T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

T-21 JANUARY 2021 | EDITION 01

T H E T R A N S P O R T M A LTA Q UA R T E R LY

The Flag of Reputation, Confidence and Quality The New Urban Transport Phenomenon

The SMITHs Concept Explained

RESPECT THE SPEED LIMIT Speed should be reduced when sharing the road with cyclists.

DESTINATIONS

contents PUBLISHER

Transport Malta EDITOR

06

Foreword

12

Looking back at 2020 and to 2021 with greater optimism to achieve more

16

Transport Malta’s Enforcement Directorate

19

The Rapid Traffic Response Team (MC Unit)

24

Introducing the Maritime Enforcement Department

Peter Paul Barbara DESIGN AND LAYOUT

Pure Concepts Design Studios PRINTER

iCreate In collaboration with the TM Marketing Department

Transport Malta Centre Triq Pantar, Lija, LJA 2021 Malta

28

www.transport.gov.mt

Copyright : All rights reserved

Images including cover – peterpaulbarbara (except images on pages 12, 42 and 58/59)

35

The Flag of Reputation, Confidence and Quality

38

New Initiatives by the Merchant Shipping Directorate

42

Drones and More…

48

Foundation for Transport Launched

DISCLAIMER The contents of the articles in this publication is the responsibility of the respective author and it does not necessary mean that the views expressed therein are the same or reflect those of Transport Malta.

e-KICKSCOOTERS The New Urban Transport Phenomenon

55

The impact of the EU’s Mobility Package on Malta

58

Oil and Hazardous and Noxious Substances Pollution Preparedness and Response

64

How Numbers Are Changing In Scheduled Public Transport

69

Inter-harbour maritime ferry services

74

Transport Malta: The First Ten Years 20102020

76

SMITHs (Sustainable Multi-Intermodal Transport Hubs)

The Merchant Shipping Directorate

info@transport.gov.mt

Copyright of all the images used in this publication remains the right of the photographer.

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ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

3

A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR PETER PAUL BARBARA

Peter Paul Barbara is Director within the Office of the Chief Operating Officer and Deputy CEO

T-21 – The Transport Authority Quarterly is a new Transport Malta publication which will be available on our official Transport Malta Website in soft format for everyone to download or share. For those who would want to own a paper version, this will also be available in limited numbers from the Customer Care or Reception of the Authority’s Head Office in Lija.

The publication will cover the latest news and information on initiatives taken by the Authority from time to time and for each transport mode, namely: aviation, maritime transport and land transport.

But not only this, it is planned that the publication

“

THE PUBLICATION WILL COVER THE LATEST NEWS AND INFORMATION ON INITIATIVES TAKEN

BY THE AUTHORITY FROM TIME TO TIME AND FOR EACH TRANSPORT MODE...

4

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

would also include content on related transport infrastructure,

sustainable

mobility,

Intelligent

Transport Systems, Enforcement, Logistics as well as Education and Services.

The list of subjects

goes on and on especially in view of the horizontal issues that cut across transportation and which most of the time affect our way of life.

This publication was another initiative which I have been wanting to see implemented for a good number of years. Finally, it is being launched. It will be interesting to see how the public reacts to it.

What makes this publication different from all other publications, is the fact that it does not include any commercial advertising in it, meaning that all of its pages are strictly made up of articles, photography and illustrations, wherever possible.

Any

form

of

advertising

and

back at the events that paved the

As I said above, the sector is very

in

way for the Authority in its quest to

vast and crosscuts other sectors of

this publication is that related to

implement its Mission Statement, it

the economy at all levels. I compare

services given by the Authority,

also gave us the opportunity to carry

transportation with the circulation

or, as part of a dissemination of

out some soul searching and take

system

information

marketing

material

included

of

the

human

body.

targeting

account of what has been achieved

Transportation is the same for a given

specific campaigns that the Authority

and more importantly, what has not

country, city, town or village.

conducts from time to time.

been achieved.

exercises

As far as content of this publication is From my standpoint, I have always seen a gap, or better still, an “information

gap”

between

the

Authority and the general public or stakeholders. Having a website like any other organisation is fine, but sometimes, members of the

concerned, in this first edition, one will find useful information on the latest

“WE WILL CONTINUE STRIVING TO IMPROVE OUR SERVICES...”

initiatives taken by the Merchant Shipping Directorate, what one needs to do to operate a drone, a feature on the work that currently is being carried out by our Maritime Enforcement

general public find it cumbersome

Unit and the Ports and Yachting

or too complicated to go and look

Directorate, other recent initiatives

for specific information on initiatives,

Without

being

defensive

or

that the Authority took during the

policies and services that the

apologetic but at the same time being

last few weeks, (like the launching

Authority launches from time to time.

sympathetic with all those members

of a new Foundation dedicated for

of the public whenever they feel let

transport) and other features which

I will label this first edition as a pilot

down by the system, it is to be noted

I am sure many will find interesting.

phase or test phase in order to see

that the majority of the professionals

These subjects were chosen in view

how it is received and how it can

that work with the authority and in all

of the fact that they are very recent

be improved, that is, if a decision is

aspects of it, do their utmost to be of

and hence, it makes sense that we

taken to continue with it. This is in

service for the public and the sector

continue providing information on

line with how policies are usually

in general.

them to keep up the momentum of

carried out within the Authority -

information dissemination.

testing them out there on the field,

We will continue striving to improve

and gathering data and information

our services for both the public

As one can see, the content is

through which one would be able to

and all of the stakeholders that one

balanced, with articles that are

improvise and make adjustments,

way or another come in touch with

not too technical and illustrations

however fine they may be, in order to

transportation. I am sure that this

and photography in order to keep

present something that works.

publication will be of service to the

it as interesting as possible. A

public and will bring the Authority

word of thanks goes to the Senior

Referring to the exposé made by the

closer to your needs. This is your

Management for their support as well

Authority’s Chairman and CEO in his

authority as well so make it yours

as to the Marketing Department of

introductory remarks, 2020 marked

and if you, as the reader, would like to

Transport Malta for their assistance

two important events, being, the

contribute, feel free to do so. Please

and

10th Anniversary of Transport Malta

address any suggestions that you

publication to fruition.

as well as the advent of the Covid-19

might want to put forward using

Pandemic to our shores. While the

the e-mail address providedin the

I hope you will enjoy it.

first served as a beacon for us to look

contents page.

The Editor.

support

for

bringing

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

this

5

FOREWORD MR. JOSEPH BUGEJA Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer, Transport Malta

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ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

A CHALLENGING YEAR

We have just started a New Year which brought to a close Transport Malta’s Ten-Year Anniversary but yet in 2021 we are launching another new Initiative for the general public and stakeholders alike, which is precisely the launch of this new Transport Malta quarterly publication.

2020 has been an extraordinary

We are seeing a record number

year to say the least, with challenges

of public transport passengers

never to be experienced before in

increasing every year, quarter after

Transport Malta’s short history since

quarter, achieving a staggering

its official inception. The last biggest

number of more than 58 million

challenge since the launch of the

passengers in one year. Public

Authority was the public transport

transport has seen a revival and

reform which was happening at the

is helping a modal shift away from

same time that Transport Malta was

private car use, helping our effort

being set up and which culminated

towards

in the introduction of a new National

Our schemes ensuring free public

Scheduled Bus Transport Operator

transport for numerous sectors are

in July of 2011, as well as the lack of

testament to our commitment for

confidence among commuters that

sustainability and our aim is having

this brought with it.

free public transport for all in the

sustainable

transport.

foreseeable future.

The challenge that the Authority faced to bring back the confidence

2020, on the other hand, will be

of commuters to start using public

remembered as the year of the

transport again, was indeed a

Covid-19

mammoth task to say the least.

affected the entire nation, not least

Today we can proudly say that not

our transport sector in its entirety.

only we have managed to restore

So, we can say that the ten-year

this confidence, but we are also

history of the Authority started and

proud to be registering the highest

closed with two marked challenges

ever percentage increase of bus

of considerable proportions.

pandemic,

which

has

patronage.

Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer, Transport Malta

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

7

Although the pandemic left great

us that certain public authorities and

approaches being taken up by both

negative impacts on the transport

branches of the Government as well

the public sector and the respective

sector, especially in the maritime

as Private Companies and certain

stakeholders to address these

and aviation sectors, where both

some pockets of Self-Employed can

challenges and their outlook towards

our main Cruise Liner industry and

still function and get on with their

the use of new technologies and

our National Airport almost came

business.

services that are being introduced.

to a complete standstill,

save for

This helps them meet their needs

necessary humanitarian reasons, it

It also showed us how government

of delivering efficient and improved

had also served as a learning curve

policy can be shaped in the future

inter-connected operations within

and in some way showed us how we

to contribute towards an improved

modern, environmentally friendly

can adapt to similar situations when

quality of life and that indeed,

transportation systems.

they arise. More so, however, through

certain sectors of the economy can

this health crisis, we have experienced

still function even if we travelled

Although 2020 was indeed a

a situation where we travelled less.

less and managed our time and

challenging year, one must not

resources better for the benefit of

forget to mention the great strides

our environment.

that the Authority had managed

This, in a way, served as a real pilot project to test how road transport

to take so far, that is, before the

related emissions can be lowered

During the last year, it also became

and to what extent this can contribute

evident

to better environmental gains.

Transport, other segments within

Our Maritime Flag is currently the

that

apart

from

Covid-19 Pandemic struck.

Land

the transport industry also were

leading flag in Europe and since the

It has also showed us how in certain

proved to be quite challenging as

establishment of the Authority, its

sectors, old work practices can be

well, especially when considering

register has doubled in size to a record

improved to limit unnecessary travel

the livelihood of the countless

83 million gross tons. Our harbours,

as much as possible. It showed us that

employees that the sector employs.

with their geographical importance

in some cases, working from home

In spite of this, it is very encouraging

and aesthetic beauty fall under

does have its benefits. This showed

to

Transport Malta’s responsibility.

see

today’s

innovative

Our Vessel Traffic Services see

WE ARE SEEING RECORD NUMBER OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT PASSENGERS EVERY YEAR, QUARTER AFTER QUARTER, ACHIEVING A STAGGERING NUMBER OF MORE THAN 58 MILLION PASSENGERS IN ONE YEAR. 8

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

about 13,000 ship movements every year with bunkering approaching the 2.5 million tonnes annually, not to mention the sheer amount of cruise liners entering our harbour daily.

On the other hand, on the aviation side, our Aviation Registry has grown by leaps and bounds, garnering over 500

aircraft,

an

unprecedented

number, which has more than doubled since the inception of Transport Malta.

We are always exploring new ventures and have in fact just launched a new initiative targeting aircraft leasing, thus strengthening our aviation hub and cluster.

Indeed, over the past ten years, Transport Malta has witnessed several changes – both within the organisation as well as within the whole transport sector.

As our

country adapted itself to the new realities over the past decade, the Authority is now looking to adapt even better in face of the near future and beyond, as hopefully, Malta and indeed the rest of the world will come reeling out of the effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic and start rebuilding those sectors which were hit the hardest.

In addition to this, one must not forget the upcoming challenges and opportunities that the European Union Green Deal will bring about with it, to make transport more environmentally sustainable while achieving greater energy efficiency.

Hence, we need to update and adjust both our targets as well as our strategies to overcome them.

In this regard, one cannot fail to mention the fact that the Authority was and is a catalyst and the main promoter

of

cleaner

transport

alternatives, like cycling, electric vehicles

and

Transport several and

shared

Malta schemes,

educational

transport.

implemented initiatives,

campaigns

to

encourage the uptake of new technologies

and

Eco-friendly

transport options while spurring a cultural shift in the Maltese commuter behaviour.

Going back to Transport Malta’s Ten-Year Anniversary, as part of its initiatives and activities to celebrate this important landmark of the

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

9

Authority, after the publication of

Hence, the scope of this quarterly

went

its first book, entitled, The First Ten

publication is to serve as an outreach

respective stakeholders as well as the

Years, 2010-2010, Transport Malta

tool intended to keep informing the

general public. One of the aims of this

is now launching this new publication

public about such initiatives and

publication is precisely to avoid this.

- T-21 – The Transport Authority

services which Transport Malta

Quarterly.

It aims to inform the

professionals about the Authority’s latest activities and initiatives being undertaken by Transport Malta, coupled with the latest news which the public should be more aware of.

both

by

the

Many members of staff and other

general public as well as related stakeholders and other interested

unnoticed,

Transport

“TODAY, WE HAVE A COHESIVE AND INTERCONNECTED AUTHORITY THAT GENERATES SYNERGIES...”

Malta

Officials

have

contributed over time to implement novel projects and initiatives which in many cases mirror other initiatives taken in other European Countries and beyond and where necessary adapted these to fit our national specificities.

