Calls for urgent Mġarr road redesign after severe bike accident

Feb 16 2023

Three NGOs wrote an open letter demanding that the Mġarr Road be immediately redesigned in order to prioritise safety off cyclists and pedestrians following an accident.

Moviment Graffiti, Friends of the Earth and Rota wrote an open letter to Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects Minister Aaron Farrugia as well as CEO of Transport Malta Jeffrey Curmi and CEO of Infrastructure Malta Ivan Falzon.

The bicycle lane on Triq Sir Temi Żammit, Mġarr saw an accident which left a cyclist seriously injured on Sunday.

This comes, the NGOs said, after ROTA’s recommendations in the 2021 consultation process were reportedly ignored.

‘Sunday’s accident could have been easily prevented had Rota’s suggestions of segregated cycle lanes been taken on board at the outset, when they were consulted by Infrastructure Malta during the planning phase of this road in 2020.’

‘Paired with a complete lack of an enforceable policy on cycling infrastructure from Transport Malta, Mġarr Road features what is possibly the least usable cycle lane on the island, so narrow that it forces cyclists to rejoin speeding car traffic at several points. It represents a step backwards, not forwards, in encouraging the uptake of active means of transport and in keeping all road users safe.’

‘Fundamentally, road design should seek to ensure safety for all users and tackle entrenched car dependency. Increasing penalties alone will not prevent fatal accidents if our road infrastructure continues to encourage speeding cars at the cost of all other means of transport.’

#MaltaDaily

Malta most densely populated EU country with population of 519,562, census reveals

Feb 16 2023

The National Statistics Office’s final report on ‘Population, migration & other social characteristics’ has revealed that Malta is the European Union’s most densely populated country with 1,649 residents per square kilometre.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Malta Daily (@maltadaily.mt)

On Census Day, 21 November 2021, the final usual resident population in Malta stood at 519,562, more than doubling over a century and growing by more than 100,000 over the past 10 years.

For the first time ever, Malta had more males than females with men accounting for 52 per cent of the population at a total 270,021, with 249,541 women.

Over one in five Maltese residents were foreign, with 115,449 non-Maltese persons residing in Malta on Census Day – an increase of more than five times in the share of foreigners since 2011. Less than 90 per cent of residents were Caucasian while 5.2% was Asian. 6,101 people (1.2 per cent) had more than one racial origin.

With regards to religion, 373,304 residents aged 15 and over identified themselves as Roman Catholic while 17,454 reported belonging to Islam. Another 16,457 identified as belonging to the Orthodox religion while 23,243 stated that they do not have any religious affiliation.

#MaltaDaily

Enemalta working on restoring electricity supply in Gozo following cable damage by Third-Party Contractor

Feb 16 2023

Enemalta, posted on social media that their engineers and technicians are working to restore electricity supply to all localities in Gozo.

This comes after a third-party contractor working in Mellieha damaged the high voltage underground cables supplying the island, causing widespread power outages.

While the incident has caused inconvenience to residents and businesses on the island, Enemalta has assured that they are making progress in restoring the electricity supply.

This incident highlights the importance of ensuring proper safety measures when carrying out work that may affect critical infrastructure, such as high voltage underground cables.

The damage caused by the contractor not only disrupted the electricity supply in Gozo but also highlights the risks that come with undertaking construction work in sensitive areas.

Enemalta is taking swift action to address the issue and restore power to affected

Enemalta, posted on social media that their engineers and technicians are working to restore electricity supply to all localities in Gozo.

This comes after a third-party contractor working in Mellieha damaged the high voltage underground cables supplying the island, causing widespread power outages.

In this case, Enemalta has taken the initiative to inform its customers of the situation and to assure them that the company is taking action to restore the electricity supply.

#MaltaDaily

Shaun Farrugia walks red carpet for Creed III in London

Feb 16 2023

Taking to social media, Maltese singer and songwriter Shaun Farrugia got the opportunity to walk down the red carpet for the new Creed movie coming out this March.

The singer took the chance to pose for some snaps at the event in Leicester Square as fans of the film assembled to get a glimpse of the artists in the movie.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Shaun Farrugia (@shaunfarrrugia)

‘From living the dream and walking your first red carpet alongside actual superstars at the Creed Movie premier in Leicester Square to reality…catching the tube back home’ wrote the singer as he posed next to the subway.

The post also served as a kind of instagram-vs-reality post as he contrasted the two moments of his night.

The third Creed movie will feature Michael B. Jordan, and is based on fighter Adonis’ struggle to maintain his career and family life. The film is set to release in theatres on March 3rd, 2023.

#MaltaDaily