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What is the perception of buses by tourists visiting the Maltese Islands?
A dissertation submitted in part fulfilment of the requirements for the diploma of
HOSPITALITY MANAGMENT
Davinia Bert
Hospitality Management – Higher Diploma Course
Institute of Tourism Studies Malta
May 2011

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Acknowledgments
This research project would not have been possible without the support of many people.
I am heartily thankful to my tutor, Ms. Carmenrita Bugeja, whose encouragement, guidance
and support from the initial to the final level enabled me to develop an understanding of the
subject.
Deepest gratitude is also due to my family and my best friend, Andrew Baird, who was
abundantly helpful and offered invaluable assistance, encouragement and inspiration.
Lastly, I would like to offer my regards and blessings to all of those who supported me in any
respect during the completion of the project.
Davinia Bert

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Abstract
As every island, Malta’s principal source of revenue is tourism. In reality, the island
attracts approximately 1,200,000 tourists every year, equating to just over a billion Euros of
revenue. The island’s inhabitants first preoccupation should be customer care and to make and
keep tourists happy and enjoy a good reputation. However, many mistakes have been made;
the government seems to forget its priority and Maltese citizen tend to omit important details
when welcoming tourists.
In fact, customer care is found everywhere and does not only concern hotels,
restaurants or shops, but anything that is related to tourists which starts from their arrival at
the airport and continuing through their entire stay, even small details such as asking the way
to somewhere from a resident.
However, as buses are the principal means of transport tourists have once they arrive
on the island, I chose to research and understand on how tourists perceive buses, what actions
seem to have been put into place wrongly and what could be done to ameliorate not only
tourists’, but also Maltese inhabitants’ well-being and comfort.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title page 1
Acknowledgments 2
Abstract 3
Table of Contents 4
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 7
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 10
Customer Care 10
History of the Transport System in Malta 15
Road Patterns and Networks 15
Early Modes of Public Transport 16
The railway in Malta 17
The Tram 17
Motor Vehicles 18
Public Buses 18
Current Transport System and Trends 20
Population and Transportation 20
Modes of Transports in Malta 22
Boats and Ferries 22
Electric (CT) City Cabs 23

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Taxis 24
Sightseeing Buses 24
Tourist Train 24
Helicopter 25
Seaplane 25
Public Bus Transport System 26
Model choice 28
Problems of Public Transport in Malta 29
Problems of the Network Infrastructure 31
Problems of the Buses 31
Operational Problems 32
Lack of Professionals 32
Pollution Issues in Malta 33
Malta and the EU 34
Transportation Issues in the EU 34
Public Transport Organisation in Europe 35
Malta in the EU 37
New Public Transport Organisation in Malta 38
The Arriva Company 39
Arriva vs. the Current System: the changes 40
Providing better Quality Service 40
Air Quality Improvements 41
Their Challenge 43

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Other Future Eco-Friendly Public Transports Abroad 44
In the UK 44
In France 46
In Norway 47
CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 48
-Step One:
Survey conducted in 2009 Maltese citizens concerning Public Transport in Malta 50
-Step Two:
Surveying Tourists 50
-Step Three:
Interviewing Drivers 50
-Step Four:
Questions to a Managing Director in contact with Arriva 51
CHAPTER 4: DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS 52
Results of the first step of the study 52
Results of the second step of the study 54
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION
Reference
Appendix

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CHAPTER 1
Introduction
Transportation has transformed the way in which we perceive travel and
communications. Before the introduction of private cars in the mid 20th century, travelling
was limited, and life was generally focused around the locality in which one lived. However,
transportation is nowadays used for a number of purposes and is used not only for private use
in one’s own city, but also for and travelling visiting other cities. Even though public transport
has been introduced in order to facilitate people’s journey, the private vehicle is generally the
most desirable form of transport, no matter how attractive other alternatives might be. In fact,
it is one of the main items of family expenditure subsequent to the family home or property.
Private car use has grown rapidly during the last decades. The number of motorised
vehicles in the world increased from approximately 75 million between 1950 and 1990, and is
expected to increase by 300% by 2020. Around 80% of these vehicles are said to be used for
personal transportation, that is, cars and motorcycles (OECD, 1996). Moreover, transport
ranks as one of the major users of energy and is responsible for up to a third of the total
energy consumption of most developed countries. Therefore, although transportation affects
almost every aspect of resource use, air quality and urban liveability, it is still a price that
society seems prepared to accept to pay.
In the case of Malta’s limited urban environment, the use of private vehicles has a
more concentrated effect. In fact, visual, noise and air quality present a large impact upon the
environment as increasing private vehicles on the road dominate the streetscape, while the
consideration of providing alternative modes of transport is overlooked.
As a matter of fact, public transport is one of the most significant sectors to consider
when planning for a sustainable urban environment as it provides an efficient mode of

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transportation in terms of space consumption per traveller. However, the situation in the
Maltese Islands is quite complex as transportation demands in urban areas continue to
increase rapidly as a result of both population growth and changes in travel patterns.
Moreover, Malta has an ever increasing number of tourists visiting the Island each year,
which amounted to 136,758 tourists in June 2010; an increase of 20% compared to June 2009.
Hence, in this era of environmental concerns and limited space, it is essential to provide a
system that meets not only Maltese citizens’ but also tourists’ needs and expectations.
Therefore, after discussions about the importance of customer care, this study will first
provide the reader with information regarding the history of transport in Malta, before
describing the Island’s current transport system and trends. The study will further expand
upon the issues related to public transport in Malta by obtaining tourists’ as well as bus
drivers’ point of view, and also offer an opportunity for possibilities in improving the public
bus service in Malta. It is evident that an improved solution must be provided if Malta wants
to continue to rely upon the current public transportation system to help resolve its ever-
increasing traffic problems and its related effects. Moreover, in-depth investigation will
compare the present system to the new upcoming bus service system.
For this reason, this study has applied both qualitative and quantitative methodologies.
This technique of using both methods facilitates validation of data through verification from
more than two sources and gives therefore greater reliability. Indeed, it refers to the
triangulation method which combines several research methodologies in the study of the same
matter. In fact, according to O’Donoghue and Punch (2003), triangulation is a “method of
cross-checking data from multiple sources to search for regularities in the research data."
Altrichter (2008) contend that triangulation "gives a more detailed and balanced picture of the
situation."

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However, certain limitations arose when working on the study. In fact, public transport
being a vast subject entailing many dimensions, all information could not be accessible.
Moreover, while the study refers to the upcoming transport system, is it however not in
service yet. Consequently, many issues present in the current system are said to be undertaken
as soon as the system will change. In order to verify and analyse further the problem of public
transport in Malta, it is therefore suggested that an additional study should be carried out once
the new transport system has been established.

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CHAPTER 2
Literature Review
Customer Care
Customer care is defined as being a policy from a genuine management attitude which
recognizes the importance of the customer in all things. When employees see management
doing, rather than just saying, things will start to change (Brown, 1989). “Management must
demonstrate how deeply they believe in the concepts they are preaching by carrying them out
themselves”. In fact, Andrew Brown (1989) explains that while the concept is being
established within the company, and once it is up and running, real customer care requires
constant vigilance. Managers must start by education and explaining why customers are so
important, and they are there to help customers not to complain about them. First, the
behaviour patterns have to be worked on, creating good customer care habits in people in
order to see the vision become part of the culture. It will then develop into a general attitude,
and once everyone’s attitude is right, action and changes can be made. Nevertheless, it is also
vital for the company to motivate its staff in order to achieve excellent customer service.
Patricia Wellington (1995) enforces what Brown (1989) says by stating that
“Excellence in Customer Care cannot happen on its own” (p.39). In fact, it is up to managers
to create the environment and the culture for their workers to be motivated and competent, but
also to contribute more in terms of ideas for improvement. That way, employees will feel
needed, supported and valued as individuals, and will want to offer more to the customer. She
concluded in saying that “effective Customer care is always bearing in mind what is important
to the customer.”

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Therefore, it is vital for an organisation to understand customers’ needs and wants in
order to not only meet their expectations but to exceed them. This will make the customer feel
welcome and special which in the end will make him want to come back. “It’s getting clearer
every day that becoming obsessed with customers is the only survival route in today’s crazy
environment” (Tom Peter, 1987).
When selling a service, it is altogether more difficult to categorize and analyse, but it
is important that a company understands what it is selling. Brown (1989) explains that during
the selling process a service cannot usually be demonstrated until the prospective customer
has bought, however, the service does not actually exist for him; it is merely a promise, and
an act of confidence. The prospective customer believes that the provider is capable of doing
what he says he will, and trusts him to keep his word. Once the service has been delivered, the
customer generally owns nothing tangible. He has had an experience which he will either
have enjoyed or not. “Any service provided is measured against our expectation, which is
based upon previous experience. The first priority should be to meet the customer’s
expectation. The second is to beat it” (Brown, 1989).
Any value which can be put on the service is therefore merely subjective and internal;
the customers’ feelings about the service are the only measure of its success. In addition,
while a service is an experience which cannot be given away or passed around to someone
else once it has been delivered, it can, however, be described. In fact, if the customer believes
that the service was a good experience, this is what he will tell other people. On the other
hand, if he thinks it was a bad experience, he will tell even more people. “The customer has a
role in the actualization of the service. If he wasn’t there, everything would be different”
(Brown, 1989). As mentioned before, customers have expectations when receiving goods or
services. It is then up to the supplier to either fulfil, surpass or disappoint the customer.

