Government plans to offer money in exchange for motorists giving up their car licence could mean a maximum of 2,500 fewer drivers on the road this year, according to experts. The figure equates to less than one per cent of all driving licences issued in Malta, according to figures provided in parliament two years ago. Last week, Transport Minister Chris Bonett announced a slew of measures to tackle the perennial issue of traffic blighting Malta’s roads. Among the measures were plans to offer €25,000 to motorists willing to give up their car for five years and €6,000 to those opting to ride a motorcycle instead for four years. But experts Times of Malta spoke to expressed doubts in the effectiveness of the licence measures – and others floated by the ministry. Bonett told reporters that the government intended to spend between €10 and €15 million to implement all the various measures being planned, which also include new bus routes, grants for motorcycles and carpooling tax incentives. A Transport Ministry spokesperson on Tuesday stressed the €15 million budget “refers to the allocation for the measures being implemented and paid for till the end of this year”. He said, “It does not take into account additional initiatives currently under discussion where key variables still need to be finalised and costed,” adding the government was “committed towards instilling a culture change in the transport sector”. Assuming the maximum amount is allocated and that all that money is allocated to people who choose to swap cars for motorcycles, 2,500 car drivers will be taken off the road. The figure was calculated by dividing the total €15 million budget by the €6,000 cost of incentivising a driver to exchange their car for a motorbike for four years. Just 600 car drivers taken off roads Transport academic Suzanne Maas noted that if that €15 million budget is used on the €25,000 incentive for drivers, just 600 car drivers will be taken off Maltese roads. “And that’s if they allocate the entire €15 million to the licences,” she said. “If they allocate only a third of the budget, that would only be 200 drivers... Is that going to make much of a difference?” She added it was unrealistic to expect the government to spend the entire budget on licensing measures, given that other measures in the proposals will also require funding to put into practice. “The licence scheme will take so much money and have little effect... It’s so much money given to so few people,” said Maas. Former transport minister Ċensu Galea expressed similar sentiments, remarking that if only a “few thousand” drivers were taken off the road, he did “not think it will have much of an effect”. Figures provided in parliament in February 2023 revealed that, as of that date, there were 277,490 valid driving licences in Malta. Of those, roughly 240,000 were for Maltese drivers, with 23,000 given to non-EU drivers and a further 14,600 issued to other EU citizens. Galea added that the way the money would be distributed to motorists would also make a difference: “If it’s cash in someone’s pocket, they’ll feel it but if it’s a tax rebate how many people will it affect,” he asked. “For those paying lower amounts of tax it might not be of any real benefit.” ‘Very sceptical’ Turning to other measures in the proposals – including shifting road services to off-peak hours, allowing public parking at government sites and creating park and ride facilities – Galea said he was “very sceptical they will make a difference”. He said Pembroke – one of the areas slated for a park and ride – had been earmarked for such use “for years now, but it’s been a total failure”. And he questioned whether government sites would have enough spaces to accommodate public parking. Expressing doubts on shifting services to off-peak hours, he noted that, even if rubbish was collected at night, for example, “people, especially in touristic areas, will still be walking past bags of rubbish when out for an evening walk”. ‘Drastic measures’ Meanwhile, questioning the effectiveness of measures to improve take-up of public transport, Galea asked why traffic did not appear to have reduced following transport becoming free. Asked whether his locality would be able to free up parking spaces for motorbikes, the St Paul’s Bay mayor said there were already “many more vehicles than car parking spaces available” in the busy tourist location. “Unless we talk about drastic measures – which no government seems willing to do – we can’t get far on this”. Asked about which drastic measures he could be referring to, Galea suggested looking into the possibility of limiting the number of cars with one person inside entering Valletta – in a bid to encourage carpooling – and said paid parking spaces could disincentivise car use. Pedestrianised streets and banning SUVs Maas, who holds a PhD in sustainable mobility from the University of Malta, noted that while “some measures are good” she expressed doubts about those focused on creating more parking spaces, stressing such measures instead “invited car use”. The academic noted that high streets only open to buses and pedestrians were “very common abroad” and said consumers were more likely to frequent areas with more cars, noting that removing cars from some areas could increase commercial high street activity. Maas – a Friends of the Earth Malta campaign organiser – said the government should consider limiting the number of cars per household and “definitely” limit the number of cars nationwide. She also called for a ban on large vehicles such as SUVs. “Restrictions are definitely needed,” said Maas.