MIND THE GAP

VALLETTA'S bridge is falling down, falling down, my fair lady. But unlike London Bridge, from where the rhyme originates, our bridge will not be rebuilt as a bridge. Where we now have a road we shall have a gap (or is it two) instead.

We had it from the horse’s mouth on Friday morning, “Pope Pius V Road, one of the main entry points into Valletta will cease to exist”, Transport Malta's (TM) David Sutton told a news conference.

London Bridge was always rebuilt for what it was intended - to provide access, despite it being destroyed and rebuilt quite a few times, since it started as a pontoon bridge in Roman times. A tornado, fires and time all took their toll through the ages and the last but one was sold to an American entrepreneur and ended up in Arkansas.

Unfortunately, details on City Gate’s history proved hard to find online. But I do know that a Baroque Gate with narrow access was what was there before it was replaced by the current architectural aberration.

It was built with such a large and high opening; reputedly, to let carnival floats through at a time of radical social changes. I think that few regret seeing the current gate demolished. But many do not favour the intended gap.

City Gate acts as an essential bridge, although it does not cross water it is a major artery into the town centre. The road roofing the Gate links Castille to the centre of the town. When that is destroyed access to the top part of town will be incredibly and unnecessarily convoluted. As though it is not already complicated enough to manoeuvre around Valletta now.

Mr Sutton said that about 600 cars drive through Pope Pius V Road (the road to disappear) between 8.15 and 9.15 a.m. daily. Well what about the rest of the day, evening and night? How are residents who live around Hastings Gardens going to get home?

And what about the poor residents who will have to put up with all the increased traffic going through their streets? And it will not just be the 600 going through between eight and nine a.m., but the rest going through the rest of the day not to mention the large influx of traffic when there are no CVA charges in the evenings, weekends and feast days, not to mention the various ‘Nottes’ and other events.

“As a resident, let's hope that car hooting is strictly prohibited inside the city, otherwise when there is a traffic jam, which is to be expected, we will all go mad! Local Council and Police please take note,” commented Ms Elizabeth Aquilina, online.

And it is not just noise, what about the fumes? Anyway, car hooting and amplified moving discos should be banned everywhere. But back to Valletta,
“Traffic from the area near Hastings, which accommodates several residences and offices, will go through St Mark's Street, down a short part of Old Bakery, cross through St John Street, up Strait Street cutting cut across through Melita Street to reach the Biaggo area,” said David Sutton. Since Biaggo are actually steps, I take it he meant driving up St Andrew’s Street to South Street. And you see what I mean about convoluted.

At this point I should say that the Hastings area is where I was born, grew up and where my elderly mother still resides at the bottom of South Street and the top of St Andrew’s.
Why the latter street was turned from one way down to a one way up street not that very long ago does not make any sense since all the cars leaving the much-used car park would exit much easier going down away from South Street and it would also lessen the environmental impact of noise and fumes.

To say that it has become increasingly stressful to visit and help with shopping etc, is putting it mildly. But enough about me. How are people going to get to Windmill Street, which is one way, as is Sapper’s Street and all the side streets in the area?

Access into Valletta will only be possible through St Paul’s Street taking you down to the bottom of the city; S t M a r k S t r e e t in Marsamxett, via the side of the Phoenicia Hotel, at the north west bottom end and through the Grand Harbour entrance past the Mediterranean Conference Centre at the South bottom end. Why do I get the feeling that we are being steered away from the top and herded to the bottom?

Mr Sutton said the routes were decided after various scenarios were studied and environmental considerations (obviously not noise and fumes) were taken into account. Apparently, though not taking one blind bit of notice of at least one Valletta councillor.

“As a council member I would have expected that the relevant ministry and Transport Malta would have met with us councillors to share opinions.

“My concern is that many residents are already having a hard time and the destruction of City Gate will only make their lives even worse.

“I have had many complaints, which I presented at Council meetings, but apparently they fell on deaf ears. Nobody has deigned to listen to these complaints, not even the minister concerned.

“I believe that since the government is always trumpeting consultation, consulting the residents should have been the least it could have done. But obviously there is a great chasm between words and action and we (as Valletta councillors) have never ever been consulted on this issue, or indeed the whole project,” Ray Azzopardi commented online.

The mayor, however, has been remarkably silent. It will probably be great for the people living in the apartments overlooking the proposed new gate. No noise and fumes. That’s a bit of social justice balance redressing, seeing as I believe they are government owned flats. I suppose the Government cannot demolish those flats and build new flash ones to compliment its new palace, or can it? As was done to the Tignè government owned residences.

Is it not also ironic (or rather, as Anne Robinson would say on the Weakest Link “stupid not ironic”) that as we tear one bridge down, leaving a gap in the Valletta bastions, we are building another and bridging a gap in the Vittoriosa bastions?

Knock a major one down and build another away from the madding crowd. Not that Vittoriosa is quiet and rural, but it is away from the hub. We improve access there and restrict it here and round and round we go wondering what next.

Paul Micallef commenting online had this to say:
“Some years ago a hole was made in the Cottonera bastions to make way for a new road. The present Government is now bridging this hole so that the two sides are joined together again.

“In Valletta the Government is going to create another hole between the Putirjal bastions. Who knows, maybe in 30 years time someone will come up with the idea of bridging the gap again.”

In the meantime, apathy seems to reign. I tried to generate some interest on Facebook with the following message: “Can we all in Malta on Facebook do something to stop the destruction of the major access point to the centre of Valletta. The residents', especially the elderly's, needs in Valletta have been completely ignored. It is already unacceptable that when a function is on in Valletta there are no emergency access or exit points.”

Few responded, among them thankfully, Flimkien ghal Ambjent Ahjar, who has shown an interest in pursuing the matter. Admittedly, I do not have that many contacts, I am ambiguous about the whole shebang but to my mind this kind of lobbying is precisely how the network should be utilised.

As someone who is supposedly cautious and only accepts people I really know on Facebook, I have just unwittingly invited an incredible number of people to join me on Linkedin!

While half asleep, I thought I was inviting half a dozen people and was stunned to read that I had just invited over 800 people, while also being told “Only invite people you know well and who know you!”

I am only finding out who I sent the invites to by the responses. While I got some pleasant surprises from friends I had lost touch with, I am sure that many,
who recieved one, wondered why? Well if you are one of them, you now know.