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The service might not alter between different customers but their level of satisfaction
differs widely. Brown (1989) emphasises that the important thing to remember is a service is
always different from a product. It has different characteristics, and must therefore be
managed differently. In fact, as a service is not something tangible, it is difficult to control its
quality and it is up to the management to control the processes, values and attitudes which
will become a set of methods, to deliver the service the way customers expect. Customer care
therefore aims to close the gap between what customers expect, and what they get. “It is
partly of having good management, partly of good marketing, partly of having good people”
(Brown, 1989).
Again, customers’ expectations are never static and always changing. A successful
service company must move with those expectations and keep improving service levels.
“Unless a company is sensitive to changes in the market place, and flexible enough to adapt to
them, it will never remain successful for long. Only customer care can provide that sort of
sensitivity and flexibility” (Brown, 1989). Therefore, it is vital to ensure that all employees
from a company can provide a service of the same high standards and use of their capacity to
deal with different customers and their needs.
Brown (1989) also mentions the three quality controls that a successful customer care
program depends on. First, there is the quality of the company and its preparation where it
will define its services, conduct surveys and analyse the costs. Second is the quality of the
service system, such as the training of the staff and their ability to handle complaints. The
third one is the quality of the services sold meaning, that is, its internal education, the
philosophy behind the program, the setting of objectives and training its people to achieve it
to finally evaluate and monitor what is being done.
Another strategy for customer care is called Kaizen strategy; a book written by Patricia
Wellington in 1995 explains what Kaizen is, how it works and its differences with the

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Western system before creating a powerful customer care program with both systems. Kaizen
means ‘change for the better’; it is a philosophy, a practice that focuses on always improving
services and management. Patricia Wellington (1995) first points out the fact that customer
service is the “single most ubiquitous non-financial objective of businesses and agencies of all
types in the West”.
In fact, every organization realizes that its success depends largely on how much they
can satisfy their customers, whether those customers are the public, other businesses or other
parts of their own business. Despite this, many customer-care programs fail to provide
satisfaction, even though some companies provide satisfaction for a time, they do not have the
flexibility and the vision to satisfy the ever-increasing demands of customers.
Although the Kaizen approach normally focuses on the importance of teams and team work,
Kaizen that is adapted in the West aims to blend the positive aspects of individualism with the
advantages of team work.
“A society in which individuals feel responsible for their actions is more likely to work
together and survive to spread its values. A group of free individuals who share certain mutual
aims can collaborate to achieve their common objectives and yet still have the flexibility to
innovate and find new directions. Thus, such a society is likely to prosper and, notably, other
societies and groups are likely to copy their successful culture” (“A Brief History of Times”
Stephen Hawking, 1988).
Although creativity shouldn’t be damaged when imposing rigid standards, there are
some behavioural attributes that a person should have when implementing Kaizen. Indeed,
Patricia Wellington (1995) describes what a Kaizen person should have, that is: an attention to
detail, a forward-looking approach, receptivity to constructive advice, willingness to take
responsibility, pride in his or her work and organization and a willingness to co-operate.

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The first point that Kaizen focuses on are customers “It is absolutely paramount in
Kaizen that all activities must lead inexorably to greater customer satisfaction” (Patricia
Wellington, 1995). In fact, in a Kaizen company, it is everyone’s personal responsibility to
ensure its products and services meet customers’ needs. There is no distinction between
producing quality and fulfilling customers’ needs, and a company either provides them or it
does not. Second, in a Kaizen system an organization has to make improvement continuously.
It also acknowledges problems openly and promotes openness and finally creates team work.
“Small wins, small projects, small differences often make huge differences” (Rosabeth Moss
Kanter, 2009).
An important issue in designing an effective customer process flow lies in gaining an
understanding of the degree and type of risk that the customer feels in dealing with the
organization. Therefore, every industry should have some sort of customer workshop or
survey group. The only way to find out what people are thinking and wanting is to ask them
“In order to improve the quality of goods and services it is generally agreed that the
organization must ‘listen to customers” (Armistead & Clarks, 1992).
Customer contact must therefore be managed rather than left to happen. “The best
organization manage the detail exceptionally well through careful service delivery design and
quality management. A powerful tool for improvement is to consider the customer as part of
the process flow, using the customer as a resource where possible. The process of analyzing
the flow of materials, information, service providers and customers is extremely valuable in
improving service quality and gaining ownership of the process by those involved in it”
(Armistead & Clarks, 1992).

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History of the transport system in Malta
Road Patterns and Networks
It is not the purpose of this thesis to discuss the history of road networks in Malta.
However, it is interesting for the development of the study proposed to provide a general
overview of how streets in Malta evolved over the years. Moreover, since this study is about
public transportation, it is also necessary to identify how different modes of public transport
varied through the ages.
Camilleri’s dissertation (1979) ‘Roads and Streets in Malta’ shows the development of
streets in the Maltese islands, dating from the 16th century. Typical radial road patterns were
created by the organic development of settlements. The central point from which roads
radiated outwards was Rabat, the suburb of the formerly capital, Mdina. These roads led to
the major villages on the island, and most of them are still in use today, forming part of the
present road system.
The arrival of the Knights of St. John in 1530 gave rise to a time when many
important cities were planned out. One of the most preferred layouts used by the Knights was
the grid iron system. As the important cities were transformed from a tangle of medieval
alleyways to as more contemporary street layout, the roads leading to different settlements
remained largely unchanged (Camilleri, 1979).
In the 19th century, as Malta was under British rule, the Island slowly started to
develop its economy. Malta’s geographical position secured the island as an important link for
countries shipping goods around the Mediterranean (Bowen-Jones, H., 1962). By this time,
the very old road patterns gradually became more complex and dense.
It is therefore very difficult to classify the older roads precisely. However, as shown in
Wolsley’s survey in 1824, major roads were concentrated within the central and harbour

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regions around Valletta and the Three Cities (Senglea, Cospicua and Vittoriosa). Cart and
carriage roads extended out from the harbour regions to main passageways interconnecting
many other rural centres.
During 1911, an increase in traffic was observed, particularly within a radius of 6 ½
kilometres of Valletta (Camilleri, 1979). Hence, the British Royal Commission of the time
had to improve the network. Mosta became therefore an important transport node in the
northern region. However, the northern and southern coastlands remained poorly served.
Early Modes of Public Transports
The earliest form of public transport was the kaless, a horse-drawn two-wheeled
carriage. It was first hired by particular members of society, but later became available to the
general public. It was then replaced by the popular karozzin, another type of horse-drawn
carriage. However, its efficiency was rather limited since it could carry no more than four
people at once. For this reason, a new form of public transport emerged in the mid-19th
century. In fact, the omnibus operated by the Omnibus Company started its service in 1856,
and offered large horse-drawn carriages that could carry up to ten people. The first route ran
from Valletta to Lija passing through Hamrun and Birkirkara.
Six other omnibuses started to operate later on; one to Rabat, passing through Hamrun,
Zebbug and Qormi; the others to and from St. Julian’s, passing through Sliema and Msida.
However, the highly priced fares in comparison to the contemporary ferry and boat services as
well as the introduction of the railway system contributed to financial issues and therefore, to
the failure of the Omnibus Company; which ceased its operations in 1896.
The Railway in Malta

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During the 1870s, a number of railway schemes were put forward proposing links
between Valletta and Mdina, and passing through several nearby towns and villages. By 1881,
a single track railway was running from Valletta to Rabat. It was later extended to the military
camp and hospital at Mtarfa. However, financial crisis left the railway in difficulty and was
later re-opened through aid by the Government. At the start of the 20th century, the arrival of
cheaper transport alternatives such as the tram, and later on buses and motor cars posed
another financial threat to the railway.
By 1911, the railway service was operating at such a loss that a special inquiry was set
up by the British Commission to evaluate the situation. It was concluded that one of the main
reasons of failure was due to the fact that the system had not been designed commercially.
The other reason was that although the demand for transport was still relatively poor at the
same, the railway service was not flexible enough to meet the required demand.
The railway finally closed down on March 31st 1931.
The Tram
In 1905, a fixed rail tramway system was opened on street as it was evaluated to be
more advantageous in terms of flexibility than the railway. The first locations to benefit from
this system were Valletta and Cottonera before serving Zebbug. This system proved to be
very successful, as it was welcomed by most people. In fact, the service was expanded to
include Birkirkara the following year. The main attraction of the train was in it being designed
specifically for carrying passengers rather than cargo and luggage. Moreover, it was divided
into two compartments, for first and second class respectively. Thus this extended the urban
influence into the country. Nevertheless, since the majority of the population was living along
coastlines and around the natural harbours; the tramway journeys were sometimes risky and
lengthy.