Transport Malta launches a number of initiatives and activities from time

This is a dynamic and challenging

to time, which are usually covered by

process which happens over time

media newsrooms, media houses and

takes and provides from time to time.

but is exciting, to say the least. It is a

virtual platforms. However, at times,

Over the past 10 years, there were a

fact that the Authority challenged the

that particular service would not be

number of important initiatives and

status quo of the Maltese culture of

followed up, or the public may not

projects which were successfully

how we do things.

necessarily be well informed about it.

carried out, but which unfortunately

10

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

Today, we have a cohesive and

majority of the Maltese public. It

an interconnected Authority that

also re-enforced its links with both

generates

between

the Maltese business community as

sectors

well as earned the respect and trust

the

synergies

different

transport

and shares differing ideas and

of the foreign investor.

resources in a manner that ensures consistency,

and

Since the inception of Transport

efficiency in mapping out the policies

effectiveness

Malta, the level of cooperation

and strategies for the development of

between

the transport sector in Malta.

players,

stakeholders, Government

industry authorities,

agencies, ministries as well the Now that we have started our 11th

general public has certainly improved

year, I am pleased that our growing

and flourished. This publication will

team of professionals constantly

contribute further towards this end.

I trust this new quarterly publication will give readers the opportunity to get to know us better and understand how far and high we have come in this ongoing journey, with and for all transport stakeholders as well as how we will continue to be protagonists in shaping the future of transportation in the Maltese Islands.

delivers on our promises. Above all we strive to ensure that high levels of

On a final note, I would like to thank, on

integrity and corporate governance

behalf of the Authority, all Chairmen,

are duly implemented.

CEOs and members that served on the Authority’s board for the last ten

It is with a sense of satisfaction that,

years. Their valuable contributions

today, I can state that Transport

embody

Malta has gained the trust of the

represents today.

what

Transport

Malta

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

11

LOOKING BACK AT 2020 AND TO 2021 WITH GREATER OPTIMISM TO ACHIEVE MORE DR. IAN BORG Hon Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects

12

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

T

he

transport

sector

confirmed its commitment towards

has

been

crucial

progressive work for this essential

towards

sector. Keeping in line with this

a

contributor Malta’s

economic

industry’s

guiding

principles

of

successes and achievements in

reputation, quality and confidence,

recent years, whether on land,

the financial plan for the coming

air or sea. It is true that the year

year seeks further growth and

2020 took a different turn and

sustainability.

one might say that all sectors, not just

transport,

were

negatively

On a more major scale, one must

impacted by the consequences of

note the phenomenal successes

the Covid-19 pandemic to a certain

of our maritime sector such as its

degree. Despite this, the Maltese

Merchant

Government has once again proven

which has held its position as

its adaptability and dynamicity, and

first in Europe and sixth in the

took all the necessary measures and

world; Malta now holds the largest

precautions to make sure that Malta

superyachts register in the world.

was safeguarded and protected

Worth also pointing out is the fact

from this pandemic. As the Minister

that the maritime sector never

for Transport, I am very pleased that

stopped generating employment

in 2020, amidst this pandemic, the

and we must be grateful to all

sector still celebrated milestones

those hardworking people who,

and

despite the difficulties of COVID-19,

achievements

in

maritime,

aviation, and land.

continued

Shipping

giving

Directorate

their

utmost

service in moving the necessary To begin with, one cannot disregard

goods so that our country could

the maritime sector’s importance

continue operating smoothly. That

in continuing to turn our island’s

is why we introduced the Port

economic wheel. In this year’s

Charges Refund Scheme as part of

budget, the government further

our Economic Regeneration Plan.

Hon Minister for Transport and Capital Projects

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

13

And in order to sustain such a

this, and we will be guaranteeing a

and four new certified airlines, with

successful sector, we cannot forget

cleaner lung and a better quality of

three

about its infrastructure. In fact,

life for our country. I am confident

wanting to certify themselves in the

one of the projects we are most

that Transport Malta will operate

near future.

enthusiastic about is the €50 million

smoothly in terms of this initiative

Grand Harbour Clean Air Project

and furthermore I cannot stress

Another part of this success must

which will cut 90% of emissions

enough that Malta is amongst the

be celebrated due to the expansion

by introducing a clean electrical

first in Europe to implement this.

of Malta’s aviation industry in terms

supply for cruise liners in our Grand

other

potential

additions

of last June’s launch of Aircraft

Harbour. Thanks to this project we

The aviation sector, despite this

Leasing. Malta has been a long-

will continue eliminating a number

challenging year, also celebrated

standing

of respiratory diseases and other

more

registry,

for the registration of aircraft and

health problems through drastic

surpassing

expectations.

this initiative further confirmed the

reductions in air emissions. It is

This growth was partly driven by

existing aviation hub and continued

estimated that each passenger ship

some of our existing Air Operator

to build on the aviation cluster in

that spends eight hours moored

Certificates, and partly by new

Malta by attracting potential and

in the harbour produces as much

companies coming on board. The

effective stakeholders to invest

smoke and emissions as 300,000

Malta 9H Aviation Register now

in our country’s aviation sector.

cars driving at once from Ċirkewwa

holds a total of more than 500

We hope that under the current

to Marsaxlokk. We will eliminate

aircraft registered under its name

circumstances we will continue to

14

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

growth

in

our

its

reputable

jurisdiction

“OUR PRESENT GOVERNMENT HAS A CLEAR AND HOLISTIC VISION OF MALTA...”

The government’s end goal is

Our present government has a clear

to ultimately shift towards zero-

and holistic vision of Malta as the

emission land transport vehicles.

island which will provide a greener

Just as we are incentivising people

lung and improved air quality with the

to take this step with their personal

least amount of emissions. We want

vehicles and opt for more economic

to instill a sense of intermodality, and

and cleaner ones, we are also looking

we look forward to becoming a hub

to create more incentives that entice

that endorses alternative modes of

the public to make the leap towards

transport. The future is promising.

more use of sustainable alternative

Our

attract more new operators to our

modes of transport. One example

working towards strengthening and

Government

will

continue

skies and at the same time we will

of how we are pushing for this

promoting sustanaibility in all its

continue to support our present

positive change is the car, motor

areas making up this sector as well.

ones to relaunch. One thing we do

and bike sharing initiative which will

Our work has only just started. We

not want is to grow our register at the

now provide more opportunities

will continue delivering.

expense of quality and standards.

and further flexibility for people

We have one of the best reputations

to make use of cleaner means of

and we aim to continue to maintain

transport and to shift from one mode

and improve our standing.

of transport to another according to their needs.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

15

TRANSPORT MALTA’S ENFORCEMENT DIRECTORATE KEVIN FARRUGIA Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Transport Malta

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ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

The Transport Malta Enforcement Directorate is one

Apart from Enforcement, the Directorate is also

of the Directorates which grew exponentially over the

responsible for Traffic Management and also manages

last few years to better respond to growing demands of

the Transport Malta’s Road Permit System. It is also

transport enforcement related regulations, both on land

responsible for the running and operations of the

and on sea. The Directorate also investigates complaints

National Traffic Control Centre, which manages all

about unsafe vehicles and other passenger carriers,

of Transport Malta’s CCTV, VMS and traffic lights

provides security services in our ports as well as enforces

systems. The Directorate also organises and hosts the

safety regulations at sea, among other duties.

National Traffic Management Committee, previously organised by the Transport Ministry, to oversee all

The Directorate coordinates closely with other Law

traffic management issues at a national level, with the

Enforcement and Regulatory agencies including the

active participation of all the national stakeholders

Police, the Army and LESA to ensure safe, legal and

involved, including representation from Local Councils,

properly maintained means of transportation and the

the GRTU, IM, Contractors, MTA, MPT and all the traffic

upholding of all related regulations. This in light of the

enforcement agencies, amongst others. We will take a

fact that the Directorate has the responsibility of the

closer look at these departments and their functions in

overall enforcement of land transport according to

future editions of this publication.

the provisions of the Authority for Transport in Malta Act, and other laws and regulations regulating road transport and port security.

From this end, TM has over the past few months invested heavily to increase its personnel as well as its assets, both relating to land and maritime enforcement. A specific article on Maritime Enforcement is also being featured in

In this article we will take a closer look at the enforcement role of the Land Enforcement Department, which carries out a multitude of operations to meet its responsibilities and obligations as enacted by law.

this edition.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

17

The main functionalities of the Land Transport Department include the following: •

Enforcing the regulatory function of

•

Malta premises; •

management;

licensed land transport service providers; Ensuring that all licensed vehicles are

•

review of all the current regulations

and above all, roadworthy;

falling under Enforcement and Traffic Management

Providing Rapid Response and quick traffic

Traffic Control on all our major roads during

as

Intelligent

Bringing all defaulters before respective courts/tribunals

•

well

The Department fulfils the above by: •

traffic peak hours;

as

Transport Systems.

clearance solutions; •

Participating in future EU and Nationally funded projects;A continuous regulatory

within legal emission levels, insured, safe,

•

Piloting new work practices and innovation in the fields of enforcement and traffic

Transport Malta when it comes to all

•

Providing security services on Transport

to

be

sanctioned

Clamping, towing and removing of motor

accordingly;Following up complaints by

vehicles and encumbering objects which

acting when action is required;

are either obstructing a passage or traffic flows or are breaching traffic relating

•

new road works;

regulations; •

Enforcing the applicable regulations on

•

Traffic Management;

Carrying

out

roadside

inspections

and tests related to emissions, road •

Management

of

temporary

worthiness, carriage of dangerous goods

Traffic

and tachographs;

Management during works; •

Issuing of Road Permits for Emergency

•

Conducting company checks at the operating centre of companies involved in

Works;

international activities; •

Overlooking

Traffic

Management

Schemes;

•

Managing

processes

and

effects

enforcement of road works conditions and •

permit infringements;

Engineering Support for Intelligent Traffic Systems, Traffic Lights and Pedestrian Crossings;

•

Managing, implementing, reporting and transposing all related the EU Regulations/

•

Intelligent Transport Systems and the Management and operation of the Traffic Control Centre which monitors traffic 24/7;

18

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

Directives pertinent to enforcement.

The Rapid Traffic Response Team (MC Unit)

•

impacting traffic flow, including road works and construction; •

The Rapid Traffic Response Team is a roaming patrol service that provides quick clearance solutions and traffic control for hazards, especially on

motorcycles and by next year its

•

fleet will be increased by another four units in order to increase its outreach. The Unit also works closely with the Police, the Emergency

to attend to a range of safety and congestion related incidents.

the

risk

of

a

provides

real

time

traffic

intelligence and surveillance to Transport Malta Base.

Clamping & Towing

secondary incident or accident

The Enforcement Directorate has

taking place;

spearheaded an overhaul of its

patrols designated routes to

with the aim of strengthening its

proactively

operational capabilities. This led to

manage

traffic

accidents and incidents;

The Unit’s Traffic Response Officers management and are also deployed

minimises

•

regulatory functions and powers •

Services and LESA Traffic Wardens. are also highly trained in accident

ensures that the area where an place is made safe;

hours. Considerable investment was made in this unit. Currently, it has six

public transport;

accident, incident or event took

major roads during traffic peak

clears main bus corridors which are hindering passages to

The Rapid Traffic Response Team: •

monitors activities that are

the publication of a comprehensive set of amendments for the Clamping

•

ensures the safe removal of

and Removal of Motor Vehicles and

disabled vehicles from main

Encumbering Objects Regulations

roadways;

(S.L. 65.13).

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

19

The underlying rationale behind

parking (6,528 tickets), followed by

the 867 fines issued in 2018.

the

in

licence not affixed to the windscreen

Such fines are issued following a

grant

(3,751 tickets) and un-renewed

site inspection carried out by the

licences (2,786 tickets).

Field Officers of the department,

the

recent

amendments

regulations

was

to

Enforcement Officers of Transport

in relation to temporary traffic

Malta the power to clamp and remove vehicles which are being illegally used on our roads. Such powers were previously reserved to the Commissioner of Police and

Enforcement on Road Contractors/ Service Providers

Local Councils. As a result of the amendments, the Authority now has the right to clamp and remove from the road, vehicles which are used on the road without having been registered and licensed with the Authority and vehicles bearing

In 2019, the Directorate issued 2,254 fines to contractors and/or service providers for not abiding by the laws and regulations related to road works. This is a sharp increase from

foreign number plates which are not properly licensed for use on the road and which are being used abusively in breach of the Motor Vehicles Registration and Licensing Act (Cap. 368) and regulations made under it.

During 2019, a total of 547 vehicles were clamped while 350 vehicles were towed.

