[WATCH] Ian Borg complains about unpopular Marsa Junction park-and-ride: We need change in culture
Roads Minister Ian Borg says it s up to the public to use the park-and-ride infrastructure included in the new Marsa Junction project
27 May 2021, 2:48pm
by Nicole Meilak
Transport Minister Ian Borg is appealing to the public to make use of the Marsa Junction Project s park-and-ride feature, in the hopes of promoting a change in transport culture on the island. We can t force people to use public transport, he said on Monday. From our side we offered the free park-and-ride and all the infrastructure, it s up to the public now.
A promised park and ride facility that was meant to be integrated into the Marsa junction project has failed to materialise, with the consequence that future EU funds to Malta could be negatively affected, MEP candidate Peter Agius said.
The Marsa project, a €70 million, seven-lane flyover project at one of the key routes to the south of Malta, was inaugurated last month and described as the “largest ever” infrastructure investment on the island.
The project was part financed by the European Union, through its Cohesion Fund and Connecting Europe Facility.
In the project description statement written by Transport Malta in 2014, the document includes reference to a designated area meant to be set aside for park and ride facilities.
Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg has hit back at critics of the pomp with which the Marsa Junction road works project was inaugurated, arguing that similar events during Nationalist administrations cost a lot more.
In a Facebook post on Monday, Borg said that the ceremony for the €70 million Marsa Junction project, held earlier this month, cost taxpayers €45,480.
He said that was less than one-third the €141,771 spent to inaugurate the €1.2 million renovation of St George’s Square in Valletta in 2009 and half the €80,123 spent to inaugurate a new €10 million bus terminus outside the capital in July 2011. Both those projects were inaugurated by a Nationalist government.
LIVE | Inawgurazzjoni tal-Proġett tal-Marsa JunctionPosted by MaltaGov on Thursday, April 15, 2021
The Marsa Junction Project has officially been inaugurated by Prime Minister Robert Abela, marking the completion of the three-year mega-project.
In a ceremony on Thursday, Abela was joined by Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg, EU Funds Parliamentary Secretary Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi, and Infrastructure Malta CEO Frederick Azzopardi, to celebrate the complete the inauguration of the project.
The project saw a total investment of €70 million, of which €52 million was co-financed using EU funds.
The junction fully opened to the public last November, but finishing touches were recently finalised and paved the way for Thursday s inauguration.
Infrastructure Malta installs Marsa-Qormi footbridge
Infrastructure agency installs two 40-tonne steel footbridges connecting the different residential areas of Marsa and the centre of Qormi
10 February 2021, 11:08am
by Jonas Simbeye
The 40-tonne arch steel footbridges will connect Dicembru Tlettax Road with the Marsa-Hamrun Bypass, in Santa Venera
Infrastructure Malta has installed two 40-tonne arch steel footbridges which will connect Dicembru Tlettax Road with the Marsa-Hamrun Bypass, in Santa Venera.
The steel superstructures will form a 53-metre segregated pedestrian and cycling crossing over It-Tigrija Road. The investment will cost €1.4 million.
The bridges were placed against two abutment towers situated on the sides of the four-lane arterial road.