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Furthermore, the few ferries and boats in Marsamxelt and the Grand Harbour offered a
more convenient passage route. The introduction of alternative transport also threatened the
tram and by 1929, the losses of the tram company forced the closing down of the service
altogether.
Motor Vehicles
During and after World War ӏ, the railroad and tramways rapidly disappeared, giving
way to motor vehicles. Nowadays, the route of the railway and tram-lines can be found in
field alignments and tracks, whilst in some areas such as Attard, some railway infrastructure
is still visible.
The year 1901 saw the first motor cars being imported to Malta. Within a few years,
the rate of car ownership increased rapidly. In fact, one of the first regulations about private
vehicles was that no car was allowed within the city gates of Valletta.
Public Buses
The introduction of motor cars prompted the use of another new service. In fact, it was
requested permission to carry passengers with motor cars. After much negotiation with the
government and other interested parties, a bus service was initiated in October 1905. Each bus
could carry 16 passengers. This service immediately became very popular and quickly
obtained regular profitable routes.
With the introduction of buses, importance was also given to specific roads which
were commonly used for bus routes. By the start of the mid-20th century, due to military
purposes, new motor roads were built, which also led to furthering the importance of
particular towns as well as the emergence of a primitive communication network. At the same
time, regions that were far away from the main roads were also becoming more connected. It

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therefore contributed to the increase of registered vehicles, such that by March 1959, there
were 20, 181 licensed vehicles, 14,000 private cars and taxis, and over 600 buses.
The first official recognition for buses as a public service took place in September
1922. This coincided with the introduction of regulating tariffs by mileage. By September
1923, this new transport system had developed so much that further regulations had to be
introduced. Operating permits were obligatory; minimum service requirements were set; and
the order of departure of the competing buses was scheduled.
Initially, public buses simply connected Valletta and Sliema, with only four stops in all, and
with a legal maximum fleet of 50 buses per day. By late 1923, the route was extended to St.
Julian’s, and the frequency of buses had risen to over 120 per day. In 1927, the first vast
extension took place, as Zebbug, Birkirkara and Cospicua were linked to Valletta. It was also
clearly stated in the regulations that the bus service was to be designed for commuters. As the
service continued, newcomers to the business pioneered other route extensions.
In 1930, the first timetables were published for services between Valletta and
Mellieha, that passed via Mosta and St. Paul’s Bay and later on, for services between
Cospicua and Marsascala. During this time, a separate Valletta-to-Mosta service was also
introduced. Although the timetables do not show an accurate date of commencement of the
service, it demonstrated that the service was significantly well established.
All routes led to Valletta, while the older cart channels became dominated by the
cities’ conurbation. Few services interconnected the town and villages, whilst large areas in
the West and North had very limited services. It is this radial nature that still poses limitations
between regions and villages.

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Mainland Malta Bus Network
Source: Malta Structure Plan Report of Survey. Malta Transport (MEPA, 1990)
Current Transport System and Trends
Due to the small size of the Maltese islands, the relatively high urban density and the
well-developed road network (approximately 2,000 km), Malta’s transport system provides
accessible connections to all industrial, tourist and commercial centres. The road network in
Malta is configured in a hub and spoke pattern with the capital having direct connections with
all outlying regions. The road network is the only inland transportation mode on Malta.
Population and Transportation
Malta is rated as having one of the highest population densities and car ownership
levels in Europe (ADT, 2009). The fact that the Maltese Island has a small land area and lack
of natural resources, tourism being one of the main economic activities implies a high
pressure placed upon the transport sector. However, the rapid increase in car ownership over
the years is the indication of a healthy economy. In fact, the two main factors leading to
Malta’s high car ownership level were the increase in standards of living and the disposable

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income of the population during the last two decades, as well as the reduction in the costs of
cars. Recent studies have also estimated that 16% of household expenditure was towards
transport (MITC, 2008).
Another factor leading to the growth of car ownership in Malta is the Islands’
demographic trend: the Maltese population is growing whilst household sizes are declining. In
fact, there has been an increase of 20,000 households in the past ten years. Hence, this has
influenced the demand for personal mobility, as shown in the following graph.
Forecasted number of cars per household
Source: Structure Plan Unit and Central Office of Statistics (MEPA, 1991)
With around 2,188 km of roads in Malta, there are actually more than 270,000
vehicles. This compared to the current population of over 400,000 gives an approximate
indication that there is one vehicle for every three inhabitants. The situation is even more
problematic knowing that according to statistics around 76% of the vehicles are privately
owned (NSO, 2007). The figure below shows how trends in car ownership have risen far more
than the Structure plan review.

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Forcasted number of cars perhousehold and actual growth.
Source: Department of Licensing and Testing/Strategic Planning Unit - Transport Topic Paper
(MEPA, 2002).
Modes of Transports in Malta
Other modes of transports are available for tourists to go around the Maltese Islands.
Some of them are more used than others, due to their flexibility, cost, destinations, and to the
tourists’ needs and consciousness of their existence.
Boats and Ferries
There are two main ferries that carry passengers from one land to another. First, the
regular Gozo ferry service is well known to tourists as it is their only possible way to get from
Malta to Gozo. Another ferry is the Marsamxetto ferry between Sliema and Valletta, which
provides an alternative means of transport to the bus across Marsamxett harbour. Operating
hourly all year round with extra trips at peak times, the service is popular with tourists and
nearby residents. However, its main disadvantage being the relatively steep walk required to
reach the centre of Valletta can be a real challenge for people with special needs.

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Boats are also a mean of transport which is more specific as they carry passengers not
to get from one place to another, but to visit the Island from another point of view. Some
tourists will prefer booking cruises which have specific routes; others will go onto small boats
that will bind the romance to be on their own and their pleasure of visiting the Grand Harbour
or the three Cities in traditional boats. However, these typical Maltese Dghajsa are slowly
disappearing from the Island. In fact, from approximately a thousand boats registered in the
Eighties, there are only a few dozen left.
Moreover, the kiosk selling the tickets situated in Vittoriosa is currently being run on a
voluntary basis, which shows the risk for these traditional boats to disappear totally in the
future. This risk will even be more probable as new water taxis have been on service since
this March 2011. These yellow coloured taxis are accessible for all passengers, including
travellers with special needs, and operate for most of the year from 07.00am to midnight. This
allows people to get back late to where they want without the constraint of waiting for a bus
or paying too much for a taxi.
Electric (CT) City Cabs
Another initiative aimed at tackling transportation problems in city centres is the
introduction of electric city cabs in Valletta. Although this initiative was implemented and
used only within Valletta, this new and eco-friendly transport system provides an efficient
way of getting about the capital and its surroundings for pedestrians. Introduced in 2007, CT
Cabs are operated by a fleet of battery-powered, chauffeur-driven electric vehicles; which can
be called from various telephone points located around the city. The main aim for this system
was not only to help pedestrian travel longer distances in Valletta in a shorter period of time,
but also to help reduce the amount of vehicles entering the city.

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Taxis
Over thirteen private companies are available in Malta for the transferring of
passengers from one place to another on the Island. These can be taxis, coaches or mini-vans;
they can suit to any request, from a simple taxi taken at the airport to a coach booked for a
group, they can also take travellers for any kind of tours. Moreover, new taxis such as the
yellow cabs from the company ‘dial a cab’ have been in service recently. These cabs are also
wheelchair accessible, which is a real advantage in comparison to other taxis.
Sightseeing Buses
A ‘hop on hop off’ system that seems to have had success since it has been launched.
This system is very convenient as it consists of two tours of which tourists can choose; the
North tour or the South tour. Both tours have a duration of three hours for a fee of 15 Euros
per person. The bus can stop whenever tourists wish to have a break for a meal or want to
visit a town nearby. Moreover, tourists can listen to the history of the different areas where it
passes from in sixteen different languages.
Malta Sightseeing gives you the opportunity to visit the most popular sights and
attractions in Malta from an Open Top Bus. You can explore your destination at leisure using
the Hop On and Hop Off Option. All tours have a detailed audio commentary in 8 languages.
Tourist Train
As explained in the previous chapter, the Malta Railway prospered until the
introduction of the tramway and subsequently that of the buses; in March 1931.
Nowadays seventy-seven years from the end of that era on the island, a new concept of train
travel has been introduced with the sole aim of providing an exciting and enthralling touring
experience in the village where the Malta Railway used to end its journey from Valletta.

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Indeed, Melita Trains operates a trackless train tour of Rabat, Mdina, Mtarfa and the
neighbouring area. These villages provide the perfect ambience for tourists due to their
historical, cultural and architectural importance. Tours start and finish in front of the Domus
Romana in Rabat, just outside Mdina. The train tour is approximately eight km long and takes
between 25 and 30 minutes to complete, travelling at a maximum speed of 25km per hour.
Helicopter
A heliport on Gozo permits the operation of an inter-island air link between Malta
International Airport and Xewkija, and this is used mainly by tourists who arrive at the airport
and require direct transport to Gozo. However, the service is also used to some extent by
locals, especially Gozitans returning from overseas. In fact, the helicopter fare is cheaper
when purchased as a connection with an international flight.
The air crossing between the two islands has proven to be an essential service, but not
a particularly popular one, probably due to the high cost and the limited onward transport
options on arrival in Gozo. Locals prefer to cross by ferry with their car, rather than fly by
helicopter and have to depend on other transport whilst in Gozo. In fact, according to
statistics, there are approximately 55,000 scheduled airport movements every year; with a
maximum of twenty-four trips per day in summer, whilst only about ten in winter. However,
trips have decreased in the last few years, possibly due to a drop in the German market, which
make it unlikely for future movements to rise beyond 55,000.
Seaplane
Harbour Air Seaplanes operates daily scenic flights around Malta and Gozo from the
Valletta Waterfront and Sliema The Strand. Flights take approximately 20 minutes and depart
from the Valletta Sea Passenger Terminal to Gozo’s Mgarr Harbour and vice versa. The

26. 26
floatplane can accommodate 14 passengers and has specially modified bubble windows;
which is perfect for sightseeing and taking photos.
Public Bus Transport System
The main public transport service in Malta is the public bus, which accounts for 24%
of all transportation in Malta. In fact, the route bus service in Malta comprises of 508 buses,
all of which are privately owned, in many cases by the drivers themselves. Bus owners,
approximately 400, have their own collective organization, the Public Transport Association,
which is responsible for the day to day operational management of the services.
Route buses operate on a day on, day off basis; hence some 275 vehicles are employed daily
to operate the scheduled bus service, covering some 91 routes, most of which terminate at the
main terminus at Valletta. This terminus has always been at this same site due to its
importance as a hub for socio-economic activities. However, very little has changed even
though other centres of activities have grown up in other regions.
Many of the buses are in need of upgrading due to the fact that they were either locally
built or imported second hand from the United Kingdom, some of which actually turned out
to be coaches built for a cold climate. Therefore, although these coach-type buses were
imported in the eighties it was only in 1995, following an agreement reached between the
Public Transport Authority and the Public Transport Association that these buses had their
sealed windows replaced by sliding ones. Nowadays, some of the fleet has already been
replaced by new, user-friendly vehicles. During 2000, an estimated 15% of buses were
considered to be unsafe (Attard, M., 2000), as the remainder were considered to be too old.
Hence, some of them were restored, presumably as many consider them part of Malta’s
natural heritage.

