NGOs urge revision of Msida Creek plans: ‘It’s not too late’

NGOs Moviment Graffitti, Rota and Friends of the Earth have urged government’s infrastructure agency to take on board Kamra tal-Periti’s proposal for the Msida Creek project.

“Despite some cosmetic changes, Infrastructure Malta’s Msida Creek megaproject, approved by the PA in October 2023, still lacks basic connectivity for alternative transport users, including pedestrians, bus users and cyclists,” the NGO said. “The project has fundamentally wrong objectives, inviting more through-traffic in the middle of a residential and urban area, even going against the government’s €35,000,000 commitment to create a bicycle-commute network in the central region of Malta.”

The Kamra tal-Periti’s designs come at a very late stage when public contracts for works to redesign Msida Creek and build a flyover have already been awarded and signed.

The Msida Creek project proposed by Infrastructure Malta sees the creation of an open square in front of the parish church, a canal and open spaces along it. However, it also foresees the construction of a flyover between the square and Regional Road to do away with the traffic lights at the junction where traffic from Birkirkara joins the square.

A proposal by the Kamra tal-Periti will see Msida Creek square transformed into a woodland (Photo: Kamra tal-Periti)

However, in a radically different proposal, the Kamra tal-Periti is suggesting the creation of a wooded area in the square that would complement a formal open pjazza in front of the church.

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KTP met with Infrastructure Malta to discuss the proposal on Wednesday.

“KTP’s proposal is just the latest in a string of alternative proposals which civil society groups have illustrated and discussed with IM over the past three years. Regardless of these discussions, IM appears to have always been determined to proceed with the mega flyovers plans since their inception, which will suffocate and further fragment the Msida community in favour of more vehicular traffic,” it said.

Moviment Graffitti said the government project for the Msida Creek lack basic connectivity for alternative transport users, including pedestrians, bus users and cyclists. “The project has fundamentally wrong objectives, inviting more through-traffic in the middle of a residential and urban area, even going against the government’s €35,000,000 commitment to create a bicycle-commute network in the central region of Malta.”

“For every major project, IM issues a call for ‘consultation’, where residents and civil society members have the opportunity to express their concerns and reservations or offer alternatives to their proposals. Civil societies have presented in-depth feedback and alternative solutions to this project from the very beginning, but suggestions have always fallen on deaf ears. Thus, IM CEO Ivan Falzon's comments that the KTP’s proposal is 'too late' and ‘a desperate attempt for media attention’ is a clear refusal to address the issues. This is not too uncharacteristic of IM, sticking to the status quo of listening but having no real intention to accept or integrate constructive feedback into the project. In essence, consultation exercises appear as if they are carried out as nothing more than a tick-box exercise.”

The NGOs postivley noted the recent offer by the Minister for Infrastructure and Public Works, Chris Bonett, to meet KTP to discuss their proposal, and hope that the government recognises that “there is still time to take two steps back, and fundamentally change the desperate Msida Creek megaproject in favour of a project rooted in the correct fundamentals.”

“As NGOs active on the subject matter, and with experts among our ranks, we also reiterate our openness for further dialogue around our alternative plans presented over the past years and invite the politicians to take this golden opportunity to walk the talk; to remain close to the people, to listen and most importantly to adjust,” they said.