The Nationalist Party said that that “there is no need for any study to confirm what everyone already knows” which, it said, is that Robert Abela and his predecessor’s government “created the traffic” problem.

“No survey is required to validate the daily reality experienced by thousands of Maltese and Gozitans,” the PN said. 

“The Government of Robert Abela and his predecessors created the traffic problem, and now they have closed their eyes to the people's suffering,” it added.

The party said that Maltese people are wasting long hours stuck in their cars, frustrated, “because this Government, which is supposed to be leading the country, operates without any proper plan.”

“We don’t need studies to tell us what we already know, because every time we step out of our homes, we are met with congestion and pollution. But a Times of Malta survey has confirmed this reality, ranking traffic, parking problems, and the lack of reliable public transport as the country’s biggest issue affecting the majority of people,” the PN said.

 The PN recalled how almost four years ago, just a few months before a general election, the Labour Party presented the Metro project, spending more than €2 million of taxpayers’ money on it. As soon as the election was over, they scrapped it, the party said.

“Robert Abela and his colleagues always knew they were never going to implement this project, yet they were comfortable wasting public money just to make people believe they were going to solve all the problems. They misled the public using their own money,” it continued. 

The party said that now the country is facing a situation where traffic is not only creating frustration and anger but is also leading to stress and anxiety. In addition, traffic is increasing air pollution in our country, negatively impacting our health and causing further economic damage.

“It is crystal clear that even when it comes to transport, this Government is made up of amateurs. They have clogged the roads with cars, issued licences indiscriminately, left a public transport system incapable of meeting the basic needs of the Maltese, and burdened the Gozitans with a mediocre ferry that is costing us millions,” the party said.

It added that it appears that the Prime Minister does not get stuck in traffic like every other citizen does daily and noted that he can never understand what hundreds of thousands of people go through every single day due to his incompetence.

The PN said that it has the solutions to address this “crisis.”

The party said that it is proposing the implementation of an “efficient mass transport system”, incentivising the use of and improving infrastructure for alternative methods of transport, and coordinating roadworks in order to avoid congestion.

The party said that it would also ensure that when a road is dug up, all the necessary works are completed at one go to it doesn’t have to be dug up again soon after.

The PN added that it will also offer incentives for those who choose to give up their car for a number of years in favour of using alternative means of transportation.

The party noted how the survey in question “confirms” how the PN understands the struggles of the people, as it ranked the cost of living as the second most pressing issue for the Maltese and Gozitans.

“It is no surprise that our proposed solutions on this matter were well received, especially after last week’s Parliamentary Motion calling on Parliament to address the cost-of-living crisis affecting so many families,” the PN said. 

“Unfortunately, the Government did everything in its power to block this Motion, further proving how disconnected it is from the realities faced by workers, young people, pensioners relying on social benefits, employers, small and medium-sized businesses, and the self-employed,” it added.

 “Others created these problems. And those who created the problems cannot be the ones to solve them,” it said, adding that the PN is working to offer real solutions in the areas that most concern the Maltese and Gozitans.

The statement was signed by PN MP Mark Anthony Sammut, the party’s Shadow Minister for Transport and Mobility.