27. 27
The major re-investment in replacing old buses with new buses in 2001 was heavily
subsidized by the government. Indeed, €9.6 million were required to acquire 104 new low
floor buses (Attard, M., 2000). However, such a change has left little impact on the modal
shift desired, as many of the other changes implemented were superficial, such as the
standardisation of the fleet’s colour. Originally, buses were painted in different colours
according to their specific routes, and were later on changed to yellow.
Also, most of the routes have hardly changed over the past thirty years. Minor route
alterations occurred only in relation to any road extensions or changes made. As a result, the
increase in urban sprawl across the Maltese Islands has left a number of residential areas still
lacking in adequate public transport service, and in some cases poor performance in meeting
users’ needs.
With the boost in the tourism sector in the 1990s, a number of additional ‘direct’ buses
were introduced to meet the needs of tourists. Similar services were also introduced to satisfy
local citizens with the extension of the routes between the Junior College, the University of
Malta, and Mater Dai hospital. The success of these routes gave then the provision of new
routes from Naxxar, Cirkewwa and St. Andrew’s towards Mater Dei hospital (ATP, 2007b).
In 1990, the government set up the P.T.A in order to be able to provide a planning
strategy that conformed to considerations of transport issues on a national scale and the
environmental impact of the public transport. However, the continuous change in
management resulted in inconsistent administration (Attard, M., 2000). Poor communication
between local councils and the bus owners’ association further weakened the potential of
proposals for solutions to the public transport issue. In an attempt to change the situation, the
Malta Transport Authority (ADT) Act in February 2000 took charge of the former public
transport (PTA).

28. 28
Modal choice
Up to the 1970s, buses carried about 60 million passengers per year. This was due to
low car ownership, which was one of the lowest in the developed world at the time. However,
with the increase of car ownership, the modal shift from public to private transport took place
very fast. In fact, according to MEPA, car trips increased from 55% to over 70% during the
20th century. Although bus fares increased few times in the 1990th, due to the introduction of a
new zoning system, the price remained relatively cheap in comparison to other European
countries, with the regular service at €0.47 and direct services at €0.70.
All in all, the route bus service is not only the major component of public transport but
plays a significant part in travel in general throughout the Maltese Islands. In fact, route bus
travel accounts for 24 per cent of all public and private transport trips in Malta and Gozo. On
average, around 32 million tickets to travel on the route bus service are purchased every year.
However, it is clear that public transport suffers from a vicious cycle of decline. In fact, when
car ownership increases, the initial modal shift from public transport to private car transport
dramatically increases the overall traffic volume. For instance, assume people travel in a
private car in pairs. Therefore a single bus carrying 60 people may carry as many people using
30 cars. As the capacity of the street system cannot be increased to cope with both the traffic
increase and the new needs for car parking, the general traffic speed is lowered rapidly,
generating congestion.
In consequence, the speed of public transport vehicles also decreases, which damage
service regularity. In such public transport travel conditions, public transport customers would
shift away from public transport to private car as soon as they can afford, leading to a general
deterioration of travel conditions in congested areas.

29. 29
Problems of Public Transport in Malta
Many problems related to public transport in Malta lie within the transport system
itself. IT is evident that by simply renovating the existing system, Malta will not achieve a
viable public transport service. Therefore, in order to be able to provide a strategy for a public
transport network, it is important to first identify and analyse the current situation and
common trends in the island.
First of all, an important issue is in relation to the Maltese culture, which is the high
status associated with the car against the low status attributed to using the public transport. In
fact, the tendency of younger generations in looking forward to owning personal private
vehicles also continues to present public transport as being more and more unfashionable.
Moreover, there are sections of the population on which the bus service heavily depends on,
such as students, therefore bringing a consistent demand if all of them were to use public
transport. These social issues have a direct effect on modal shift, and put pressure on the
government to choose policies which promote this mode of transport. There is also a general
lack of understanding of costs involved when acquiring a private car, as well as a lack of
understanding of the cost benefits when using public transport (Attard, M., 2000).
Second, the division of organisational agencies and authorities has long been one of
the most crucial and problematic issues as well as a barrier in the possibility of providing a
comprehensive transport strategy for Malta. The major departments concerned with transport
have always worked separately from each other. This issue was clearly revealed in the
‘Structure Plan for the Maltese Islands’ (1990), where the first policy in the transport section
identified the need for a coordinating committee for transportation in Malta.
One of the results of the Structure Plan was the setting up of the Planning Authority
(now MEPA), where a dedicated transport planning unit (TPU) was also set up.

30. 30
In 2002, various departments such as the Roads Department, the Traffic Control Board and
the Public Transport Authority were merged into one authority. Furthermore, in view of
important link between land-use and transport, a Transport Coordinating Committee was set
up between MEPA (TPU) and ADT in order to discuss issues relevant to both authorities
through working groups. However, although relations between the two authorities improved,
this committee has ceased meeting.
Another issue which is the result of the increase of car ownership is traffic
management. In fact, as cars have been considered as an essential commodity, many decisions
implemented were giving priority to the car, rather than restricting private vehicle use. Plus,
solutions are often based on short term periods, in an attempt to solve the immediate problems
rather than providing a long term action plan. This is in fact evident in the lack of
improvement in the public transport sector.
The Transport Topic Paper issued my MEPA also forecast that by 2020, saturation
would be reached if car ownership continues on its current growth rate, meaning that is all
cars were to be on the road at the same time, they would not be able to drive, as the network
would be literally full up.
Vehicle ownership forecasting
Source: Transport Topic Paper and Transport Model for Malta: Phase 4 Report (MEPA)

31. 31
Furthermore, the increase of car ownership has a direct effect on parking. As more
cars enter the network, people find it more and more difficult to park. Highly commercialised
town centres such as Sliema and Valletta, which host a large number of shops and offices,
suffer the most from traffic and parking issues. Town centres generate high peak hour traffic
volumes and parking demand, both with their associated problems.
Problems of the Network Infrastructure
As mentioned in previous chapters, the current bus routes were set out many years
ago, and the systems’ reaction is too slow in comparison to the fast changing demand for new
routes or frequency. The fact that the Valletta bus terminus is the only main interchange to
which all bus routes converge creates a rigid system implying that towns close to each other
but at a distance from Valletta do not have an effective connection. Although travellers have a
choice of routes, there is no hierarchy in the network as all routes provide the same trip along
the same route.
Problems of the Buses
Even though the swapping of buses from one route to another is more flexible since
only half the fleet is in use each day, and buses are all of the same size and seating capacity,
the system however does not cater for different volumes of commuters travelling in different
places. Villages which have a higher frequency of travellers using public transport are simply
counteracted by the increase in frequency of buses on that route, thus reducing efficiency.
There is also no concern for the length of the journey taken by different routes. People
would generally have to stand up if the bus is full, which is acceptable for relatively short
distances, but becomes uncomfortable during long trips. This is extremely evident in summer

32. 32
periods where most journeys from Cirkewwa and Mellieha are full up with both tourists and
locals who will be coming or going to the sea spots.
Village cores and their winding narrow streets also pose a problem to the existing long wheel
base buses, as time is spent on manoeuvring round narrow bends and moving slowly through
narrow streets. This issue also holds up traffic, which adds heavily to the journey time,
especially during peak traffic hours.
Operational Problems
The day-on day-off shift used in the current public transport system creates an
environment in which drivers work for around 16 hours a day (ATP, 2008). This in turn may
have negative implications not only on increasing the risk of having an accident, but also the
relationship between the driver and passengers. This, however, is also due to the lack of
professionally trained staff and the provision of adequate study and operations. Such lack of
professional management may show unwillingness and gives no incentives in improving upon
the transport service. Furthermore, since the majority of bus drivers own their own bus,
consensus on any improvements or change is difficult to achieve since dealing with all the bus
drivers is far more difficult than dealing with a single bus company owning the fleet and
employing drivers itself.
Lack of Professionals
The limitation of human resources further hinders the adoption and implementation of
transport policies. Over the years, government always relied heavily on foreign experts,
especially in the field of planning. The Structure Plan preparation was carried out by British
and Italian planners. These experts, which resided in Malta while being employed with the
government helped to train some local people. MEPA has also invested in professional

33. 33
development for its staff, but similar undertakings at ADT have been limited. Furthermore,
there is limited scope for studying transportation and planning in Malta, as the University dies
not offer such course. Some specialised courses do exist however, these are also limited
(Attard, M., 2000).
Pollution Issues in Malta
Traffic accidents, air and noise pollution, reduction in physical activity, mental health
effects, as well as the visual impact of vehicles themselves and the associated infrastructure;
all combine to cause damage to inhabitants’ health and the environment (refer to appendix 1).
It is acknowledged internationally that transport is a major contributor to air pollution,
with the personal car being the single greatest polluter of air. In fact, the main emissions from
motor vehicles are carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, oxides of sulphur,
hydrocarbons and lead and other particulate matter. The two major concerns regarding vehicle
emissions are their impact on human health and on global warming.
European countries have found that vehicle noise levels and exhaust emissions cause
or exacerbate health-problems; particularly stress-related problems, respiratory diseases and
lung cancer. In Malta, over the 5-year period 1995 to 1999, there have been around 1000
patients annually admitted to St. Luke’s Hospital suffering from lung cancer or respiratory
diseases, with more than 200 deaths per year as a result of these conditions.
In fact, noise from vehicles disturbs sleep, impairs job performance, impedes learning, hinders
social activity and verbal communication, and affects health through stress generated by
frustration from lack of sleep and a general deterioration in the quality of life.
For this reason, the first stage of the vehicle roadworthiness test (VRT) was introduced
in 1999 with the requirement that lights, steering and brakes had to be up to standards. By the
end of 2002, tyres and wheels had been added to the obligatory items to be passed, and by the

