young child criticising his father for not providing adequate comfort at home and then resorts to go to a 5-star hotel without the financial means of supporting empty threat.

Gozo Channel is provoking EU patience and stretching the efficiency of the current fleet of ferries beyond permissible limits to the detriment of the ferry service to meet commuters’ expectations. Government insiders consider the three Gozo Channel ferries, the Gaudos, Malita and Ta Pinu, which were commissioned in 1996, as “outdated fuel-guzzlers”. But the government could not care less. To add insult to injury, they provided Gozitans in 2019 with a wet leased 35-year-old Greek owned ferry, the MV Nikolaus. Even more, the vessel can now only carry half the commissioned passengers because of safety concerns.

But the Gozo Ministry finds Gozo Channel convenient to employ persons which otherwise would be in the unemployment registration records. The GBC CEO is also a member of the GRDA–Gozo Regional Development Authority. He can merely sing from the hymn sheet provided by the Gozo Ministry. 

The recently published Gozo Regional Development Strategy effectively spells the death knell to plans for a Gozo-Malta undersea tunnel. 

In a single line, the document states the permanent link needs to be “reconsidered and its cost benefit trade-off re-examined”. The tunnel project is dead in the water. 

Still, the GBC CEO broke ranks and uttered a lone echoless cry for the tunnel in his interview last week on The Malta Independent on Sunday.

The GBC unveiled a document in Aug 2023 outlining its proposals for the 2024 budget, including targeted fiscal incentives, combating problems related to accessibility, and infrastructure. While pointing out that this does not diminish from the importance of other areas, the GBC underlined the importance of achieving net carbon neutrality in Gozo prior to Malta.

Allow me to quote a comment by CEO Daniel Borg to ‘Business Now.mt,’ on January 2024: “This means that as an economy we need to continue to search for new sectors which should enrich Gozo and Malta’s economic portfolio, while consolidating the existing sectors which add value to our economy.”

The GBC says the priority must be to ensure that the current modes of access to Gozo, including the ferry and fast ferry, are “retained and increased”.

The recommendations of the GBC and GTA for the 2024 budget regarding accessibility and infrastructure were: 

Gozo Business Chamber stated that the upcoming budget should prioritise accessibility and infrastructure. They called for support in the wholesale/import and retail sector to cover transportation costs on the main island of Malta. 

Gozo Tourism Association proposed to:

· Keep, improve and sustain the fast ferry service, which can also help attract to Gozo other niche tourists.

· Build a new fourth ferry identical to the existing ones to replace the Nikolaus. 

· Start the development of the airfield for the fixed wing air link between Gozo and Malta.

Implement a ticketing system that allows people to use multiple transportation modes with just one ticket (fast ferry, Gozo Channel, and Malta Transport). 

The Gozo Regional Development Authority, the mouthpiece of the Gozo Ministry, stated: “Connectivity to the main island of Malta is critical for Gozo’s development. A service that needs to be consistent and available almost constantly. For this reason, the ferry service needs to reflect new realities and continue to ensure delivery of the required capacity for both commercial and passenger vehicles.” 

Here, there is no reference to the tunnel. But now the GBC seems to backtrack and resurrect the tunnel project.

Still, CEO Daniel Borg emphasised that any new vessels that join the fleet must be accessible to everyone and adhere to certain pollution reduction standards. Added to this, there must be an investment in the two ports, those of Mġarr and Ċirkewwa, to meet with the demand and improve the facilities available.

But the GBC, according to the CEO, still believes a certain form of permanent link needs to be constructed, with a tunnel seen as the best option. He referred to underwater tunnels that link the Faroe Islands to facilitate transport, adding that their construction did not “result in excessive development”.

“There is no political will,” he lamented when asked why they never started it despite endorsements from both the PN and PL.

No, I beg to differ. In 2021, the PN made a pledge to expand ferry services between Malta and Gozo, regardless of whether any consortium built the tunnel between the two islands. PN would support the tunnel project when the government published all reports and verified by competent experts and if the Gozitans approved this project in a referendum. In relation to this issue, I published two surveys which I held in 2021, confirming Gozitans were against this tunnel. An ongoing survey on ‘gozo.news’ at the time of writing this article shows that 55% out of 13,872 participants consider Gozo would not benefit from the tunnel.

Meanwhile, the GBC did not support the PN promise of seven years ago in the PN election manifesto to add two new ferries and reintroduce a cargo ferry to Grand Harbour. This would have eased traffic and congestion at Cirkewwa.

The traffic to Cirkewwa has become heavier since the Sa Maison quay made way to a Marina. The government should have taken earlier action and arranged a different berthing site for cargo ferries in the Grand Harbour, but the GBC remained silent about this.

After all, may I humbly ask on behalf of whom GBC is crying for this tunnel? They held no survey in this respect and if they are referring to their membership, that is negligible, counting less than a couple of hundreds. The Gozo Tourism Association - GTA has acknowledged and agreed that the tunnel will be a useless and detrimental project that will further harm Gozo.

Another important issue is that these ferries need regular maintenance. Gozo Channel has no option on a replacement ferry at least to have four ferries operating normally. This means hardship and frustration for commuters wishing to visit Gozo during weekends. Waiting at Mgarr or Cirkewwa for about 3 hours to board the ferry is ridiculous and unacceptable.

Wait! This administration provided a fourth ferry to Gozitans in 2019. They wet leased a Greek 34-year-old ferry, for a staggering €13,000 per day. This ferry can only carry half the passengers (a maximum of 350) because of safety concerns. The total expenditure has exceeded €25 million, maybe equivalent to the investment for a modern eco-friendly ferry. GBC never commented about this.

Accessibility is on every NGO’s agenda. Only the GTA went a step further to address the immediate issue of the fourth ferry. The wet lease of this ferry has expired and the Greek company is not willing to renew this contract. Without this fourth ferry, the ferry schedule will be in shambles. Is there any contingency planning from the Government? No. But the GBC did not support the GTA on this issue.

The government is sidelining the tunnel project. This government is abdicating its duty of providing adequate ferry service such as a fifth ferry and a fast ferry taking vehicles to Valletta. Failing to provide such services, the Government is neglecting badly all Gozitan commuters. After all, this government did not care about squandering €400 million taxpayers’ money on Vitals deal on hospitals. But investing in eco friendly ferries is not in the government’s priority list. The GBC did not dare draw the attention of this government in this respect. Gozitans deserve better accessibility services, surely not a tunnel!