Mosta centre should be community-friendly, Cassola says

Mosta’s main square should be given back to residents, Arnold Cassola said, adding that town centres should serve the community’s well-being.

The former MEP independent candidate said town squares should not act as transit points for vehicles.

“The Mosta Council must ensure that while the centre is as community-friendly as possible, other peripheral roads are free and unencumbered for cars to pass, especially for public transport to operate efficiently,” Cassola said, noting that commuting around Mosta has become a nightmare for residents because of never ending road works.

He said the Mosta Council should incentivise the use of the pjazza by organising activities for all ages on the weekends. “The council must encourage residents to enjoy this vibrant open space,” he said.

Cassola was reacting to the latest development that sees the newly-installed Nationalist-majority council wanting to reverse the part-pedestrianisation of the main square.

The previous Labour-led council had closed off the main square to traffic between Saturday 6:30pm and Sunday midnight. However, the new council now wants to lift this partial traffic ban with Mayor Joseph Gatt telling MaltaToday a public consultation exercise will be carried out in October to determine the way forward.

Gatt had said that with ongoing roadworks in several streets in and around Mosta, the closure of the square was causing more problems.

A motion to lift the traffic ban is expected to be discussed this evening. The motion also calls for the removal of a 24-hour traffic ban for a whole week in the lead up to the locality’s festa in August. The council wants the main square to be closed off only when festa activities are taking place.