34. 34
end of 2005, suspension and vehicle emissions were to meet approved standards.
First indications show that the number of scrapped vehicles increased with 3288 scrapped in
1999 and 1195 in the first quarter of 2000. However, the average age of vehicles has
improved with just over 22 per cent of vehicles being more than 15 years old, compared with
32 per cent in 1990. Moreover, almost one third of cars are less than 5 years old.
Malta and the EU
The aim of this chapter aims to discuss the main priorities that the European Union has
with regards to transportation and public transport. In fact, sources of the problems and their
need to be tackled by all European countries will be highlighted. With the EU providing a
general framework, it is then the responsibility of all countries to focus on providing measures
in order to meet the recommendations set by the EU. As a member, it is important for Malta
to compare itself with other EU member states as well as being aware of the different
measures and levels of standards.
Transportation Issues in the EU
Problems in transport are evidently growing on a global scale. In fact, the European
Union’s objective was to place public transport as one of the major possible solutions in order
to fight the increasing traffic congestion across EU countries (EC, 2004b).
According to EU studies, the transport sector plays a major role in the economic and
commercial competitiveness of countries. Indeed, this sector accounts for over 10% of the
EU’s gross domestic product. Transport is also the main tool for people to connect, however,
the increasing ease of travelling further and faster has been the contributor to heavier
congestion, resulting in higher costs for transport and the economy.
The main concerns of the European Union are mainly the fact that cities have more transport-

35. 35
related environmental and health problems caused by high levels of traffic and congestion,
higher noise level, increase in accidents and poor air quality.
It is estimated that there is a yearly increase of 4.3 million extra cars on roads in
Europe, while 75% of urban kilometres travelled in Europe are made by private vehicles.
Studies comparing this to the 890 billion passengers travelled on public transport, which
equals to about 44 million cars; show that a 1% shift from cars to public transport may reduce
the traffic impact by the equivalent of 2 million cars (EC, 2005a). The EU is aware that
although public transport may have numerous advantages, the increase in private car
ownership through research and technical improvements is still highly attractive (EC, 2004a).
Public Transport Organisation in Europe
During the last few years, many major changes have been made regarding public
transport systems in Western Europe, rendering different results performances. Cities that
underwent massive reorganisation in this sector are London, Madrid, Manchester, Zurich,
Antwerp, Copenhagen, Athens and Gothenburg.
Costa (1995) examines the impact of the organisation on transport marketing and the
emerging models that favour the public transport service both from the consideration of
market competition as well as the co-ordination of public transport services. The models show
a similar trend to Wilson’s (1991) explanation of responding to transit changes.
In the first model, the operators consist of both public and private operators working
within a regulating environment. The government controls the ownership of the public
transport company. For instance, there are four public transport operators sharing the
responsibilities for buses and trams, undergrounds, river crossing and railways in Lisbon. The
systems operate independently each following their own policies; however they all depend on
the central government and also have fare agreements.

36. 36
The second model is based on the co-ordination of an authority setting out policies
determining the area of operation and fares working in collaboration with the operator. The
latter is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the vehicles and also managing the
labour force. The operators themselves can be private or public. An example of it would be
Greece, where the three state-owned companies for public transport are controlled under the
Urban Transport Organisation of Athens, which depends on the Ministry of Transport. In
Lyon, the service is controlled by the transport authority, while a private organisation is
responsible for the operation of all modes of transport.
The third model provides a marked division between the authority and the operator.
While the fares are incorporated across all the different modes, the service is given by
contract to operators that offer the best conditions after a tendering process. This kind of
model was first introduced in England in 1985 and has started to become more common
throughout Western Europe. During March 1993, almost half of the transport services in
London had gone through the tendering process. In fact, the London Buses LBL won over
half of these contracts. After the intention of privatising the bus companies, part of the process
was to provide a competitive tendering process that lasted for five years, until the government
had deregulated all bus services. In Gothenburg, the traffic authority is responsible for
different types of traffic whilst the department of public transport takes charge of network
planning, policies and acts as a purchaser-operator. In 1933, the 30% of the bus services
placed for tenders were won by the city owned operator and a private company, whilst the rest
of the services have not been tendered yet.
Finally, the last model is made up of public bus services provided by private operators
on a commercial basis. With the deregulation of bus services in 1986 in Manchester, the bus
services were carried out on a commercial basis. Here, the authorities are limited in providing

37. 37
safety standards and other regulations.
Malta in the EU
Already in the 1970s, Malta had a close trade relationship with the EU through its
formal relations established with the European Economic Community (ECC), which
accounted for more than half of the imports and exports by 1998 (EC, 1999a). Later, with
Malta’s interest in becoming an EU member, positive results were foreseen in EU reports
regarding the ability to cope with the market forces and competitive pressures (EC, 1999a).
However, during the process of Malta’s accession, attention was given to the Island’s ever
increasing problem of traffic and the quality of its road network.
Following Malta’s admission to the EU in 2004, the conditions set by the EU at the
Copenhagen Council in 1993 underpinned the need of addressing the transport situation in
Malta. As central European countries focused more on the development of a Trans-European
Motorway and a more ambitious Trans-European Network concept, Malta was still struggling
to find solutions regarding traffic issues. In fact, the need of urgent solutions were clearly
emphasised in the 2002 progress report after the improvement of such issues were seen as to
be very poor (EC, 2002), especially since Malta was preparing to participate in the Trans-
European Network.
Malta’s membership in the EU requires responsibility regarding the Common
Transport Policy, as set out in the 2001 white paper of the EU. However, this paper simply
mentions that the design for a new transport solution includes efficient, safe and with the best
possible integration of environmental and social considerations. Indeed, the graph hereunder
shows the number of cars per 1,000 inhabitants of six different countries. It can be seen that
Malta has had an ever-increasing number of cars within the past 15 years, growing faster than
the other countries, overtaking the UK with only the USA and Italy having a greater number

38. 38
of cars per 1,000 inhabitants.
Number of cars per 1,000 population
Source: Transport in the Urban Environment (IHT, 1997)
New Public Transport Organisation in Malta
Since December 2008, the Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Communications
launched a document proposing a reform in public transport. This document entitled ‘Public
transport in Malta – A vision for public transport that fulfils public interest in the context of
environmental sustainability’ is basically about a more efficient public transport service that
should ultimately lead to an increase in the use of public transport.
The main issues regarding the improvement if the public transport situation outlined in
this document were mainly based upon complaints commonly heard about the present system,
that are the lack of connections between neighbouring villages, lack of proper information,
issues regarding punctuality, inefficient bus ticketing, as well as issues regarding the buses
and their operators. A target date for the completion of the new system of 2015 was set.

39. 39
The Arriva Company
The roots of Arriva are in Sunderland, where the company still has its head office.
Back in 1938 the Cowie family opened a second-hand motorcycle shop in Sunderland. That
was the first venture by what has grown to be an international business trading in 11 European
countries.
In 1960 the company – still called Cowie – moved into motor retailing. And in 1980 it
started to purchase bus companies with the acquisition of the Grey-Green bus company in
London. Over the next few years, there were more bus company acquisitions, with the biggest
– British Bus Group plc – in 1996 making the business one of the largest bus operators in the
UK.
Arriva was born in 1997, bringing together many different company backgrounds
under the Arriva flag. Also in that year Arriva acquired its first business on the European
mainland – Unibus Holdings in Denmark. In 1999, Arriva decided to focus its management
and financial resources to enable the group to capitalise on opportunities in passenger
transportation in the UK and mainland Europe. Subsequently the group successfully disposed
of a number of major motor retailing and finance businesses. This process was completed by
the summer of 2003 and the sale of its vehicle rental division followed in 2006.
During that time Arriva has established a position as one of the leading transport
services organisations in Europe with bus and train operations in the UK, Denmark, the
Netherlands and Sweden. In addition Arriva has bus operations in Czech Republic, Hungary,
Italy, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain, and operates rail services in Poland. Arriva also operates
a bus and coach distribution business in the UK. It will start operating bus services in Malta in
July 2011.
In August 2010, Arriva was acquired by German Deutsche Bahn, one of the world’s
leading passenger and logistics service providers, employing 220,000 people across 130

40. 40
countries.
Arriva vs. the Current System: the changes
The transport system in Malta is going to change drastically. In fact, not only will it be
another company importing new buses, but it will also have an impact on the routes, the
schedules, the fares, as well as bus stations and involve much more as a result of these
changes.
Changes in regards to the quality of the service and of the buses will first be explained, before
speaking about the impact it will have on the environment to finally reveal the new
company’s goals (see appendix 6).
Providing better Quality Service
In order to achieve their goal, the new transport system will provide a complete new
vision of quality service. In fact, to begin with, there will be a total of 264 buses instead of the
current 508 buses. From these 264 buses, King Long will be supplying Arriva with 174 buses
of various sizes: 49 new 9-metre buses for Feeder line services carrying 40 passengers and
125 new 12-metre buses to cover the Cross line and Mainline services with a capacity of 70
passengers. Moreover, 46 articulated buses for high capacity routes with a capacity of more
than 100 passengers as well as other small buses coming from another company will be
included to the fleet.
Also, in order to satisfy citizen’s comfort, the bus operations will work with regular
frequency throughout the islands between 6am and 11pm seven days a week as well as night
services which will operate all week between 11pm and 6am.
Moreover, the proposed network will be divided into three types of services. The fast Cross
line services would operate at a frequency of 30 minutes. These connect with mainline

