The mayor of Birgu (Vittoriosa) has justified the installation of resident-only parking signs in a number of streets as protests mount by visitors of the Cottonera sports complex and by workers in two schools who are finding it an impossible task to find parking space.

The Malta Independent this week was informed that new signs allowing parking only by residents were installed closed to the sports complex, which is also in the vicinity of two colleges – St Edwards and De La Salle.

Parking in Triq Joseph Mary Genius and Triq Dawret is now only available to the residents, which is creating a headache to workers and teachers at the two colleges, and people making use of the sports complex.

In comments to The Malta Independent, Birgu Mayor John Boxall said that in this case, serving Birgu residents comes first. When confronted with the fact that teachers would typically leave by 2.30pm, he responded that this is not guaranteed as nothing is stopping them from remaining there for longer.

Moreover, he mentioned that these spots were also being taken over by users of the nearby sports complex and frequent visitors to the open market every Tuesday morning.

The mayor said that this move has nothing to do with the upcoming local elections, which are less than two weeks away. He questioned the journalist interviewing him, asking if she knew who she was speaking to, as such an action would not be synonymous with his role as mayor of the locality.

“I am not the type to wait until 15 days before the election to do something,” he asserted.

He explained that the installation was carried out following consensus from the local council. The application to install these signs had long been in the pipeline, although he could not provide an estimate of when permission was sought.

He stated that these signs were “a necessity”, as residents, who he confirmed were mostly elderly, did not have a place to park.

People who used to park in the roads which are now restricted have informed The Malta Independent that for most of the day (as could be seen in the photo) these parking spaces are unoccupied, and they could be easily used by college teachers and workers.

“Why should there be so much parking spaces that cannot be used simply because the residents want to return home to an empty road,” one said. “Teachers normally leave in the early afternoon when schools close, so residents who return home after work at 5 would still have where to park. Having said this, many of them own garages. They do not need these parking slots anyway. These signs were not necessary.”