The decision by the newly Nationalist-led Mosta local council to temporarily suspend a decision by its Labour-led predecessor on the pedestrianisation of the town’s square has led to much discussion.

Mosta had been led by the Labour Party in the last term, and one of the decisions that the council took was to renovate the square in front of the town’s famous Rotunda parish church and to close it to traffic during weekends.

Fast forward, the Labour Party was defeated by the Nationalist Party in the 2024 local council elections, with the PN returning to leadership in the locality.  One of the first decisions that this council has taken is to suspend this pedestrianisation idea.

Government exponents, including the Transport Minister Chris Bonett, have been quick to speak out against the suspension.  He said that he was initially sceptical of the idea to close the square to traffic, but had seen the benefits once the project was completed.

“I know that some do not like it and prefer that cars be allowed to pass through, and I understand that it is difficult to swim against the current, but this is a decision that must be defended," Bonett said.

The PN-led council meanwhile said that this decision is based on the opinion “of a significant number of residents and commercial entities who felt that the closure had a negative impact on the community and the standard of living in Mosta.”

The Chamber of Architects meanwhile chimed in and said that councillors should not succumb to commercial pressures that disregard community wellbeing.

This is perhaps one of those issues which isn’t black and white: both sides of the coin certainly have their merits. 

For starters, it should be an overarching principle that the town square should be something of a hub for the community to enjoy.  As things were, the Mosta square was little more than a traffic junction which happened to be built next to a very big church.  The benefits of such a project for community wellbeing are quite obvious: more open space equals a better quality of life and a more liveable urban environment.

On the flipside though, such projects cannot be done in isolation.  Pedestrianising the square is all well and good – but was the impact of this decision elsewhere in the town considered?  Were there proper alternatives put in place for traffic flows?  Are there areas where patrons can park should they wish to visit the area?

Another important factor to consider is that Mosta has been effectively besieged by roadworks.  There are works ongoing in several areas of the locality, some of those key access points to the town.  This means that all traffic in and out of Mosta during weekends was being forced through residential roads which cannot cope with such a load.

Make no mistake: the pedestrianisation of key urban spaces within town and villages is the way to go for Malta – but it must be done with a sense of holistic planning to ensure that improving the quality of life in one place doesn’t worsen the quality of life in another.