41. 41
services which would operate at a frequency of between 10 and 30 minutes. At regional and
local levels the Feeder lines would serve villages and neighbouring areas at a frequency of 30
minutes.
Another major difference in the operation which explains the changes in times in
frequency would be that the buses will operate 75% of their time as compared to the current
25% usage. This will mean that buses will spend less time idle on a terminus and more time
carrying passengers to their destination.
Plus, apart from the interchange at Valletta, which is being upgraded, it is being proposed that
there would be other major interchanges in the network at Mater Dei, Luxol in Swieqi, Paola,
Marsa, the Airport and Msida.
Then, driver working hours would also improve and would not exceed 9 hour shifts
including a break. This will not only improve the conditions of work for drivers but also the
safety and level of service they provide to passengers.
Finally, a critical element of a successful public transport system is the provision of
efficient and up to date information. This is why, public transport information would be made
available in various media including real time, mobile and online. Moreover, enhanced bus
stop and interchange facilities would be introduced providing shelter, security, information,
comfort and convenience. New, more efficient ticketing system will also be introduced to
minimise the delays and provide various options for customers.
Air Quality Improvements
An important aspect regarding transports is the environmental repercussions they have
on our atmosphere. The description of new eco-friendly transport systems will be discussed in
the next chapter.

42. 42
The new buses operating in Malta as from the 3rd of March 2011 will all be equipped
with a Euro V engine standard. An independent report commissioned by this Ministry predicts
that when compared with the current bus fleet, a bus operation running with a Euro V engine
standard will lead to the following significant reductions in its emissions: a 48% reduction in
hydrocarbons, a 94% reduction in particulate matter, a 70% reduction in oxides of nitrogen
and a 55% reduction in carbon monoxide (see appendix 2).
The fleet improvement combined with various other environmental initiatives that
Malta undertook to implement, such as fitting eco-driving technology to vehicles, tyre
inflation monitoring and turning engines off between journeys, will go a long way in
supporting Malta’s effort to improve air quality, particularly in urban areas.
The reduction from the carbon footprint of today’s bus operation is almost inestimable
given that the average age of the bus fleet before the changeover to the new system is of over
30 years which will be going down to less than 2 years overnight when the new service starts.
The following information shows the difference between all ‘Euro norms’; which are the
maximal limits of diesel motor vehicles’ emissions fixed by the European legislation.
Euro norms 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 respectively refer to new vehicles commuting in 1993, 1996,
2000, 2005, 2009-2011, and 2014-1015.
Norm Euro
1
Euro
2
Euro
3
Euro
4
Euro
5
Euro
6
nitrogen (NOX) - - 500 250 180 80
Carbon
Monoxide (CO)
2720 1000 640 500 500 500
Hydro
carburant (HC)
- - - - - -
HC + NOX 970 900 560 300 230 170
Particles (PM) 140 100 50 25 5 5

43. 43
It can be seen that some of the current buses operating in Malta don’t fit in any Euro
norm, as they are older than 1993. Other buses fit in the Euro 1, 2 and 3 norms. The amount
of pollutants these buses emit is therefore hugely inferior to the new upcoming Euro 5 fleet.
Moreover, the new low-floor buses will also be washed regularly with specialised
equipment; which will re-cycle 95% of the water, ensuring a cleaner service that respects the
urban environment and satisfies the high expectations of quality of the customers, locals and
tourists alike.
Their Challenge
As already mentioned in previous chapters, Malta has one of the highest motorisation
levels in Europe and the increasing levels of car ownership and usage are having a significant
impact on the quality of the environment and on people’s health. As a result, Government
transport policy has primarily focussed on achieving more eco-friendly mobility through
encouraging a modal shift away from the private car onto more environmentally sustainable
modes of transport.
In fact, the promotion of alternative modes of travel through the introduction of out-
of-town park and ride services, electric minicabs and increased pedestrians in town centres
has, over the past three years, started to lessen inhabitants’ dependency on private car usage.
However, the reform of the new public transport system is high on the Government’s agenda
and the quality change that the new services are expected to bring about should encourage
more people to change over to public transport for certain journeys.
All in all, Arriva undertook in their submission to make their Malta project a model of
sustainable development. Their target is to increase bus passengers by 54% over current levels
of use by the end of the 10 year contract term but also undertook to reduce the carbon

44. 44
footprint of Malta’s bus operation by 15% in 2017 over 2011 numbers.
Other Future Eco-Friendly Public Transports Abroad
Nowadays, countries such as the United Kingdom, France, Greece or Finland are well
aware of the need to move towards more eco-friendly transport systems. Indeed, such new
systems like electric, hybrid electric, and alternative emissions-reduction technologies for
vehicles and propulsion systems exist and are more and more developed to address national
and international energy security, environment and transportation needs of the future.
It is in fact well known that Low carbon buses emit around 30 per cent fewer
greenhouse gas emissions than standard diesel buses and use around a third less fuel. All in
all, hybrid buses are quieter, cleaner and more fuel-efficient than standard diesel buses.
They also represent an important and developing industry throughout the world; which has the
potential to create jobs and boost economic growth.
In the UK
More and more cities in the United Kingdom are adopting new eco-friendly buses. In
fact, the UK’s first bio-methane gas-fuelled bus, set to operate in Lincoln, was unveiled on
March 24th 2011 at the Epic Centre at the Lincolnshire Showground. The bus is the first of 11
busses running on a mixture of conventional diesel and bio-methane gas.
The engineering Director, John Taylor, explained how the engine runs firstly off diesel fuel
but upon accelerating, gas stored in the tank on the roof is introduced using less diesel.
It is said that the bus is not different to drive, is also less noisy, and doesn’t smell even though
it is methane gas, but does reduce the carbon footprint by up to 50%.
The 11 new buses are a county council initiative, run by Stagecoach and supported by funding
from the East Midlands Development Agency. Stagecoach will be operating the vehicles and

45. 45
running a trial on their behalf for the next six to 12 months, to prove that this technology does
work.
Another city which uses greener buses more and more is Manchester. In fact, firms
and the region's transport leaders have been given grants totalling more than £11.9m for 162
of the carbon-friendly vehicles in two rounds of funding.
More than £42m has been spent nationally on 542 low carbon vehicles by the previous and
current governments. Transport Minister Norman Baker said: “My vision is for a transport
system that cuts carbon and creates growth.”
Some of the buses are already carrying passengers on Greater Manchester's streets. The rest
will all be in place by March next year. Moreover, funding for two major bus projects in
Greater Manchester was put on hold by the coalition government in its spending review last
year. Indeed, there are a £54m plan to improve cross-city bus links and pedestrianize part of
Oxford Road, and the £11.5m redevelopment of Rochdale bus station.
Finally, London is also getting into the eco-friendly trend since the initial introduction
of hybrid buses in 2006; when manufacturers developed variations of hybrid systems for trial
in the city. Having already 106 diesel-electric hybrid buses and adding 90 new hybrid buses to
the city’s most polluted areas, the current programme, subject to the performance of trial
buses, is to introduce 300 hybrid buses by 2012.
Hybrid buses are powered by a mix of an ordinary diesel engine and an electric motor.
They also have regenerative braking, which means they generate electrical energy when the
brakes are pressed. This electrical energy is stored in a battery pack and used to drive the
electric motor. The vehicles, compared to diesel buses, will deliver environmental benefits,
including a minimum of 30% reduction in fuel use and in carbon dioxide, 3 decibel reduction
in perceived sound level as well as reduced oxides of nitrogen and carbon monoxide.

46. 46
In France
After developing fleet of vehicles with gas, Transdev, the transport company in Ile-de-
France entered a new phase of diversification of energy. In fact, it is in Coulommiers, a small
city in the region of Seine-et-Marne that a new electric minibus is now operating, as from the
20th of April 2011. With a capacity of 47 passengers, the Oreos X4 is equipped with an
electric cinematic chain as well as lithium-ion batteries offering a 170 kWh powerful engine.
It also disposes of a system allowing the engine to use less battery when breaking and
parking, which saves up to 20% of its energy. This type of bus is the first electric minibus in
France having such a high capacity.
Coulommiers already has three hybrid buses operating since June 2010. These buses have
been conceived by the Polish constructor Solaris, pioneer of hybrid buses in Europe. (David
Reibenberg, 01/02/2011).
Another agglomeration in the North of France that decided to renew its bus fleet and
added fourteen buses to the circulation is Cap l’Orient, anticipating the EEV European
Environmental norm. In fact, this norm, imposing a strict maximum amount of particles,
hydro carburant, carbon monoxide as well as oxide nitrogen, is more constraining than the
actual Euro V norm and will have to be applied from the year 2012 only. This political choice
of having the most upgraded eco-friendly transport system had already been agreed since
2006 - the first buses being in service since 2007 - while the city first opted for
environmentally sustainable public transport more than ten years ago. In fact, it is in 1998 that
the city of Cap l’Orient decided to equip all its buses with particle filters. This system helps
eliminate fine particles, known as being carcinogens, contained in exhaust gases from diesel
engines. Today, the city is the only of the few cities in France where buses are entirely
equipped this way.