Enforcement of Traffic Regulations In

2019,

the

Enforcement

Directorate issued a total of 16,512 tickets for various contraventions that fall under its remit. The majority of tickets were issued during the month of August (1,579 tickets) followed by January (1,524 tickets) and both July & October (1,492 tickets). Most of the tickets issued were in the localities of St Julian’s (2,562 tickets), St Paul’s Bay (2,436 tickets) and Valletta (1,312 tickets).

Most of the contraventions issued were primarily related to illegal

20 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

management conditions and also following

assessment

of

road

reinstatement conditions.

The following tables indicate the number of Inspections undertaken by the Enforcement Directorate in 2019.

SMS Emissions tests

Called for test

Passed

Failed

283 vehicles

235

29

The procedure used is that vehicles not showing up for first letter calls are called again for second calls. Hence the above figure shows all calls during 2019 including the said doubles (those which failed to show up or failed test on first call). Otherwise the ‘Passed’ and ‘Failed’ columns are the correct amount for those showing up on first, second calls or subsequent dates (up to 31.12.2019) Roadside Technical Inspections

Inspected

Passed

Failed

M1/N1

748

416

332

N2

925

465

460

N3

547

212

335

O2

2

1

1

O3

1

0

1

O4

83

35

48

M2

296

186

110

M3 (route buses)

706

254

452

M3 (coaches)

207

144

63

T5

0

0

0

TOTAL

3516

1714

1802

ADR inspections

Inspected

Passed

Failed

74

41

33

(as per entries in database)

Roadside tachograph inspections

Company checks

Number of inspections

Days checked

Passed

Failed

8

224

3

4

1

0

0

0

0

0

(0-2 pts risks (3-10 pts included here) medium risks)

Failed (+10 pts high risks)

Charges issued Badly maintained (multiple faults) during RTI’s

146

Excessive emissions

11

Lights

154

Worn tyres

71

Overloading of cargo / protruding load

10

Leaks

9

Other VIU related

126

Enforcement related whilst on VIU duties (recorded)

40

TOTAL

567

(Source Transport Malta Annual Report 2019)

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

21

22

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ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

23

P a t r i c k P o l l a c c o, Director Maritime Enforcement Department

Introducing the Maritime Enforcement Department

24

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

The

Maritime

•

Enforcement

is done by carrying out enforcement

Department (‘MED’) started off

and security patrols around the coast,

Port Security Officer (PSO)

way back in 2008, that is, before

particularly inside our harbours and

in its exigencies, including

Transport Malta was established.

in stretches of the coast known for

the participation in drills and

Since

swimming, but not only.

exercises;

then,

the

Department

gradually evolved into what it is

Our

today, a fully functional Department

surveillance of shipping movements,

work

involves

with increased functions, personnel

terminal operations and operations

and resources.

within Maltese waters, specifically at

Fully support the office of the

constant

ports and port facilities. The MED’s

•

Monitoring

of

commercial

operations and safe navigation;

•

Being in conjunction with Police

When it all started, I was asked by the

functions continued to expand

and the Armed Forces of Malta

Malta Maritime Authority CEO at the

significantly over time, and carries

to provide VIP escorts;

time, who gave direction to increase

out ancillary tasks such as coastal

enforcement on the sea…‘irrid ninforza

and bay patrols, monitoring of

iktar fuq il-baħar - f’idejk’, he told me.

marine related activities and events

•

Escort in and outbound piloted vessels;

including sporting events, providing From then on, I never looked back,

VIPs with escorts in conjunction

and with the full cooperation of

with the Armed Forces of Malta and

the Police, I started to join their

the Police, and other tasks which

Administrative Law Enforcement

include coordination with external

officers during sea patrols. This

enforcement agencies.

•

Closures and related port traffic management;

•

Carry out random inspections as required on any vessel

went on until the Authority equipped

operating within the Maltese

MMA1, the Harbour Master’s launch,

The department continues to ensure

with the required blue light and siren

that all port users and commercial

and a few months later launched

operators comply with the relevant

two new Capelli RHIBS and to

legislation

date, the small fleet counts five

procedures, taking all necessary

vessels. Today, the Authority can

enforcement measures, including the

boast of having an autonomous and

issuance of fines as well as taking all

Apart from the above, the MED also

highly specialised department to

necessary legal action against those

engages itself in the “Safety at Sea

effectively complement the existing

in contravention of the law.

Campaigns” through participation in

enforcement agencies with the main

The following are the main core

media spots and other educational

aim of maintaining safety and good

competences:

programs

and

industry

related

order within the Maltese waters.

territorial waters; and

•

Issue citations and take any legal action as required against those contravening the law.

that

include

touring

journalists on patrols to experience

•

Sea

security

patrols

and

The MED’s main function is to ensure

response to Port facilities sea

secure marine operations, and this

borne security reports;

the job hands on.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

25

Units carry out bay patrols checking S/Z, fairway buoys, special marker buoys and cardinal marks as well as report damages found in their respective department of ownership. Additional tasks carried out by MED are:

•

Shipside & Port facility Patrol;

•

Commercial inspections - looking for the validity of the CVC, manning document and COC. The Logbook is also checked onboard commercial vessels;

•

Pleasure boat inspections by looking for the vessel registration and insurance documents, local N/L and recommended equipment;

•

Assist other departments when requested such as the Hydrograph and Berthing Department; and

•

Coordination of marine related activities by enforcing the NTM.

It is to be noted that between January and August of this year, more than 2,170 inspections on the sea were carried out, from which 712 were found to be in breach of maritime regulations. A total of 436 citations were issued and 166 warnings were given out. Apart from these, one has to note that more than 1,496 inspections were carried out on boats, which all resulted to be in conformity with regulations.

26 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

The Maritime Control Centre The

Maritime

Control

Centre

(‘MCC’) is another equally important pillar within the MED. It is manned on a 24/7 basis by trained uniformed personnel with their main duties consisting of the coordination of enforcement operations and CCTV surveillance of the main ports and other strategic zones, amongst other operational duties.

New Personnel and Assets

This will greatly improve our assets

Last month the department took

to keep up with the demand.

on 11 new recruits to join our team, hence increasing our members of

I would thus like to thank all of

staff. This is further complemented

those who have contributed to the

by an expansion of our fleet by

commencement and continuous

another five new all-weather RHIBS,

expansion

equipped with the latest navigational

particularly the management , the

aids to enhance both the safety as

dedicated crew, CCTV operators

well as the working conditions of the

and the supporting office personnel.

of

the

department,

crew during their long hours at sea.

These services and facilities would not have been possible without the continued support of our current administration and to my dedicated team. The future of the department seems promising.

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27

S P E C I A L F E AT U R E

THE MERCHANT SHIPPING DIRECTORATE Ivan Sammut

REGISTRAR GENERAL OF SHIPPING AND SEAMEN

An Introduction

Hence it plays a very important, role

its client base, the Directorate is

even within the Maltese economy.

also responsible for regulating and controlling the licensing of shipping

The Merchant Shipping Directorate

The Directorate is also entrusted

organisations

is one of the Directorates within

with regulating the employment

controlling

the structure of Transport Malta. It

and certification of seafarers and

maritime

regulates, controls and administers

promoting and advancing the skills of

services for Maltese ships.

all matters relating to merchant

seafarers and of persons employed

shipping

pollution

in the maritime industry, fostering

The Directorate is organised into five

prevention and control as provided

Malta’s relations in international

departments each with their own

under the Merchant Shipping Act

shipping fora and administering

distinct areas of responsibility, yet

and other related legislation. It

the implementation of maritime

interacting with and complementing

includes ship and yacht registration

and

under the Malta Flag and its

conventions

technical performance related to safety and pollution prevention

launched in November of this year.

comprehensive service.

and

marine

other

and and

radio

communication

related

international

one

and

agreements.

particularly with regard to Maltese

Several initiatives in this sense were

ships, a unified approach and a

as well as promotes the maritime services provided by Malta to the

In addition to the above, in order to

international shipping community.

provide a one stop shop service to

28 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

another,

regulating, administering

guaranteeing,

Malta’s Ship Registry

The

expansion

and

further

strengthening of the Directorate and One of the most important pillars of

the continuous specialised training

the Merchant Shipping Directorate

of its personnel remain one of the

is the Ship Registry. The statistics

Directorate’s top priorities together

achieved during 2019 are a clear

with the further expansion of the

indication of the policy adopted by

overseas network of Flag State

Malta’s flag Administration to focus

inspectors which is key to the further

on quality shipping and to ensure

improvement of the monitoring

that ships with a poor detention or

and follow-up capabilities of the

safety and marine pollution record

Directorate.

do not operate under the Malta flag, and that this policy is bearing

This year, the Directorate continued

The results and the performance of

its fruit. The Maltese authorities

to conduct random inspections of

the inspectors and the inspections

maintain that growth must not be at

Maltese ships worldwide using the

are

the expense of quality but can be

services of its own global network

Technical Department. Since this

attained through quality.

of inspectors. These inspections

activity is part of the monitoring

are conducted in addition to the

process that is the responsibility

regular statutory surveys carried

of a Flag State Administration, as a

out by classification societies and

rule, inspections are conducted at

which are effected on the specific

Transport Malta’s expense.

closely

monitored

by

the

instructions of the Directorate.

(PLEASE READ ARTICLE ON PAGE XX: THE MALTA SHIP REGISTRY – A FLAG OF CONFIDENCE

Flag State Control Another Merchant

important Shipping

role

of

the

Directorate

is maritime safety, including the technical aspects of local and international legislation. This falls under the responsibility of the Technical Department, which works in close liaison with the Registry Department and provides technical advice to the Registrar-General and the Registrars.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

29

Inspections carried out in 254 Ports in 44 countries

well-received by the international

contributing factor towards the

shipping

reduction in the rate of detentions of

shipowners

community,

including themselves.

Maltese ships in foreign ports.

Between January and December

Undoubtedly, it has substantially

2019, 955 inspections (33,278,747

improved the monitoring capabilities

Although no official figures have yet

gross tons) were carried out in

of the Directorate and the overall

been released by the Secretariat

254 ports in 44 different countries

performance of the Maltese fleet.

of

worldwide. The Directorate detained

Without in any way diminishing the

Understanding

23 ships until it was ascertained that

importance of an ever-increasing

Control, the detention rate for

they had been brought up to the

awareness amongst shipowners

Maltese ships in ports covered by

required standard.

and seafarers of the need for quality

the Memorandum for calendar year

shipping, the Flag State control

2019 was 1.9% which has reaffirmed

regime has been an important

Malta’s place in the MoU’s white list.

Malta’s ship inspection regime is

30 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

the

Paris

Memorandum on

Port

of

State

This is also the lowest detention

waters on international voyages,

member, introduced a significant

rate ever recorded by the Maltese

irrespective of their flag, are being

departure from the previous regime.

registered fleet and for the first

maintained in accordance with the

Since it is a risk-based targeting

time in the history of the Malta Ship

required international standards.

mechanism,

Registry, Malta was placed within

The

the top 20 performing flag State

system

jurisdictions in the world.

aimed

Port State Control

Directorate

it

rewards

quality

a

shipping with a smaller inspection

Control

burden and concentrates on high-

same

risk ships, which will be subject to

standards prevailing in existing

more in-depth and more frequent

and

regional

inspections. This necessitated the

of at

Port

implements State

reaching

well-established

the

Port State Control regimes. The

re-organisation of the operations of

It is the responsibility of the

New

(NIR)

the Directorate and the introduction

Directorate to ensure, as much as

implemented

Paris

of new procedures in order to meet

possible, that ships leaving Maltese

MoU, of which Malta is an active

Inspection

Regime

within

the

the new obligations.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

31

32 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

Investigations carried out including 8 Vessel Detention Between January and December 2019, 187 foreign flagged ships were inspected. This represents 23.3% of the total number of foreign merchant ships entering Maltese ports. Detention orders were issued in respect of 8 vessels of different nationalities.

Meanwhile, has

the

continued

Directorate

with

participation

in

Memorandum

of

its

active

the

Paris

Understanding

on Port State Control in which Transport Malta is a member, and in the Mediterranean MoU on Port State Control in which Malta is one of the founding members and currently holds the chairmanship.

Digital

Transformation

of

the

Department is a continuing process.

Operations of the Directorate

The Directorate is in the process of

In line with the general policy of

finalising a fully digitised platform

Transport Malta to have all of its

wherein customers can have online

services

access to services on a 24/7 basis.

digitalised,

during

the

last few months, the Merchant Shipping Directorate has continued

Maritime Radiocommunication Services

with the process to introduce more electronic services aimed at enhancing cohesion and more

During this year, the Directorate continued

to

render

maritime

radiocommunication services to its client base. Data for this year is still being collected but it is important to note that in 2019, 2,990 radio licences were issued. These included Operational and Non-Operational Provisional

ship

radio

permanent

GMDSS

licences,

ship

radio

licences including their amendment and renewal (for SOLAS vessels), Operational and Non-Operational Provisional

ship

radio

licences,

permanent Non-GMDSS ship radio licences including their amendment and renewal (for non-SOLAS vessels).

timeliness in the services provided.

