The cycling NGO, Rota, said that it expected a more ambitious, forward-looking vision to address traffic congestion, rather than the government's "six points" to ease traffic misery, which it announced last week.

Yesterday week, Transport Minister Chris Bonett presented a number of ideas which he said are aimed to ease traffic congestion, with the intention being to reduce the use of private vehicles during peak hours.

Bonett said the government's plans are based on six points. These are a 24-hour economy, incentives to limit the use of vehicles, parking, public transport, road works coordination and sustainable mobility.

He also said it no longer made sense for services to be delivered at the same time, predominantly during peak hours.

The government suggested that services such as waste collection, cleansing, landscaping and driving lessons can be carried out outside peak traffic hours.

Bonett said this should also apply to the private sector, with the government planning to have open discussions on how deliveries could be made outside peak hours.

The Malta Independent on Sunday reached out to cycling NGO Rota for a reaction on these measures.

Vice-president of the NGO, Juan Buhagiar Duijst, said that Rota expected a more ambitious, forward-looking vision to address traffic congestion through active and micro-mobility solutions.

"Malta deserves better - a future with fewer delays and more efficient movement for everyone," he said.

Buhagiar Duijst said that in recent years, traffic, environmental and transportation issues have consistently been highlighted in surveys as the most pressing concerns for the Maltese population.

"These issues have been the focus of Rota's advocacy for the past 15 years. Unfortunately, the government's efforts over the past few decades have done little to improve micro-mobility," Buhagiar Duijst said.

He said that the latest budget for 2025 included no new initiatives for sustainable transportation; instead, it recycled proposals from previous years.

"While some of these proposals have merit, they are clearly not enough on their own," Buhagiar Duijst said.

He continued that some measures have been repeatedly included in multiple budgets without delivering tangible results.

"A cycling policy proposed back in 2015 and repeated in countless budgets has still not been published," Buhagiar Duijst said.

He said that at the same time, there is still a lack of initiatives focused on pedestrianisation, prioritising active mobility or encouraging people to adopt alternative forms of transport.

"While grants for bicycle purchases can help, they are only a small part of the solution. Malta needs significant investment in safe, reliable infrastructure, as well as a nationwide educational campaign," he said.

Buhagiar Duijst said that Rota believes that presumed liability is one of the most important pillars to protect cyclists and pedestrians.

"This legal protection exists in every EU country except Malta, Cyprus, Ireland and Romania. Legal protection is one of the most important changes needed to make our roads safer for cyclists and pedestrians," he said.

Buhagiar Duijst said that Rota is also continuing its call on the government to finally publish the long-promised cycling policy.

He said that without a proper policy in place, the infrastructure being built lacks the correct standards and is inconsistent across Malta.

"This is evident in many of the infrastructure projects proposed and constructed in recent years. With a proper cycling policy, the limited infrastructure we do have would be of much higher quality, more effective and most importantly safer," Buhagiar Duijst said.

He said that a policy would also improve the connectivity of cycling paths, making them usable for the public and for commuting.

"We also believe that all major infrastructure projects should include proper cycling and pedestrian paths that connect in all directions," Buhagiar Duijst said.

He reiterated Rota's call that the Msida Creek project does not cater to cycling commuters. Buhagiar Duijst said that the cycling paths in the current design do not lead anywhere, making them useless for people commuting to work or university.

"Finally, we encourage the government to consider more sustainable forms of tourism, like cycling tourism, which has proven to be more profitable than cruise tourism in Europe," he said.

He continued that in 2022, cycling tourism generated €4bn in Italy and €44bn across Europe.

"In fact, the economic value of cycling tourism was €6bn more than cruise tourism in 2016," he said, quoting statistics by the European Cyclists' Federation.

Yet, he said that Malta continues to invest heavily in cruise liner operations, the most polluting form of transport, while investing, little to nothing, in cycling and pedestrian infrastructure.

"Rota believes Malta deserves a transportation strategy that prioritises sustainability, safety and mobility for all," Buhagiar Duijst concluded.

This newsroom also reached out to road safety NGO Doctors for Road Safety (D4RS), who said that although measures to reduce traffic congestion are important, the focus should remain on achieving Vision Zero and avoiding deaths due to road crashes.

D4RS said that this process must be based on investigation and evaluation of car crashes and pedestrian deaths, as well as near misses, by means of a structured approach including the setting up of an Investigation Bureau, which is still awaiting implementation.

"Reducing traffic may not automatically reduce the risks of death and serious injury to car occupants and pedestrians associated with car crashes," the NGO said.

It said that as doctors, the NGO favours proposals which are based on scientific evidence, and which have been trialled successfully in other countries.

The NGO said that ensuring an efficient, convenient and comfortable public transport system is clearly an important and significant priority.

"Furthermore, there is much scientific support for sustainable mobility measures which encourage and enable safer walking and cycling, not only as measures to reduce traffic congestion, but also as measures to improve health outcomes such as reducing obesity, risk of cardiovascular disease, strokes and prevalence of diabetes," D4RS concluded.