47. 47
These new fourteen buses however are equipped with solar panels. These solar panels
will automatically trigger air extractors as soon as the inner bus temperature is too high;
stopping them when the temperature is sufficiently lowered again. Moreover, these panels
allow the continued charging of the batteries while increasing their longevity.
Solar energy can thus improve the thermal comfort of passengers without the use of
air conditioning, while increasing the life of batteries.
In Norway
The city of Oslo put in place ecological buses, functioning with bio methane, which
reduces 90% of the pollution emitted by vehicles functioning with diesel. The originality of
the project is the fact that inhabitants indirectly produce the carburant. In fact, this biogas
comes from a purification station, more precisely from the methane produced from the
station’s mud, existent thanks to the waste of 250,000 people living in the city.
Thanks to this new revolutionary fuel that is renewable, the carbon is neutral and the
noise pollution is reduced. With there being 250,000 inhabitants, 80 buses are able to
commute over 100,000 km each. This system has already been tested in Lille and Stockholm,
where 70 buses function with this energy (Marion Golliet, 23/03/2009).

48. 48
CHAPTER 3
Research Methodology
In Miles and Huberman’s 1994 book Qualitative Data Analysis, quantitative
researcher Fred Kerlinger (1910-1991) is quoted as saying “There’s no such thing as
qualitative data. Everything is either 1 or 0” (p.40). To this, another researcher, D.T.
Campbell (1966), asserts “all research ultimately has a qualitative grounding” (p.40). This
friction between qualitative and quantitative researchers is “essentially unproductive”
according to Miles and Huberman (1994). In fact, they and many other researchers agree that
these two research methods need each other more often than not.
However, because typically qualitative data involves words and quantitative data
involves numbers, some researchers feel that one is better, or more scientific, than the other.
Another major difference between the two is that qualitative research is inductive whereas
quantitative research is deductive. Indeed, in a qualitative research, a hypothesis is not needed
to begin research. However, all quantitative research requires a hypothesis before research can
begin.
Moreover, the underlying assumptions about the role of the researcher in a qualitative
research distinguish the two methods. In fact, where the researcher is an objective observer
who neither participates in nor influences what is being studied in a quantitative research, the
researcher is however thought to learn the most about a situation by participating in the
qualitative research. These basic underlying assumptions of both methodologies guide and
sequence the types of data collection methods employed.
Although there are clear differences between qualitative and quantitative approaches,
some researchers maintain that the choices between using qualitative or quantitative methods

49. 49
actually has less to do with methodologies than it does with positioning oneself within a
particular discipline or tradition; “research methods should be studied in context, not in
isolation” (Singletary, 1994, p.29). Other researchers believe that qualitative and quantitative
methodologies cannot be combined due to the fact that assumptions underlying each tradition
are vastly different.
Finally, some researchers think both combinations can be used by alternating them:
qualitative research is appropriate to answer certain types of questions and quantitative better
to answer other questions. In fact, as Wimmer & Dominick state (1994), a qualitative research
is often used as a preliminary step for further investigation rather than the final phase of a
project. The information collected from qualitative methods is often used to prepare a more
elaborate quantitative analysis.
For this reason, this study has applied both qualitative and quantitative methodologies.
In fact, the research will be divided in four different steps. The first step involves the founding
of a survey conducted in 2009 whereby Maltese citizens give their opinion regarding public
transports in Malta. The second step consists of a questionnaire to a sample of tourists in order
to gather their ideas and views towards public transport in Malta. The third step includes a
questionnaire to some bus drivers, to understand their position towards the new public
transport system. Finally, the fourth step provides in-depth information about the Arriva
Company from a questionnaire sent to a Managing Director.
(refer to appendix 5)

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Step One: Survey conducted in 2009 to Maltese citizens concerning public transport in
Malta
This survey conducted in 2009 by Mark Cardona will help determine what Maltese
citizens think about public transport in Malta. In fact, main issues in relation to transports in
Malta were outlined, as well as point of views regarding alternative public services.
Step Two: Surveying tourists
In this part of the study a questionnaire was given to some tourists in the areas of
Sliema and San Julians. To reach the hundred people, the survey was conducted during the
day within two days. In fact, these tourists were randomly selected and were mainly taking
English lessons in different English schools within these cities. Others were asked to take few
minutes of their time while visiting the Island.
A standardised set of questions were drawn up to be asked, even though the format
allowed for a semi-structured approach, permitting further information that was not requested
to surface naturally. This was indeed possible due to the fact that the author herself conducted
the research, rather than relying on external people who would be expected to carry out the
surveys according to specific instructions only. The questions were there and then written
down on a different question paper for each tourist.
Step Three: Interviewing drivers
A different set of questions with that of the tourists were designed specifically to
interview bus drivers. Indeed, not only tourists’ points of views are important for the purpose
of this study, but also the ones of the drivers themselves, being one of the direct issue in
regards to public transport in Malta. As the previous step, interviews were conducted by the
author herself, which saves time and secures greater data as there is no need to explain

51. 51
external interviewers the purpose and the structure of the study carried out.
20 interviews were carried out at the driver’s place of work; which was either on a terminus or
in a bus, in Valletta and in Sliema.
Step Four: Questions to a Managing Director in contact with Arriva
The last step consists of verifying the overall present information regarding the Arriva
Company and the new public transport system, as well as bus drivers’ present and future
conditions of work. This had been carried out by e-mailing a set of questions to a
Communication Managing Director directly linked to Arriva; Mr. Malcolm J. Naudi.
This method can secure a great deal of data as no information is lost or misunderstood,
without mentioning that is it also faster and information can always be clarified if needed.
This method is therefore flexible and allows researchers to understand deeper about the
subject.

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CHAPTER 4
Data Collection and Analysis
The first part of this chapter consists on the analysis of a survey conducted in 2009 to
Maltese citizens regarding transports in Malta. This analysis will be followed by the results
obtained from the questionnaire distributed to tourists. The third part of this chapter will entail
the arrangement of bus drivers’ interviews. Finally, the last phase of this chapter includes the
understanding and comparison of information extracted from a questionnaire sent to Mr.
Malcolm J. Naudi; managing director representative in direct link to the Arriva Company.
Results of the first step of the study:- Analysis of the survey conducted in 2009
The first part of the questionnaire dealt with issues relating to vehicle ownership,
modes of travel and general traffic problems encountered by the citizens. It was evident that
the most common issues were traffic congestions during rush hours as well as the difficulty to
find parking. In fact, less than half the participants managed to find parking spaces every day
even though the majority of them still opted for parking in nearby streets. Moreover,
approximately half the participants had to walk between five and ten minutes before reaching
their destination after parking.
A further detailed analysis concluded that the majority were stuck in traffic congestion
on a daily basis and that journeys during traffic congestion generally lasted an extra 20
minutes as compared to making the same journey in less traffic. This implies that most
journeys take twice as long to complete in congested traffic congestions in comparison to the
island’s small size.
The second part of the survey focused on issues regarding public transportation. It was
clear that the majority preferred using their private cars due to the fact that the present public

53. 53
transport was not reliable. In fact, even though most of the participants lived less than five
minutes away from a bus stop, only a quarter used buses every day when the others used it
less than three times a week.
However, public transport improvements drastically shifted the participants’ choice of
travel. Indeed, nearly all participants implied that improvement would make them more
inclined in using the service. Furthermore, half of the participants stated they would use the
service on a daily basis. According to them, the main improvements which had to be done
regarding the present bus system were the frequency and the regularity of the service. While
new alternative systems such as tramways and metros were considered as the most ideal
systems, the improvement of the current public bus service was however the best realistic
solution. Other important factors mentioned for the improvement of the service mostly
concerned in having a faster service, hence a shorter journey as well as its reliability and its
convenience.
The final part of the questionnaire was related to transportation and the quality of the
environment. The majority of participants admitted that the Island had a high level of air
pollution. However, although stating that traffic congestion was the most important,
participants preferred the introduction of higher fees for more polluting vehicles than the
option of using public transport as an alternative of private transport.
In this survey, there is therefore the evidence that even though Maltese citizens are
aware of traffic issues and the high level of pollution in Malta and agree that something needs
to be done, they still show a preference of having their private transport as opposed to an
alternative public service. Moreover, individuals describe their own contribution as being
small, thus the general public rarely sees the own personal contribution to global/national
issues. This shows that although one may provide an appropriate public transport system,
education is still an important factor to consider.

54. 54
Results of the second step of the study:- Tourist Questionnaire Analysis
A survey was carried out where one hundred tourists were interviewed and asked
questions relating to the Maltese transport system and buses. However, the first five questions
were solely to get to know tourists better in order to have an idea of their culture, their ability
to speak English and their experience with regards to travelling abroad. In fact, these
questions were about their gender, their age as well as their nationality.
As shown in the diagrams below, the participants of the survey consisted of
approximately 50% males and 50% females. The age did slightly vary with more participants
being under than 30 years old than over 30 years old.
Gender
Male
Female
Age
Under 30
30 or over

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1. Where are you from?
There was a wide range of nationalities that took part in this survey; indeed, people came
from a total of twenty three different countries. It can also be noticed that the majority of the
tourists were from European countries.
2. Have you visited Malta previously?
Here, over 75% of the 100 tourists taking part in this survey were in Malta for their first
time. This question was asked as it was thought that, should the participants have already
Nationalitiesof Tourists Austria
Belarus
Brazil
China
France
Germany
Holland
Hungary
Isreal
Italy
Japan
Korea
Kuwait
Libya
Poland
Russia
Slovakia
Spain
Switzerland
Syria
Turkey
Uganda
UK
Yes No