With the progress in digitalisation, further digitalised services are being introduced, which will eventually lead to the digitalisation of the whole Directorate. This initiative will also contribute towards the implementation

of

the

Maltese

National Digital Strategy.

The Electronic Fleet Management System is the main tool used by the Directorate to assist with daily ship registration operations and the issue of all certificates of registry. The process leading to the introduction of new electronic systems within the

Seafarers’

THE SYSTEM AIMS TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF THE DIRECTORATE’S CLIENT BASE IN TERMS OF APPLYING FOR ANY SERVICE RELATED TO TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION, ONLINE PAYMENT CLEARANCE AND A REAL TIME CERTIFICATION AUTHENTICATION PLATFORM.

Certification

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

33

During

2020,

the

Directorate

identifying

bottlenecks

and

finalised the implementation of the

developing recommendations for

EU Funded Project under Regulation

new simplified processes that can be

(EU) 2017/825 on the establishment

implemented electronically in order

of the Structural Reform Support

to reform the maritime sector, with

Programme (“SRSP Regulation”) to

a view to enhance competitiveness,

analyse and support the introduction

productivity, sustainable growth,

of electronic services to the Maltese

job creation and investment. All

maritime industry.

the business processes have been reviewed and discussed in detail

The project is aimed to contribute

both internally and externally and

to the introduction of improved

with all stakeholders.

processes in the Maltese maritime administration

by

refining

the

mapping of existing processes,

34 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

“...ANALYSE AND SUPPORT THE INTRODUCTION OF ELECTRONIC SERVICES TO THE MALTESE MARITIME INDUSTRY.”

M A LTA S H I P R E G I S T E R

THE FLAG OF REPUTATION, CONFIDENCE AND QUALITY Ivan Sammut

Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen Over time, Malta has developed a very strong legal and regulatory platform that has enabled the Malta Flag to become a reputable international ship register. As of the end of December 2019, over 8,000 vessels totalling a gross tonnage of 82.93 million were registered with the Maltese Ship Register, translating in a growth of 63.73% in ship registration and 129% growth in gross tonnage over the past decade.

Between June 2018 and June 2019, the Malta Ship Register saw a growth of 7.29% in gross tonnage which was increased again with a further growth of 2% between June 2019 and June 2020. The total gross tonnage now registered under the Malta Flag amounts to 83.74 million and totalling 8,712 vessels. This makes the Malta Ship Register the largest Flag in Europe in terms of gross tonnage and the sixth largest worldwide.

Such growth can be attributed to the strength and reputation of the Malta Ship Register which was spurred further earlier in 2020 by ranking 17th in the Paris MoU White Flag List. There are 70 Flags on the Paris MoU Register, of which forty-one are White Flags, sixteen are Grey Flags and thirteen are Black-listed Flags.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

35

million gross tons

Vessels by Type Registered under the Merchant Shipping Act as at 31st December 2019

The Directorate has also strengthened its presence further in the super yacht sector. During 2019, the Malta flag registered an increase of over 7.3% of super yachts over 24 metres in length over the previous year and under the Merchant Shipping Act, totaling over 806 super yachts flying the Malta flag. >24 MTRS

Super Yachts Registered under the Merchant Shipping Act as at 31 December 2019

36 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

The White, Grey and Black (WGB)

This is the testimony of the high

is always on the forefront to further

list represents the full spectrum,

technical

increase Malta’s visibility as major

from quality flags to flags with a poor

Maltese fleet and its commitment

performance.

to

The

classification

performance

safeguarding

of

the

maritime jurisdiction.

international

is based on the total number of

conventions and standards regarding

To

inspections and detentions over a

safety, pollution prevention and work

efficiency,

3-year rolling period for Flags with

conditions for seamen.

security of the services provided to

at least 30 inspections during this

continue

increasing

the

competitiveness

and

yachts and superyachts and to be

period. Over the past three years, the

Such success is the result of hard

aware of the particular needs of this

Malta Registered fleet experienced

work and continued excellence

industry, the Merchant Shipping

4,600 inspections resulting in a

in the service provided by the

Directorate has recently launched

detention rate of less than 2%.

Merchant Shipping Directorate’s

a number of new services. This is

staff to external stakeholders and

clear evidence of the regulatory, but

The Maltese Registry has also

clients. It is also thanks to the good

at the same time proactive, attitude

achieved good recognition in the

dialogue and support afforded by

of the Malta Flag Administration.

Tokyo MOU (Asian ports) and

industry stakeholders, including

America.

the local maritime community that

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

37

NEW INITIATIVES BY THE MERCHANT SHIPPING DIRECTORATE As part of its continuous efforts to improve its services, late this year the Merchant Shipping Directorate launched a number of new initiatives intended for its existing clients as well as new ones. These latest initiatives include the launch of the Commercial Yacht Code known as the CYC 2020; a new Passenger Yacht Code; a new Yachting Record Book and six new courses launched specifically for Masters and Skippers working on Yachts of various gross tonnage to obtain certificates of competence in the respective area of specialisation.

38 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

Alexandra Ellul Manager - Office of the CEO Merchant Shipping Directorate

The CYC 2020

- Commercial

Yacht Code Launched

and

Following intensive consultations over the past five years, the Malta Maritime

yachts. These shall now be classed,

Administration

has

launched an updated Commercial

specific

requirements

for

batteries used for propulsion have been introduced.

A new Passenger Yacht Code

Yacht Code. Since 2015, this Code

Urged by encouragement by all

has proven to be an industry favourite

interested parties, the Merchant

and has contributed to the growth of a

Shipping

cleaner and safer Maltese registered

developed

commercial yacht fleet.

Yacht Code to cater for the ever-

initiatives are being taken in this

increasing industry demand and

respect. At the moment there are

trend of larger yachts that may

300,000 seafarers authorised to

carry more than 12 passengers.

work on Maltese Registered vessels.

Known as CYC 2020, the updated Commercial Yacht Code builds on pre-existing obligations and introduces new requirements to further improve the safety and competitiveness

of

the

Malta

registered Yacht fleet.

Directorate a

new

has

also

Passenger

The New Passenger Yacht Code is now open for consultation with all interested stakeholders. This is yet another emerging niche market with very positive prospects for

Ships being registered recently

the sustainability of the Malta Ship

are among the best and most

Register.

and reduce pollution. To spur the same transition in the yachting industry, the CYC 2020 introduces requirements for Hybrid and Electric

the

Malta, has been issuing Seaman’s Record Books to seafarers who are

engaged

on

commercially

registered Malta flagged vessels. this document to seafarers working

A new Yachting Record Book As

on behalf of the Government of

The need to extend the service of

modern in the world, taking care to monitor their environmental impact

The Merchant Shipping Directorate,

Directorate

is

on yachts has been highlighted by also

yacht owners who face operational

responsible for the training and

challenges when their yachts visit

certification of seafarers working on

ports that require crew members to

Maltese registered ships, additional

either have a log/discharge book or

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

39

to be in possession of a valid Visa, as

of their competence to renew or

otherwise they will not be allowed to

upgrade their qualifications.

disembark. Such instances hinder the smooth operation of vessels.

The Yachting Record Book is now available to applicants and, similarly to the Seaman’s record book, it is

Six new courses for Masters and Skippers working on Yachts of various gross tonnage

intended to be a professional and

Certificates of competence are

secure document which can also

issued after successful completion

be used by seafarers as evidence

of approved courses of training

40 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

“DEEP NATURAL HARBOURS, STATE OF THE ART SUPERYACHT MARINAS, EXTENSIVE REFIT AND REPAIR FACILITIES...”

held in twenty-two training centres

Deep natural harbours, state of the

the future a reality. This can only be

accredited and overseen by the

art superyacht marinas, extensive

achieved with the continued support

Merchant

Directorate.

refit and repair facilities and a

and cooperation for the Directorate’s

Six new courses have now been

Shipping

multitude of support shore services

team and the industry alike.

launched specifically for Masters

culminate

and Skippers working on Yachts of

service for yacht and superyacht

various gross tonnage.

owners and operators.

Malta’s offering to the yacht and

The Merchant Shipping Directorate

superyacht industry goes well beyond

has its eyes on the future, it already

the possibilities of Flag registration.

has its feet on the ground, making

in

a

comprehensive

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

41

Drones and More… 42 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

Dr. Analiza Abdilla Aviation Specialist Civil Aviation Directorate

U

nmanned

Aircraft

quadrotors, which are popular due

dangerous goods, or are conducted

popularly

to their ability to hover and fly at slow

over assemblies1 of people with an

known as ‘drones’, are

speeds that renders them useful for

UA of characteristic dimensions

aircraft without a pilot

various applications. In fact, UA are

greater than or equal to 3 metres.

on board. Such aircraft can either

increasingly being adopted for an

Being the category with the highest

be piloted remotely, in which case

expanding range of applications, for

risk, both the UA and UAS operator

it is also termed a Remotely Piloted

both commercial and recreational

in this category require certification,

Vehicle (RPV), or be automated or

purposes, including surveillance,

and the remote pilot needs to be

autonomous. Automated drones are

surveys, inspections, mapping and in

licensed similar to a conventional

programmed to follow pre-defined

agriculture. In view of this, it is crucial

aircraft pilot. It should be noted that

waypoints, but the remote pilot may

to regulate the use of UA to ensure

the regulations distinguish between

take control if required, whereas

the safety and security of both the

the UAS operator, who is the owner

autonomous drones prohibit the

public as well as manned aircraft.

of the UA, and may be an individual or

(UA),

intervention

of

most

remote

pilots.

an organisation, and the remote pilot,

Generally, drones are denoted by

To this end, EASA has issued

the term ‘UAS’ (Unmanned Aircraft

regulations for UAS which will

System),

which

who is the person flying the drone.

encompasses

become applicable as National

The lowest risk category is the

both the UA itself as well as any

Law in each of the EASA Member

Open category. In this category, the

equipment used to control it such as

States on the 31st December

risk is maintained low by ensuring

the ‘Command Unit’.

2020. These regulations adopt a

that UA operations conform to

risk-based approach, classifying

certain

UA are available in three main

UAS operations into three main

no

configurations, namely fixed wing

categories based on the level of

maximum height above ground

(like

risk, namely ‘Open’, ‘Specific’ and

level of 120 m (but may be reduced

‘Certified’.

by the respective Member State

conventional

aeroplanes,

mostly used as model aircraft), rotary wing (most popularly multirotors)

parameters,

autonomous

including:

operations,

a

if necessary), the UA must not

and, less commonly, flapping wing

The Certified category, which is the

weigh more than 25 kg, cannot

(similar to birds). The most common

highest risk category, comprises

carry dangerous goods or drop any

configuration is multirotors (also

UAS operations which involve the

material, and must be flown within

known as multicopters), especially

transport of people or the carriage of

Visual Line Of Sight (VLOS) at all

It should be noted that the EASA regulations do not specify the number of persons for an ‘assembly’, ‘crowd’ or ‘gathering’ of people, but defines these terms as “gatherings where persons are unable to move away due to the density of the people present.”

1

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

43

“CONVERSELY, IF ANY OF THESE REQUIREMENTS ARE EXCEEDED, THEN TM-CAD NEEDS TO EVALUATE THE FLIGHT REQUEST, POSSIBLY REQUIRING A RISK ASSESSMENT...”

times (except if flying in First Person

category. For such operations, the

The preliminary requirement of the

View (FPV) mode, in which case an

UAS Operator is required to obtain

regulations issued by EASA is the

UA observer is required). Operations

an Operational Authorisation from

registration of UAS operators, if

in the Open category are further

the CAD, by submitting a Specific

their UA weighs more than 250g,

classified into three subcategories,

Operations

Assessment

or if it weighs less than 250g but is

namely A1, A2, and A3, depending

(SORA) detailing the risks of the

equipped with a recording device

on the class of the UA (C0 – C4,

operation

mitigation

such as a camera or microphone,

depending on the weight) and which

measures adopted. Alternatively,

unless it is a ‘toy’, that is, the

in turn determines how close the UA

if the operation conforms to a

documentation

can fly to people.

pre-defined

Scenario,

that the product conforms to

Risk and

any

Standard

explicitly

states

Operators may simply submit an

the Toy Directive, 2009/48/EC.

any

Operational Declaration confirming

UAS operators residing in Malta

parameter of the Open category but

their operation is in line with the

should register on tmcad.idronect.

do not fall into the Certified category

respective Standard Scenario and

com and are issued with a UAS

are classed as being in the ‘Specific’

adopt the listed mitigation measures.

