Earlier this week, while scrolling through my morning news, I came across the latest TimesTalk episode about Malta’s traffic gridlock. It was both impressive and depressing.
As one officer put it, “One moment it’s quiet, the next, panic.” This isn’t traffic management. It’s crisis management every single day. Yet, despite all their valiant efforts, cars still clog the streets and junctions as they have reached their carrying capacity.
The TimesTalk episode showed how much capital the country spends on the current network system. The real cost isn’t just millions spent on congestion; it’s the stress of the daily commute, the quality of the air we breathe, and the public space we’ve surrendered to parking. It’s the generations growing up believing roads are for cars, not people.
Change doesn’t require massive projects; it starts with a mindset shift, recognising that movement doesn’t always mean cars.
We can begin with simple, visible steps: connected bike lanes, wider pavements, shaded routes, and safe crossings where people actually walk. These aren’t wishful ideas but practical improvements that many cities have already made. Achieving quality of life means facing the inconvenient truth, that we can’t solve congestion by adding one more lane.
Imagine commuting to work on public transport, children cycling safely to school, parents walking to the shop without dodging traffic, and grandparents resting under a tree instead of behind parked vehicles. These aren’t fantasies — they’re the result of choices.
To understand the massive impact of these individual choices we need to ask, “What if everyone did that?” This helps us put the impact of these small actions into perspective.
In Malta, we’re living the answer to that question. What if everyone drove to work every morning, owned 1 or 2 cars, chose to drive a short distance instead of walk and parked on the street? We’d get what we have today — congested roads, noisy neighbourhoods, and little room for people, trees, or safe pavements.
Each of us can help rewrite that story. Every time we walk, cycle, or take the bus, we make a small but powerful choice for change.
Infrastructure matters, but so does culture. Malta needs better education, for both children and adults on the benefits of active mobility and respect for vulnerable road users.
Cyclists aren’t obstacles; they’re neighbours choosing a cleaner way to move. Pedestrians aren’t “in the way”; they’re citizens reclaiming the simple act of walking.
There’s a saying: “We shape our cities, and afterwards our cities shape us.” Malta’s streets have shaped us into people who have run out of patience and plan life around congestion. But it doesn’t have to stay that way.
Investing in bicycle networks, safe pavements, trees, and lighting isn’t just planning, it’s building a healthier, fairer country.
So next time we see traffic officers scrambling to clear a junction, maybe we should ask: what if we gave them less traffic to manage? What if, instead of adding cars, we added options?
Because the real solution won’t come from better traffic control — it will come from needing less of it.