56. 56
been to Malta, they would have already been accustomed to the functioning of the Island’s
public transportation system; therefore having less difficulty to orient themselves.
3. How long is your stay in Malta?
The Majority of people who took part in the survey are due to stay or have been staying in
Malta for periods longer than two weeks, which suggest that there is a high possibility that
they are or will be regular users and familiar with the public transport system in Malta.
4. How often have you used the buses
50% of the survey says that they use the bus service often.
Time PeriodinMalta
7 Days or less
8- 14 Days
15 - 21 Days
Up to 1 Month
Over 1 Month
Over 6 Months
Use of bus service
Often
Not very
Often

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5. Have you ever taken any other means of transport other than the buses?
The survey implies that the most popular alternative methods of transports, other than the
bus service, are ferries and Taxis. However, many of the tourists stated that they only used the
taxis for airport transfers and may not use them again during their stay.
6. Do you remember of having taken a long time to make a short distance?
Othermeansof transport
Taxi
Ferry
Vans
Car Hire
Tourist Train
Other
None other than buses
Time excessivelylong
whencomparedtothe distance made.
Yes
No

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7. What do you think of the price of the bus fares in Malta?
As presumed, most of the participants said bus fares were cheap.
8. Are you satisfied with the public transport system?
While a positive response to this question was not expected, tourists specified that
although not really complaining about buses, they do agree on the fact that there are many
issues that have to be resolved rapidly, as the next diagram shows.
Bus Fare Prices
Expensive
Acceptable
Cheap
Very Cheap
satisfactionregardingpublictransport
system
Yes
No

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9. In your opinion, should the buses be any different or improved?
(I.e. on punctuality, frequency, information system, aesthetics, cleanliness, etc.)
The vast majority of participants agreed that changes and improvement should be made
with regards to public transport in Malta.
10. In your opinion, should there be an alternative public transport system other than the
buses in Malta?
The vast majority believe that there is no need for other alternative public transport system
to be created. However, participants agreeing on the fact that there should be another public
transport system suggested alternatives such as trams, a metro system, bicycles, ferries, and
walking.
Improvementonbussystem
Yes
No
Alternativepublictransportsystemotherthanbuses
Yes
No

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11. Do you know that the following means of transports exist in Malta: A tourist Train,
Vintage Bus Sightseeing, Ferry Service, Electric Cars (CT Cabs)? Which ones have
you used?
It is clear that the second most popular method of transport after buses, are the Ferries.
12. How do you consider the air pollution in Malta? Tourists’ view
The majority of the tourists questioned in the survey qualify air pollution in Malta as
being high; therefore an issue that must be addressed urgently.
Alternativemethodsof transporttouristshave used
Tourist Train
Vintage Bus Sightseeing
Helecopter
Electric Cars (CT Cabs)
Ferries
TouristsView of airpolutioninMalta
Very High
High
Average
Low
Very Low

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13. Are you aware that the typical Maltese buses are due to be upgraded by newer
European style buses in the near future?
A large proportion of the tourists taking part in the survey were aware that changes
were to be made regarding the bus transport system in Malta.
The participants of the surveys have been selected at random. This Survey was
designed to get tourists’ opinion regarding the current transport system in Malta. With 100
people interviewed coming from 23 different countries, there is a high possibility that the
results would compile many different views, counting that people are from so many different
backgrounds and cultures, and for the vast majority, this is their first maiden visit to Malta.
These facts suggest that the Maltese public transport system is a new experience for a
large proportion of the audience targeted in this survey. Therefore, the large percentage of
participants who are due to stay or have been staying in Malta for periods longer than two
weeks suggests that there is a high possibility that they are, or will be regular users of the
public transport system in Malta.
The participants were then asked whether they had been using the bus system
frequently since they had arrived in Malta. Since only half of them said they did, it may be a
hindrance to the validity of the results as not all participants will have a complete
understanding and experience of the bus service in Malta.
Change of bus system
Yes
No

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When tourists were asked whether they felt a need to use methods other than the bus,
there was a large proportion that felt that there was no need to use other means of transport
other than bus service. This suggests that the majority of tourists would prefer the use of bus
service as opposed to other popular means. This may be due to the fact that the bus service
provides not only a transport system, but is a tourist attraction in itself, that travels to almost
anywhere in Malta.
Tourist may opt for taxis and ferries if there is not an opportunity to take a bus, for
instance when it gets too late in the evening for buses to, or where the only feasible method to
get to certain locations such as Gozo and Comino is by ferry. In fact, the only other ways to
access these Islands are by sea planes or by helicopter, which are not cost effective.
Alternative means of public transport that have been used by tourists included tourist train,
vans, and car hire. However, these are not used as commonly as buses, taxis and ferries.
It could also be argued that Taxis would be the preferred method of travelling to and
from the airport for reasons such as comfort, transporting luggage and time consumption.
Hence, the results in this survey may appear that people may prefer to use a taxi or a ferry,
when in actual fact, they had to turn to these option due to certain circumstances not allowing
them to use the buses, such as bus schedules.
When participants of this survey were asked about their personal experiences whilst
using the buses, which created very interesting results, it appeared that tourists were
contradicting with their answers. However, it could be perceived that although they are of the
opinion that the bus system is to a low standard compared to the system in their own country,
they still feel that the bus system in Malta is part of the Maltese culture. In fact, this is what
many tourists would want to achieve; `living in locals’ shoes´, which unfortunately involves
Maltese citizens using the poorer quality of buses. This is why when asked about the quality

63. 63
of the buses in terms of comfort, cleanliness, punctuality etc..., tourists may respond as being
poor.
Concerning tourists’ satisfaction regarding the current system, the vast majority stated
they were. One reason that explains their satisfaction with the current set up is the buses’
fares; which are extremely cost effective. Perhaps more importantly, tourists view the
traditional and dated buses as part of the Maltese culture and tradition, believing that,
although they may not run on time and can be uncomfortable, they do have a charm that can
win over the users’ opinion.
With most people stating that they are satisfied with the current bus system, almost
75% of them agreed that improvements should be made. The most common issues that were
brought up by the tourists was mostly punctuality, along with the times that they operate
(many feeling they should run later), the noise, run more frequently and the time tables are not
clear enough. There were some comments made about the comfort and cleanliness of the
current buses and a small percentage feeing that newer buses are needed.
It appears that air pollution in Malta must be addressed. The people were then asked
what they feel could be done to improve the current situation or tackle the problem. The
results produced a wide range of views and different ideas of how this could be addressed.
Many of the tourists interviewed noticed the high number of vehicles on the road for such a
small island and put this down as the major cause of air pollution in Malta. The obvious
solution would be to reduce the amount of traffic on the road, and even having newer more
eco-friendly buses, was a common response. Therefore, with Arriva introducing new
environmentally sustainable buses, while also planning to cut the number of buses, they
would be helping tackle the issue of air pollution in Malta.
However, not all of the air pollution is due to the bus service in Malta, and tourists that
took part in this survey believe that the amount of cars on the road should be reduced and

64. 64
public transport should be promoted more, thus encouraging more people to use it rather than
use their car. Several tourists also suggested that having electric buses and cars would help.
Other suggestions: vehicles having cleaner engines and exhausts or having catalyst converters
installed.
Most of the tourists are aware of the takeover of Arriva. This prompted a mixed
reaction from the tourists with many believing that the traditional Maltese buses are one of
Malta’s great tourists’ attractions and it would be a shame to see them go, with some going as
far as saying that culture would be forever changed. It appears that the majority of the tourists
enjoy using the traditional buses. On the contrary, some of the tourists feel that a change
would be a good idea as bus journeys can be uncomfortable with the dated facilities. The
change may be viewed as a positive for some of the locals; however it will be unfortunate to
lose the traditional buses to new European style models.
On the whole, it appears that the much of the tourists may view revamping of the bus
system in Malta as a reluctant yet necessary change. There will be a great sense of
disappointment when the traditional Maltese buses will not be operating anymore; however,
Malta must live in the 21st century and improvements to the bus system are needed.
Results of the third step of the study:- Bus Driver Interviews Analysis
A survey was carried out where general questions were asked to twenty currently
employed bus drivers. The questions that were included in the interviews were designed to
collect information such as the amount of hours worked, their attitude towards work, their
relationship with tourists, and in particular, the way they feel about the current system and
their views on the changes that are going to be made.
The hours that Maltese bus drivers carry out each day range from eight to sixteen
hours. The majority of the twenty bus drivers asked worked an average of ten hours per day,

65. 65
where few worked less than ten hours per day, and it appeared that a large number of the
drivers would work for sixteen hours per day.
In general, the drivers were satisfied with their working life; however, comments made
by them suggest that their attitude will change once the new system is put into place this July.
The main issue they had with the current system, however, was the amount of hours
accomplished each day.
One interesting point that was made by one of the drivers was an issue over sick leave,
where if sick, the driver will then have to pay an initial and relatively substantial fee. This
implies that several interesting situations may occur. For example, the drivers may fear being
sick, and could turn up to work even when they are sick, which is not only dangerous for
themselves, but the public that they are responsible whilst driving the buses. If this is true then
it is an aspect that must be addressed when the changes are made.
The drivers were then interviewed about their relationship with the tourists in Malta
using public transport. A mixed of responses from the drivers were given towards the tourists.
Many have had problems with tourists, such as being asked a lot of questions whilst working
and on breaks. The most common question that the drivers were generally asked was ‘what
bus do they need’. This suggests that the bus system currently needs to improve on its
provision of efficient and up to date information regarding bus routes. In fact, one answer
given in the survey was ‘Tourists never know what bus to take, and they never listen.’
Another common issue that drivers had with tourists was the fact that tourists would
often come on the bus and pay with bank notes as opposed to coins and small change. Some
drivers found this ‘irritating’ and ‘annoying’ as getting the change for customers was then
time consuming. Moreover, one of the interviewed drivers claimed that two tourists had made
a complaint about his driving style and the music played on the bus.