Operator Registration Certificate

Operations

which

exceed

44 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

Figure 1: UAS Operator Registration Certificate

forecast and sunset/sunrise time

device provided by the Authority

on the day of operation, as well as

whilst conducting their operations,

the areas on the map which are

to enable real-time monitoring of

restricted for UAS operations (for

the flight as well as recording of the

security, safety or environment

flight parameters for retrieval if and

purposes), thereby allowing them

when required.

to plan their flight accordingly (Fig. 2). If the flight request meets certain

“THIS TRAINING IS VALID FOR FIVE YEARS, AND REQUIRES A REFRESHER BEFORE THE VALIDITY EXPIRES...”

(Fig. 1) containing a UAS Operator Registration number together with a corresponding QR-code. This number,

or

the

corresponding

QR-code, should be printed and affixed to all UA belonging to the UAS Operator. Registration on this system is free until 31st December 2020, and thereafter renewable annually against a fee of €25.

A valid third-party insurance policy

Figure 2: Map of the Maltese Islands indicating restricted zones

requirements, namely: it does not

It should be noted that flight

infringe any restricted zones, the

authorisations are granted based on

flight time is between half an hour

specific terms and conditions which

before sunrise up to half an hour

are listed on the ‘Authorisation Form’.

after sunset, and the maximum

For example, UA flights cannot be

height above the ground is 60 m,

conducted over private property

then the authorisation is granted

without the explicit permission

automatically

immediately

of the owner of the property, and

by the system, called an ‘auto-

Operators must also respect the

authorisation’.

privacy and data protection of

and

individuals, which are governed

is also required upon registration.

under the GDPR regulations.

It should be noted that EASA does not mandate insurance for drone operations but leaves it up to each

mandating

third-party

insurance for all UAS operations.

Once registered, UAS operators may submit flight requests in the system, specifying the date/time of operation, the location and the UA that will be used. The system enables Operators to view the weather

require remote

the pilots

on the subcategory of operation.

state. Due to the nature of the Maltese is

of

the Open category, depending

whether it is required in the respective

Malta

also

certification

flying UA of classes C1 – C4 in

individual Member State to decide

airspace, all of which is ‘controlled’,

Regulations

Operations in subcategories A1 Conversely,

these

and A3 require completion of online

requirements are exceeded, then

if

any

of

training and then taking an online

TM-CAD needs to evaluate the

multiple choice exam at TM-CAD,

flight request, possibly requiring a

whereas operations in subcategory

risk assessment to be submitted

A2 require additional theoretical and

detailing mitigation measures that

practical training (which may be self-

may need to be adopted. In these

training), and sitting for an additional

cases, TM-CAD may also request

theoretical exam at TM-CAD as well

the Operator to use a tracking

as a self-practical assessment.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

45

46 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

Upon passing the exam, remote pilots are issued with a Remote Pilot Identification number, together with a certificate indicating ‘Proof of completion of the online training’ for subcategories A1 and A3 (Fig.3), and a ‘Remote pilot certificate of competency’ for subcategory A2. Training for subcategories A1 and A3 is available by TM-CAD on its website, but practical and/or theoretical training in all subcategories may be undertaken at any private institute in any Member State, and will be valid in all other Member States. This training is valid for five years, and requires a refresher before the validity expires, or a repeat of the training if the validity has already expired.

In order to ensure that these regulations are being followed, law enforcement officers will conduct checks to verify that UAS operators hold a valid registration number and third-party insurance, as well as to confirm that remote pilots are licensed according to the requirements of their respective operation. To this end, UAS operators or remote pilots caught breaching the laws will be penalised as per penalties defined in the Maltese Air Navigation Order, which range from fines to prison sentences depending on the severity of the breach.

FURTHER INFORMATION ON THESE REGULATIONS IS AVAILABLE IN THE ‘UNMANNED AIRCRAFT’ SECTION OF THE TRANSPORT MALTA WEBSITE, AND ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS MAY BE ADDRESSED TO drones.aviation@transport.gov.mt.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

47

Foundation for Transport Launched

48 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

On Friday 27th November, the Foundation for Transport Deed was signed during a ceremony held at Antoine De Paule Hall at San Anton Palace, Attard, addressed by His Excellency the President Dr. George Vella.

educational institutions and the

and sustain long-term collaborations

digital sector are in discussion to sign

between various parties.

challenging sector and undoubtedly

Foundation.

a wide, unabridged and non-partisan

employers, employees and the

Transport

consensus is direly needed for it to

general public can benefit from the

namely,

meet current and future challenges

initiatives to be offered during the

Transport Malta, Malta Enterprise,

and thrive, in particular due to the

coming months and years.

Malta College for Arts, Science

fast-approaching 2030 and 2050

and

objectives for the adoption of

The transport sector aspires to

greener modes of transport.

be exposed to best practices too.

The has

Foundation five

for

cofounders,

Technology

(MCAST),

the

Chamber of SMEs and the Malta Employers

Association.

a Memorandum of Understanding with the Foundation for Transport

Indeed,

to take this collaboration further,

studied look towards the future

with their respective forthcoming

with innovation and research both

contribution.

being placed at the pinnacle of the

Transport

is

a

the

Foundation

The

is

a

entrepreneurs/

As a matter of fact, exposure to

The

Transport Regulator is taking the

During the Launch of the Foundation,

and networking with counterparts

initiative to work with associations

His Excellency the President of

who have extensive experience at

of industry players, the educational

Malta expressed his satisfaction

European and International levels

institutions, and Malta Enterprise,

that the Foundation has placed

will take place.

to identify gaps in the skills and

as its fulcrum such a unifying and

competences of employees and

mature vision to tackle the future

The premises of the Foundation for

employers in all modes of transport

and the improvement needed of the

Transport will be in Pembroke.

and address them holistically. Each

transport sector. H.E. Dr. George

cofounder has an Administrator

Vella

on the Board of the Foundation.

the Foundation as a model to be

The Foundation is being chaired by

emulated in other important sectors

Mr. Joseph Bugeja, with Mr. Kevin

in Malta and conveying his well-

Farrugia as the Deputy Chairman

wishes to the Foundation to nurture

continued

by

delineating

and Mr. Pierre Vella as the Board Secretary. Dr Jeannette Axisa is the Director General of the Foundation for Transport.

The transport sector deserves to have a professional approach based on research and thoroughly studied best practices. The transport sector is wide-ranging, with specific and demanding characteristics. It offers numerous opportunities and impacts various sectors in different ways but also poses big challenges. To this effect, other third parties from the industry, associations of employers,

Dr. Jeanette Axisa Director General Foundation for Transport

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

49

E-KICKSCOOTERS

THE NEW URBAN TRANSPORT PHENOMENON

Pierre Montebello Chief Officer L a n d Tr a n s p o r t D i r e c t o r a t e

Electric scooters, or e-kickscooters, may be considered a relatively new phenomenon, in their current form, starting out in the US only around 2017 and subsequently in other parts of the world, including European cities and other urban centres, in 2019. Although relatively new, e-kickscooters are a fast-expanding transport mode in many European countries, particularly in larger cities. They may well be regarded as a convenient, efficient means of transport facilitated through their ease of use and which can easily provide ‘last mile’ journeys and short trips in a complex multi-modal transport eco-system.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

51

E-kickscooters

the

With this in mind, Malta took the bold

an opportunity for this alternative

mobility.

move to legislate them. The Ministry

means of transport to form part of a

Across Europe, the legal framework

for

transport culture shift.

is oftentimes still quite blurry and

and Capital Projects as well as

does not clearly define where and

Transport Malta, were at the

The primary aim is to have secure

how e-kickscooters should be used,

forefront in promoting such modes

streets and roads whilst at the same

driven or parked.

of transport and, to the contrary

time provide for a convenient method

of a number of other countries,

of last-mile transport. This mode of

Aware of the fact that, due to their

we started out by legislating and

transport is also seen as a key part of

ease of use and convenience, the

regulating this form of transport. If

getting people out of polluting cars

popularity of such technologies

there are regulations in place, these

and congested roads and offers a

is spreading very rapidly among

can be enforced.

new way of moving around towns

classification

fall of

under

micro

Transport,

Infrastructure

transport users, Transport Malta

and villages, especially those within

noted very early that this will

Transport Malta has been striving

create additional challenges for

to strike a balance that prioritizes

the Authority and its resources,

first and foremost, safety, and then,

The ideal use of e-kickscooters

especially with respect to road safety

convenience.

Therefore, we felt

is seen where driving a car is not

and enforcement of regulations.

that we should regulate and create

worthwhile and maybe the distances

1

close proximity of each other.

are too long to go on foot, especially 1

There are two safety-related aspects of e-scooters: the safety of scooter riders and the safety of other road users, incl. pedestrians and those with a disability.

52

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

when walking in hot weather. This

The Regulatory Framework

need to be affixed to the stem of the e-kickscooter;

The proposed regulatory framework has been compiled to address the mentioned issues in the most comprehensive

manner

•

registered and licensed with

possible,

the authority, with a one-time

taking into account the specificities of

registration fee of Eur 10. No

Malta’s road and street network and

circulation fee is applicable.

travelling habits of transport users.

The framework is also inclusive of a rigorous enforcement regime,

They must also be duly insured;

•

intended

for

the e-kickscooters (Categories

both

A, B and AM – over 16 years of

personal use as well as for e-kickscooter

sharing

safety concerns and challenges brought

about

by

age and Theory test only);

services.

This is in order to address road this

•

equipped with a headlamp as

technology and which the Authority

well as a tail lamp;

considers to be necessary to

means of transport is therefore proving very popular, especially with youths and young adults.

issued

a

Transport related

draft

•

Malta Policy

Document for public consultation.

A number of challenges that had been identified and compiled in

the case of promenades and

pedestrians which in this case are

pedestrian zones and 20km/hr

this document are very similar to challenges being faced by other countries.

Following the receipt of feedback, we proceeded to draft the actual regulations (SL 499.67) which came into force in December 2019.

on other roads. Over speeding

safety in general is concerned.

will result in an over speeding ticket; such offence will be

To summarize, the following are

eligible for the driving license

some of the main highlights of the

penalty point system;

regulations:

•

All

e-kickscooters,

The maximum speed allowed to be used is set at 10km/hr in

other road users and in particular, the most vulnerable as far as road

In the last quarter of 2019 (2nd September)

e-kickscooters users themselves,

All e-kickscooters that will be registered would need to be

new

address, both for the safety of

Only drivers with an eligible driving license will be able to drive

including a set of mandatory guidelines

All e-kickscooters must be

whether

•

used at night (from dusk till

individually owned or used

dawn) and shall be a mandatory

as part of an e-kickscooter

requirement. A fine will also be

sharing service, have to be

issued in case that such a vest is

adequately insured as well

not worn;

as registered and licensed with Transport Malta. For this

A high visibility vest is to be

•

helmets

is

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

53

reason, a registration and an identification number would

The

use

of

recommended;

be issued in the form of a registration sticker which would

•

E-kickscooters cannot be used:

will be restricted to identified

sharing service, the operator

a) on arterial or distributor

spaces which TM will start

would need to follow specific

roads

implementing;

guidelines similar to those in

b) under tunnels or

place for bicycle sharing and

•

underpasses

•

On

the

other

Illegal parking which impedes

which also are included in this

accessibility on pavements will

document;

hand,

be considered an obstruction

e-kickscooters may be driven

and a fine will be issued

in all urban streets as well as

accordingly;

•

The sharing service would need to be accompanied by a web-based real time booking

throughout the safe cycle route network which Government is in

•

the process of implementing;

system.

E-kickscooter sharing operators can

apply

for

an NO - GO Zones Map Article 8 LN 352

operating license from

•

Users of e-kickscooters would

Transport Malta. Two

have to follow all traffic related

types of sharing will be

regulations including stopping at

allowed - free floating

pedestrian crossings and at red-

(without

light junctions;

station) and with a

a

docking

.

No-Go Zones Map Road Category Arterial Distributor

docking station. In case

•

Parking of such e-kickscooters

0

of a docking station

1.5

3

6

9

12 Kilometers © OpenStreetMap (and) contributors, CC-BY-SA

Registering an e-Kickscooter For the registration process a

•

one-time registration fee of Eur

Invoice and other documents

and their use and users is still scarce,

showing the CIF price;

and that public opinion on their use is

10 applies, and the following documents shall be submitted

still varied all the while Malta was and

•

Technical specifications of the

still is in the forefront in legislating

to the Authority at the time of

vehicle (to be verified by the

their use.

registration:

Authority’s Technical Unit prior to registration);

• •

Though

Application Form VEH 001;

their

use

is

greatly

facilitated through the legislative

1

•

Third-party risks insurance.

Application Form VEH 004

measures, end users are nowadays more aware of both their legal

or VEH 005, duly filled and

Altogether it can be concluded

obligations as well as obligations

stamped

that though the (legal) position of

towards other road users and

Department, if imported from

by

the

Customs

e-kickscooters

pedestrians alike.

a State which is not a Member

countries,

State of the European Union;

about their numbers, their safety

54 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

differs

objective

between information

I n g . R o n a l d At t a r d P u l l i c i n o Manager – Projects Unit L a n d Tr a n s p o r t D i r e c t o r a t e

THE IMPACT OF THE EU’S MOBILITY PACKAGE ON MALTA Every modern economy relies heavily on the supply chain for the goods it consumes and generates.

The continued and unhindered

movement of goods is crucial to ensure that supply chains are not broken. If they are broken, then one can expect shortage of goods and difficulties to export products. This would affect us all to some extent, both in our private and work lives.

Many a time we ignore the fact that the goods we purchase undergo a long, and sometimes complicated, process before they reach us. The same applies to anything we sell or otherwise send to others. This process involves the carriage of goods, be it by land, sea or air.

In the case of Malta, almost all purchased or sold goods require international carriage to or from foreign countries, within and out of the European Union.

Malta’s strong ties with the European Union and the continent in general have a direct impact on our imports and exports, with most of the goods originating from or going to other EU Member States. Some of these goods, such as fuels and construction material, are brought in bulk to Malta by sea. The rest of the imported goods, and almost the totality of exported goods, are

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

55

carried by trucks and trailers. This

The

carriage, when done for hire or

amendments intended to address

reward, is called Road Haulage.

problems

Commission’s or

original

support

specific

developments within the European The international road haulage

road

sector in Malta involves 41 firms

harmonisation and simplification of

operating 330 trucks and employing

the rules resulting in better, more

more than 750 employees, 380

consistent enforcement across all

of which are drivers. However,

Member States, supporting social

the importance of these hauliers

fairness, fair competition, improving

for Malta goes way beyond these

the

numbers. They form the backbone of

of road transport operations, and

the country’s economic activity, and

encouraging innovation were just

the importance of their continued

some of the aims of this package of

operations cannot be overstated.

legislative initiatives.

transport

sectors.

environmental

The

performance

The same applies, to some extent, to the road haulage sector within the

Malta had welcomed the positive

whole of the European Union.

intentions

of

the

Commission,

although it had its reservations on some of the proposed amendments;

The Mobility Package Given

the

such reservations were clearly

international

nature

of Road Haulage, it is regulated at European Union level. There are various EU Regulations and Directive affecting this sector, but the key Regulations are those regulating Market Access1, and Driving and Rest Times2.

In

July

2017,

the

European

Commission started a process to revise all the Regulations and Directives related to road haulage services. This process – called the Mobility Package - was organised in three waves of proposals. The first wave - Mobility Package I or MPI included proposals to amend the above-mentioned Regulations and the enacting of new rules on posting of workers.

highlighted from the very first working party meeting within the European Council. Malta’s positions were shared by several peripheral Member

States,

mostly

those

located on the eastern side of the Union; and opposed mostly by Member States in central Europe.

Throughout

the

negotiations,

some of the original issues were addressed, to Malta’s satisfaction.

However,

problems

cropped

up when new proposals were introduced, mostly from central European Member States. These new proposals drew fierce criticism from Malta and other Like-Minded Member States, and even from stakeholder such as NGOs and representative bodies.

56 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

The key issues opposed by Malta

the increase in the need for empty

concern:

tuns just to comply with the new rules. It was estimated that these will

•

An obligation for trucks to

increase up to additional 3 million

return to their Member State

tons of CO2 emissions per year in

of establishment, in this case

the whole of the EU.

Malta, every 8 weeks; and Notwithstanding all the efforts to

•

New

restrictions

the

resist these new amendments,

cabotage,

they still formed part of the final

defined as domestic transport

text which was approved by the

operations

in

European Council and the European

a host Member State by

Parliament in June 2020. Whereas

trucks operated by hauliers

some of the new provisions came

established

operation

of

for

conducted

different

into force in September, the big bulk

Member State, for example,

in

a

of new provisions, including those

when a truck operated by a

opposed by Malta, will come into

Maltese haulier collects goods

force in February 2022.

in France and delivers them to another location in France.

Following

this

approval,

the

Government commissioned KPMG Both proposals found their way to

to quantify the impact that these

the final text without having their

new provisions are expected to

impact

have on the Maltese economy.

and

adequately

evaluated,

notwithstanding

and

strong

opposition

nine

different

Member

regular from States.

Based the

on

this

Government

assessment, decided

to

file a complaint on these new

Moreover, the proposals did not

Regulations

to

the

European

take into consideration the specific

Court of Justice. Bulgaria, Cyprus,

conditions applicable to Maltese

Hungary, Lithuania, Poland and

hauliers, such as the unavoidable

Romania lodged similar complaints,

need to ship trailers between Malta

with Latvia and Estonia joining the

and Italy, with the consequent delays

complaint of one of these Member

and costs. Forcing Maltese hauliers

States.

to also ship their trucks to and from Malta on a regular basis will further complicate the operation and waste a lot of previous resources.

1

Moreover, these new provisions are also expected to have a negative environmental impact because of

Regulation (EC) No. 1071/2009 and Regulation (EC) No. 1072/2009.

2

Regulation (EC) No. 561/2006 and Regulation (EC) No. 165/2004.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

57

Capt Richard Gabriele FNI Head Maritime Operations Incident Response P o r t s a n d Ya c h t i n g D i r e c t o r a t e

Oil and Hazardous and Noxious Substances Pollution Preparedness and Response

58 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

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59

Any oil-pollution accident around our coast would spell disaster for Malta, both economically and environmentally.

Similar disasters in recent years which took place on or off the shores of other countries An incident in these waters can have Convention) and the Protocol on are harbingers very negative and serious effects on Preparedness, Response and Coas to what extent Malta, a country heavily dependent operation to Pollution Incidents and magnitude on tourism and the maritime

by Hazardous and Noxious such a industry for its socio-economic Substances (OPRC-HNS Protocol), devastation wellbeing, therefore the State must as updated from time to time. Both could be. be prepared for such an eventuality.

are

international

The devastating effect of a dwindling

adopted

ince time immemorial, the

tourism industry during this period

Maritime Organization (IMO), with

Central

Mediterranean

of the COVID-19 Pandemic on our

the OPRC-HNS Protocol extending

is one of the maritime

economy, is there for all to see,

the regulatory framework under

areas with the heaviest shipping

hence, we need to be prepared at all

the OPRC Convention to address

traffic, especially in the Malta-Sicily

times to protect our coast as much

pollution incidents by chemicals.

Channel, where all ships en route

as possible against such incidents.

S

from East to West Mediterranean

by

the

instruments

International

The OPRC provides a framework

and vice-versa pass through. The

Malta

main traffic lane between Malta and

International

the

designed to facilitate international

on

co-operation and mutual assistance

Sicily is about 24 nautical miles off

Oil

Preparedness,

in preparing for and responding

Malta, which is mid-channel.

Response and Cooperation (OPRC

to major oil pollution incidents and

60 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

is

a

signatory

pollution

to

Convention

requires States to plan and prepare by developing national systems for pollution response in their respective countries,

and

by

maintaining

adequate capacity and resources to address oil pollution emergencies.

States which are party to the OPRC Convention and OPRC-HNS Protocol are required to establish a national system for responding to oil and HNS pollution incidents, including a designated national authority, a national operational contact point and a national contingency plan.

This needs to be backstopped by a minimum level of response equipment, communications plans, regular training and exercises.1 The Oil and Hazardous and Noxious Substances Pollution Preparedness, Response

and

Co-operation

Regulations (OPRC Regulations) (L.N. 450 of 2020) have been published and will come into force

Regulations is the protection of

on the 1st of January 2021. These

the marine environment in general

regulations will provide a regulatory

and to ensure that Malta has an

framework for the applicability of the

appropriate level of preparedness

OPRC Convention and the OPRC-

for any eventuality. One is to keep

HNS Protocol in Maltese waters,

in mind that Malta’s coastline is very

making such applicable to all ships,

vulnerable, and it can be heavily

oil platforms and marine terminals

impacted in the case of an oil spill.

and facilities.

Furthermore, the

Such an event can have a drastic

regulations will give force of law

and long-lasting effect on the

to the National Marine Pollution

local maritime industry, including

Contingency Plan (NMPCP), and

fishing, for example, as well as on

will make it obligatory on marine

the tourism industry which is mainly

terminals, marine facilities and ports

concentrated along Malta’s northern

to have in place marine pollution

coast, since it may result in the

response emergency plans.

closure of ports and marinas.

The principal aim of the OPRC

These regulations establish the

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

61

62 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

Authority for Transport in Malta as the National Competent Authority on pollution preparedness and response, and gives such entity the powers to implement, update and enforce the NMPCP and the provisions of the regulations themselves. The Authority will also be responsible for responding to and coordinating all levels of pollution at sea.

Marine terminals and facilities, including yacht marinas, will have to update or draw up new contingency plans to be in line with the NMPCP and the OPRC Regulations. These plans will be approved by the Authority and must remain updated.

Each operator is obliged to have trained personnel in pollution response and to ensure that exercises and drills are carried on an annual basis under the supervision of the Authority. On its part, the Authority will be organising and coordinating national exercises with the various terminals and facilities as part of a preparedness and response strategy.

The implementation of the OPRC Regulations will enhance the fight against oil and HNS pollution at sea and will also serve as a good platform to enter into regional agreements and arrangements with neighbouring States for cooperation in respect of preparedness and response to pollution incidents.

Ultimately, the implementation and enforcement of the OPRC Regulations

Any oil spill sighting at sea is to be reported to the Authority either by contacting Valletta or Marsaxlokk VTS on VHF Channels 12 and 14 respectively or by calling 22914490, or 22914492.

will contribute to minimising pollution by responding in the most efficient and effective manner possible. This will result in better water quality and a better quality of life for all those who frequent our bays and beaches as well as the tourism and fishing industries.

1 International Maritime Organisation website: https://www.imo.org/en/ OurWork/Environment/Pages/ Pollution-Response.aspx

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63

Ivan Pierre Vella Director - Scheduled Public Transport Land Transport Directorate

HOW NUMBERS ARE CHANGING IN SCHEDULED PUBLIC TRANSPORT

64 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

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65

During the last few years, Public Transport users have increased dramatically over previous years. This increase was partially also due to continuous assistance from the Government to provide free public transport to some sectors of the population.

In 2019, over 40,000 persons benefited from this assistance. In this article we are going to give a brief history of how the system has evolved over recent times.

are going to give a brief history of

Buses used on the service were

how the system has evolved over

mostly locally built on ex-military

recent times.

truck chassis. These buses lacked both comfort and accessibility.

Malta has had some form of Public Transport since 1856 when the first

The route network from villages

Omnibus was introduced. This two

predominantly converged around

horse drawn carriage could carry

Valletta

16 passengers. 1883 saw a further

converging at the hospital. The

development in the public transport

service remained the same for a

service with the introduction of a

considerable length of time.

with

some

services

train service that connected Valletta to Mtarfa via ÄŚamrun, Birkirkara,

In 2010, with the objective of

Attard and Rabat. Mass transport

influencing a modal shift from car

was augmented further in 1905

(which by then had become the

when the first tram service was

travel mode of choice) to bus, the

During the last few years, Public

introduced. This service covered

Government decided to buy out

Transport users have increased

areas which were not covered by

the licences and buses from bus

dramatically over previous years.

the train service. Concurrently, with

owners and issue a concession for

This increase was partially also

the introduction of the tram service,

the provision of scheduled public

due to continuous assistance from

the first bus service was introduced.

transport in Malta and Gozo. The

the Government to provide free

Although not organised well, the

concession saw the introduction

public transport to some sectors

bus service eroded train and tram

of more environmentally friendly

of the population. In 2019, over

passengers

vehicles (Euro V) which were fully

40,000 persons benefitted from

towards their demise in 1931.

this assistance. In this article we

66 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

and

contributed

accessible, as well as a wider route network and better working

conditions for drivers. Despite the

major upgrades in frequency were

The Government has, since 2017,

initial problems experienced and

introduced in 2019.

started promoting further use of

the necessity of reforming the

scheduled in

passengers

and

public

transport

by

service once again in 2015, the

Increase

offering free public transport to

number of passenger trips started

additional frequencies also meant

different

experiencing year on year growths.

that additional buses had to be

starting with 18 year olds during the

cohorts

of

travellers,

added on the service. Between

first year and gradually expanding

The figure below illustrates this

2015 and 2020, more than 230 new

to include persons between 14 and

growth.

low floor, Euro 6 buses were added

20 years old, students who are 21 or older, persons with a disability and persons 75 or older. Last year, over 40 thousand people, who made nearly 8 million trips in total, benefitted from this measure.

In 2021 this measure will be expanded further to include person 70 years or older.

The onset of the Covid19 pandemic meant that a number of restrictions were implemented in order to slow the spread of the virus. The measures taken by the Health Authorities saw the closing of schools, workers working from home and the virtual

The figures indicate that between

to the fleet. Some of these buses

closing of all tourist activity. This

2006 and 2019 passenger trip

have replaced older buses that were

meant that a considerable number of

figures grew by just over 90%.

in service whilst others are being

persons who used public transport

used to cater for the increase in

as their means of travel were either

The passenger figures for the

frequencies on certain routes. With

first two months of 2020, that is,

an investment of â‚Ź20 million, 90 of

before the Covid 19 restrictions,

these new buses were introduced in

indicated that passengers were

2019 and 2020.

making increased use of the service compared to the previous year. In

The network is regularly being

fact, passenger trip growth was

reviewed in order to ensure that,

measured at 21%.

as much as possible, passenger requirements

are

being

met.

The increase in passengers meant

Modification

to

routes

are

that the frequency on certain

undertaken in order to address new

routes needed to be increased. In

requirements. The scheduled public

2015, a major network review was

transport in service can boast about

undertaken resulting in new routes

having one of the youngest and

being added, modified or having

cleanest (emissions wise) fleets in

their frequencies increased. Further

Europe.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

67

not travelling at all or travelling

Reducing

the

much less. Thus, the number of

standing

passengers

passengers

board buses,

onboard

•

scheduled

number

of

additional trips are being set up

on

in order to ensure that demand is being met. Continuous monitoring

public transport vehicles decreased drastically

during

the

months

is taking place on the network in Putting in place a Perspex

order to ensure that demand is met.

following February. The situation,

•

separator between the driver

At the same time, post- Covid plans

although showing some signs of

cabin and the passenger area,

are being drawn up so that once

recovery, is still not close to the figures that were being experienced

the situation starts to come back to •

during the previous years.

Both

the

Scheduled

Authority Public

and

the

Transport

Operator put in place a number of measures in order to minimize the

when

normal, it will find the service ready

purchasing tickets on board

change

given

to handle the expected increase in

buses,

passengers.

•

Airconditioning filters replaced,

•

More in between bus trip cleaning.

risk of spreading the virus. Such measures include:

No

The decrease in bus capacity (due to the reduction in standing

•

The daily fumigation of buses

passengers)

used on the service,

68 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

has

meant

that

R I D I N G T H E WAV E S

INTER-HARBOUR MARITIME FERRY SERVICES Ko n r a d M u s c a t Senior Manager - Ports Commercial / Peter Paul Barbara - Senior Manager and Director respectively within the Office of the Chief Operating Officer and Deputy CEO - TM

NEW ITS -ENABLED FERRY LANDING SITES IN THE MAKING AND A COMPLEMENTARY SHUTTLE BUS SERVICE Currently, when one visits the Sliema Ferries, a hive of activities and work can be seen taking place behind the hoarding set up between the promenade and jetty. Looking at the publicity material on that hoarding, one can catch a glimpse of the new Ferry Landing Site being built to accommodate passengers using the inter-harbour ferry services. Similar work is taking place in Marsamxett and Cospicua.

In the meantime, earlier this month, Transport Malta has launched a new bus shuttle service from the Marsamxett ferry dock to the Grand Harbor ferry dock. This service will be completing a continuous link between Sliema and the 3 Cities (Cottonera) and will operate every 30 minutes in synchronization with the ferry.

Up until now, scheduled public transport services in Malta have only been provided by a network of buses and cross harbour passenger ferry services which were first introduced back in 1882 from Marsamxett to Sliema Ferries, Pieta, Msida and St. Julians (in Summer) and in 1897 across the Grand Harbour from Senglea and Vittoriosa to Valletta near Lascaris. The Senglea

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

69

Landing Site was adjacent to

of 30 minutes from each landing

Vittoriosa, Marsamxett and Sliema

the Macina building. The Sliema

place. The operator is also obliged

Ferries to introduce passenger

Ferries Service than came to a

to give an early warning to inform

waiting facilities and real time

halt in August 31st, 1959 with the

the public if the service would be

information services on ferry and

familiar iron landing stages being

disrupted in bad weather.

bus schedules, among others.

The service between Sliema Ferries

The two routes are serviced by two

The aim of the upgrading of the

and

revived

vessels, Top Cat 1 and Top Cat 2

ferry landing sites is to improve the

again on 24th June 1991 by the

who relieved the previous two older

ferry network in order to continue

Marsamxetto Steamferry Service

vessels. Top Cat 1 commenced

offering

Ltd which was a consortium made

operation on the 7th of October

connections

up of three separate companies.

2014 and Top Cat 2 commenced

commuters.

The ferry used was the MV

on the 3rd of April 2015. The ferry

Cominotto which was built in 1940

boat used on the Sliema Ferries

Facilitated by the proximity of

and which was used by the Royal

route prior to the Top Cats was the

other transport modes and nodes,

Navy Hospital to ferry wounded

Cominotto. On the other hand, as

such as bus public transport and

people to Bighi Hospital in Kalkara.

for the Three Cities route, it was

other modes of transport including

the water taxi Princess Ariel, which

car-sharing

was eventually replaced by the

sharing,

and

Akvaryum.

sharing

amongst

dismantled in the following month.

The

Marsamxett

was

Inter-harbour

scheduled

maritime ferry services started

alternative and

transport modes

to

stations,

bicycle

electric

scooter

others,

and

operations again as a scheduled

complemented by the service of

service on 1st October 2012 with

the same transport card between

two

designated

routes,

being

from Sliema Ferries to Valletta (Marsamxett

side)

and

from

Valletta to the three cities through the Cospicua landing site.

A

competitive tender was published and a contract of service was awarded

to

the

“FACILITATED BY THE PROXIMITY OF OTHER TRANSPORT MODES AND NODES, SUCH AS BUS PUBLIC TRANSPORT...”

Marsamxetto

ferry service in the near future will increase in popularity.

The

upgraded

new

landing

terminals will also be equipped with real time intermodal network information to commuters, at all

Steamferry Services Ltd for a period of 8 years, that is, until 2020.

modes, the use of the maritime

nodes and on vessels to facilitate Ever

since

the

re-introduction

travel.

in 2012, the number of users The introduction of the service

registered was a few thousands but

At the time when the new ferry

was part of Government policy at

by the end of 2018, the number of

landing sites were being designed,

the time, together with the Valletta

passenger trips has increased to

studies were also being carried out

Transport Strategy, to address

over 1,600,000 million. The increase

in relation to the possibility of other

rising levels of traffic congestion

in the number of commuters prove

landing sites and routes including

and to try to induce a modal shift

the re-discovery of maritime ferry

one from St. Paul’s Bay to Sliema

from car to public transport through

services as an important means of

Ferries, and additional landing

the use of different modal services.

transport mode.

places in Spinola Bay and Ta’ Xbiex.

The operator has to operate a

Encouraged by the increase in

service all year round, from both the

patronage, TM has decided to

Grand Harbour and the Marsamxett

upgrade three of the existing ferry

Harbour, with a maximum interval

landing sites, namely those of

70 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

Passenger Statistics

Year

Pax

% Increase

2020 (Jan-Sep)

190,721

Â

2019

911,527

6.86% decrease

2018

978,754

6.80%

2017

916,438

23.93%

2016

739,477

18.66%

2015

623,201

47.55%

2014

422,360

14.85%

2013

367,735

479.75%

2012

63,430

Commenced Oct

Table above shows the Number of passengers using the Sliema-Valletta Route. Table below shows the number of passengers using the Valletta-Three Cities Routes

Year

Pax

% Increase

2020 (Jan-Sep)

142,901

Â

2019

572,646

7.71%

2018

531,635

17.68%

2017

451,764

29.61%

2016

348,567

58.30%

2015

220,198

92.14%

2014

114,601

32.33%

2013

86,603

2445.65%

2012

3,402

Commenced Oct

The tables above indicate the number of passengers using the service from its inception in 2012 on both routes, with the highest increase on both routes registered in 2018. What is interesting is the 2019 data, where it shows a decline of 6.86% on the Sliema route but showed an increase of 7.71% on the Valletta- Three Cities Route.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

71

The reduction on the Sliema Route

tourists, and hence one can assume

may be attributed to the fact that

that during the absence of incoming

works had already started on the

tourists, the service was only being

Sliema Ferries landing site, with

used by locals and other residents.

It would be interesting to see whether

the latter being horded off and a

Thirdly, during the start of the

passenger numbers will start to

temporary landing being placed

pandemic, a big number of foreign

increase again after the COVID

further away from the original

workers left the islands as well.

pandemic is controlled and some

landing site, thus not too close to

These may also have contributed to

form of normality returns, hopefully

its original place. This fact may have

the drop in passenger numbers.

as well with no more social distancing

attributed to the decrease in the

Fourthly, the fact that economic

measures, an increase in tourism as

Sliema route.

activities slumped throughout most

well as the completion of the current

of the year.

infrastructural works being carried

An improved and upgraded service on the horizon

out on the three landing places.

COVID-19 Effect and a Slump in passenger numbers.

Finally, the fact that people got scared of getting infected with the

The new landing places, which

On the other hand, there is a

Virus, is also a reason why people

are part financed by the European

considerable drop in passengers

preferred to use other means of

Regional Development Funds of

on both routes in 2020. This drop

transport other than collective

the European Union, are being built

cannot be attributed with certainty

transport. The decrease in numbers

over water and will include sheltered

to a particular cause or reason, as

was also due to social distancing

seating facilities, access ramps,

there are several reasons why this

regulations.

marshalling areas, vending machines,

might have happened, but this is very telling in any case.

One has to note that throughout the COVID-19 partial lock down, internal travel was reduced quite drastically and this was evident also in road transport, where during many stretches of the day, the road network was almost deserted.

Secondly, the fact that tourists have stopped visiting the islands for a number of months due to COVID-19 also had a drastic effect on the service. As reported by the NSO, statistics show that for the first 10 months of 2020 (from January to October) there was a decrease of 73.9 % of incoming passengers

(tourism/business)

when compared to the same period in 2019. It is a fact that these two ferry routes are very popular with

72

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

a ticketing system, ticket vending

machines, information boards and electronic boards providing real time information which will be installed on transport services.

In addition, generators will be installed on each of the current ferry boats to provide an air conditioning system on both ferries by next year’s summer (2021).

The Government, on its part, is investing heavily to upgrade the respective

infrastructure

with

the building of the new landing places;

the

Cospicua

landing

place is expected to be completed

by January 2021 and the Sliema terminal by April 2021.

With regard to the Marsamxett project, work will take longer

to finish in view of the fact that

facilitate the connection from the

the project also includes the

Grand Harbour to Central Valletta,

construction of a new breakwater

as was the purpose of the older lift

which currently is at planning stage.

which complemented to the old but

It is being estimated that this project

very popular maritime connection

will start at the earliest (pending

in between maritime towns at the

planning applications) in the fourth

time.

quarter of 2021 and is expected to two take almost two years to

With regard to additional ferry

complete.

services, one has to note that Transport

Malta

has

recently

On the Grand Harbour side, at

entered into an agreement for the

Lascaris there is proposed the

provision of scheduled passenger

construction of another landing site

ferry services between Malta and

for the fast ferry between Mgarr in

Comino, further to a Request for

Gozo and the Grand Harbour, which

Proposals.

would

also

accommodate

the

existing ferry servicing the Three

The Authority has also issued

Cities route. The planning permit

another Request for Proposals

for this project is already in hand

in July 2020 for the provision of

but as far as commencement and

scheduled sea passenger ferry

completion dates are concerned,

services in Malta and Gozo but the

these are not yet set.

Contract not yet been awarded.

One has to remember that the service at the Grand Harbour is already complemented with the reconstruction of the Valletta Barrakka Lift which was re-introduced to

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

73

TRANSPORT MALTA: THE FIRST TEN YEARS 2010-2020 D r. M a r i a B r o w n

B

ack in 2019, I was tasked to write

The work leading to this publication

regulation. The exchanges with the

a book commemorating the

was spread over an approximate

interviewees made possible the

tenth anniversary of Transport Malta

period of one year that kicked

identification of further sources,

as the national transport regulating

off with meetings with Transport

such as scholarly publications,

Authority.

the

Malta officers to jointly discuss and

policies and strategies, newspaper

tenth anniversary of an entity such

develop the initial idea. During these

articles and other media content.

as Transport Malta with the writing

meetings it transpired that the target

of a book that has a beginning and

was a non-technical book which still

an end is a humbling and challenging

does justice to the expertise and

task. It was only possible thanks

technologies that contribute to the

to the sterling support received

various transport industries and to

from the Ministry for Transport,

the related planning, development

Infrastructure and Capital Projects,

and regulation.

Commemorating

and from Transport Malta’s current and former officers – some from the

The writing of the book was informed

Authority’s predecessor entities,

by fifteen face-to-face interviews

namely: the Department of Civil

with persons selected in view of their

Aviation (DCA) , the Malta Maritime

accredited expertise and exposure

Authority (MMA) and the Malta

to the air, land or maritime transport

Transport Authority (ADT).

industries, and their planning and

74

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

“THE BOOK IS ALSO LIKELY TO DRAW THE ATTENTION OF STUDENTS, SCHOLARS AND PROFESSIONALS WITH AN INTEREST IN TRANSPORT AND ITS HISTORY...”

The amount of information

any of the historical events that

was,

least,

feature in the story of Transport

to

say

voluminous,

the

the

Malta or its preceding entities.

broad remit of Transport

Examples include the 1992-

Malta,

2003 sanctions of the United

and

mirroring

Malta’s

ventures

accomplishments

in

Nations on Libya, the hijacks

the transport sector and,

of the EgyptAir Boeing in 1985

of course, the relevance

and of the Afriqiyah Airways

of transport in a society,

Airbus in 2016, the 2010s

and in Maltese society in

Arab Spring and many more.

particular. Transport Malta

The book is of interest to the

emerged as both catalyst

general public as well, given

and

local,

the essential role transport

national and supranational

beneficiary

of

plays in our lives. It informs an

social networks.

appraisal of the significance that transport, its planning, Small (compared to transport in

development,

dwelled on the legacies of its

larger countries) but profusely

regulation have, particularly for a

predecessors; the air, land and

connected;

small island-state like Malta. It is

Over the past decade the Authority

maritime

transport

•

regulators

and committed to adding value by

and

very unfortunate when disputes and •

means of the synergy entailed in

Responsive to the signs of the

electoral cycles mar or hinder the

times;

capacity of transport stakeholders

its remit. This would not have been possible without the agency of the

operations

for •

stakeholders, that include ministries,

imagining,

demanding,

Devoted to capacity-building

developing and implementing better

and legacy-building; and

and innovative transport.

operators in the transport industry, unions, associations, service users

•

Committed

and last but not least, officers working

sustainable

in the regulation and planning of the

of

various transport sectors.

technologies.

current

to

enhance deployment

and

emergent

Rather than a book of disconnected

It was not only the immersion in

interview transcripts, the book’s

Transport Malta’s story and the story

discussion is organised in themes

of transport in Malta that underlined

emerging from the recounting of

the relevance of these themes, but

events, episodes, anecdotes and

also Transport Malta’s contributions

testimonials,

for overcoming the spread of the

and

corroborated

with legal documents, policies,

COVID-19

media sources as well as scholarly

ongoing at the time of writing, during

pandemic

which

is

literature. Months of contemplation,

the onset of Transport Malta’s

discussion and deliberation led to

second decade.

Ultimately, transport is both a prerequisite to any society and its civilised development; as well as a genuine gauge of that society’s standing at any given moment in time: demographically, economically, socially and culturally. This book supports discerning the momentous, yet often unacknowledged role that transport has in the unfolding of events.

the identification of the four main themes, in a humble attempt to

The book is also likely to draw the

synthesise where Transport Malta

attention of students, scholars and

and Malta’s transport development

professionals with an interest in

stand today:

transport and its history, as well as in

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

75

Peter Paul Barbara National Coordinator – Malta National Electromobility Platform and Director within the Office of the Chief Operating Officer and Deputy CEO - TM

SMITHs (SUSTAINABLE MULTI-INTERMODAL TRANSPORT HUBS) THE CONCEPT EXPLAINED

76

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

The Concept Sustainable Multi-Intermodal Transport Hubs (SMITHs) is an award winning concept put forward by the Malta National Electromobility Platform back in 2017.

Through this concept it was proposed the setting up and the organisation of several types of local transport hubs and the re-organisation and/or introduction of several green and sustainable transport and mobility services to promote further sustainable mobility.

Hence the aim of the local transport hubs, apart to provide various types of sustainable transport and mobility services such as e-mobility and other soft modes of transport, is also to increase modal shift levels as well as to address traffic congestion and air pollution at a local level.

SMITHs can be regarded as the main anchors on a grid in a given urban sustainable transport system where all transport systems can converge to. With the use of certain elements of Intelligent Transport Systems and Artificial Intelligence, it can be made even smarter and implemented as a pre-cursor to the attainment of the Smart City Concept.

There are a total of 45 proposed locations in Malta and Gozo that can be potentially considered as local inter-modal transport hubs. It is to be noted that a number of minor interventions would be needed in some of these locations where different transport services can be organised in a manner that makes them easily accessible by transport users. In others, general upgrading would be required, especially in maritime towns and villages where maritime services are given or will be given in the future.

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

77

To start the implementation of

will be equipped with accessible

this project has been passed

this concept, Transport Malta had

ramps, marshalling areas and with

on to the Ministry of Energy for

indicated a good number of these

real time information services,

implementation after an agreement

locations in the concession tender

by which users would be in the

was reached between the two

which was published in 2016 for

know of other transport services

Ministries and Transport Malta.

the provision of a national e-car-

schedules such as those of bus

sharing programme that would be

public transport. Each of these

As far as Intelligent Transport

implemented nationwide and that

areas also serve as a main SMITH

Systems

makes the service mandatory in the

due to other transport services

SMITHs Project also includes the

SMITHs located areas.

readily available in a multi-modal

setting up of a new state of the art,

transport hub.

National Traffic Control Centre to

As can be seen from the map

are

concerned,

the

better manage traffic congestion

included in this article, the locations

Through the project, TM also

and enforcement. The facility will be

are mostly situated in urban cores

purchased a further 108 medium-

readily available and fully functional

across different towns and villages.

fast EV charging pillars and an

between 2021 and 2022.

additional 22 ultra-fast 50KW fast To support the implementation of

chargers (total of 260 EV charging

These SMITH Hubs are envisaged

this concept, the ERDF funded

points), and when one includes the

to expand in the future according to

SMITHs Project also included the

committed 450 charging points

increased demand, new technology

upgrading of the current inter-

to be deployed by the car-sharing

and new transport services on

harbour ferry landing sites so that

company GOTO, Malta would have

offer. The demand will inevitably

these would have proper shelter

surpassed its 2020 EU led target

increase in parallel to economic and

facilities for passengers using the

of 200 charging points nationwide.

population growth.

scheduled ferry services. They

Since

when the demand begins to peak,

78

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

the

purchase

however,

In the future,

it will be inevitable that a Mass

commuters or the general public an

choices according to transport

Rapid Transport System would

array of modal choices to suit one’s

users in a given locality. The services

have to be implemented, which

needs.

on offer will be within the respective geographical context, for example,

will complement the established The

and

maritime towns such as Sliema and

concept was designed by the Malta

the towns of Cottonera cities might

The utilization of public transport

National Electromobility Platform

have a maritime ferry service as

in highly congested areas, similar

(MNEP) which used to form part of

opposed to a town or village which is

to Malta’s highly congested - inner

the Sustainable Mobility Unit within

not in proximity to the shore.

Harbor Area, could be better

Office of the COO and Deputy

improved by providing an array

CEO’s Office of Transport Malta.

SMITHs.

SMITHS

Definition

The concept of the HUB also facilitates and promotes the concept

of modal choices at the fingertips of commuters. Every solution to

A decision to implement this

of transport sharing services based

address traffic congestion brought

concept and type of solution within

around the provision of ‘mobility as a

about by heavy personal car use

the national and local transport

service’.

would need to be explored, tried and

system in a sustainable manner

tested.

was taken in 2017 by the Board of

During the last three decades, our

the Transport Authority and the

towns and villages have become

improve

Transport Ministry, at the time.

highly congested urban centres

through

The Vision

with an increased demand for

and

The concept is designed around a

transfers of transport users. This

secure connections between the

vision to provide a seamless multi-

has been brought about by an urban

different modes of transport in a

intermodal transport system in a

sprawl which caused an increase in

specific location where selected

specific location, in what is being

distance between home and places

transport services can co-exist

referred to as ‘local transport hubs’,

of work or leisure coupled by a

into a comprehensive green and

which will offer different modal

change in people’s habits, behaviour,

The

objective

intermodal

is

to

transport

its organization into these local hubs,

that

provides

safe

sustainable transport eco-system.

transport

needs

services,

and

complex

including

individual

lifestyles.

The aim of the Award-winning SMITHs concept is precisely this;

This phenomenon has also led to

to provide inter-modal solutions

an increase in levels of motorisation

that would encourage people to use

and traffic congestion, in turn,

shared transport rather than their

leading to a number of transport

own personal means of transport.

externalities such as longer journey

In some cases, services like shared

times for both vehicular traffic and

transport (car sharing, bike sharing,

public transport, degradation in air

scooter sharing and e-kickscooter

quality because of high levels of

sharing) could still deliver a sense

air pollution, carbon emissions,

of private transport, should people

noise

prefer

energy efficiency and a higher

that

against

collective

pollution,

decrease

in

transport.

increase in road accidents.

The Proof of concept is very simple.

The SMITHs concept intends

Agglomerate as many transport

to offer an alternative to private

services in a given location to give

car

use

by

promoting

inter-

ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

79

modality to effect a modal shift

provided services as opposed to

but could also take full advantage of

from the private ICE car to more

using their own private car.

ICT and ITS solutions, services and

sustainable means of transport.

infrastructure, such as the provision As with major transport hubs found

of real time information systems on

In this concept, several levels

in major cities, such as airports,

all modes of transport and real time

of

designed

seaports and train stations, where

journey planning which would provide

depending on transport demand,

a range of the traditional transport

information on all available transport

different transport services that

services are provided, such as car

modes offered at the local Hub.

can be introduced (and which will

hire, taxis and cab service, bus

render themselves sustainable),

and coach service, the idea of the

levels

traditional transport hub is being

SMITHs

of

were

commuting,

traffic

ITS-enabled Ferry Landing Sites

congestion and so on.

The availability of such services may include the following; •

Public scheduled bus transport

•

Public scheduled maritime ferry services (in maritime towns and villages)

•

Car sharing

•

E-motorcycle

“Encouraged by the increase in patronage, TM has decided to upgrade three of the existing ferry landing sites...”

When

the

Ferry

service

inter-harbour was

re-

introduced in 2010, the number of registered users using the Ferry Service was a few thousands but by the end of 2018, the number of passenger trips had increased to over 1,600,000 million passenger trips. The increase in the number of

commuters

prove

the importance and rediscovery of maritime ferry services as an important means of transport.

sharing •

Bicycle sharing

extended to a micro level in smaller local urban centres with the SMITHs

•

Pedelec sharing

•

Scooter sharing

•

Cab services

•

Taxi services

hub can be in the form of a building,

•

Transport on Demand

a town or village square or a main

Services

parking lot or any other space with

Cycling infrastructure

a physical proximity between the

• •

EV – Charging facilities

In addition, for better familiarization with the concept, a proper branding design and campaign as well as a future web-application is intended for users to easily make use of the

concept.

different transport systems which would be situated within a short walking distance. addition,

landing sites, namely those of Vittoriosa, Marsamxetto and Sliema Ferries and to introduce passenger waiting facilities and real time information services on ferry and bus schedules, among others.

The project is currently being implemented Malta.

the

inter-modal

interchange could benefit not only from the short distances between the availability of the actual transport

80 ISSUE 01 | T-21 The Transport Malta Quarterly

patronage, TM has decided to upgrade three of the existing ferry

Conceptually, the local transport

In

Encouraged by the increase in

by

Infrastructure

Safe Cycle Routes

junctions, calming

traffic measures

Over and above the local transport

and digital information

hubs, the concept also proposed a

signs such as speed

number of cycle corridors, referred

limit indicators and

to as ‘Safe Cycle Routes’ which,

way finding signs.

where possible, will intersect the same transport hubs. Initially, a pilot project is being proposed to cover over 26km of urban streets which in most cases run parallel to main roads (please refer to the National

E-Car medium to Fast and Fast Charging Station facilities

Cycling Strategy 2018).

Throughout the SMITHs Locations, The concept around the design

a number of EV-Charging Units

of the safe cycle routes is based

have already been deployed and will

on the ‘Share the Road’ concept,

continue to be deployed to promote

where these delegated streets will

electric vehicles further, as well as

be subject to a number of measures

to supplement EV Charging pillars,

to enhance safety for both cyclists

complementing the EV Charging

and pedestrians. These measures

Network. An example of this is the

include revision of speed limits,

Ta’ Xbiex Marina which already is

installation of CCTV cameras to

equipped with a Solar e-charging car

enforce speed limits, ITS measures

port and car sharing facilities plus

such as cyclist detection and

public transport bus stops.

prioritization of cyclists at certain

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