NEWS | Wednesday, 15 October 2008

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Gatt’s radical transport reform awaits

Facing intense criticism on the shock hike in water and electricity tariffs, the government is opening a new battlefront with the issuing of a competitive tender for bidders to run Malta’s public transport system
Riding high on a wave of public support for reform after the disruptive wildcat strikes ordered by the Transport Federation – comprising buses, minivan and white taxi associations – the government intends to proceed with its plans.
Excluding nationalisation of the public bus service, which is one of two options allowed by the EU, transport minister Austin Gatt says a tender will be issued for private operators.
It means the Public Transport Association (ATP), which groups the hundreds of bus owners, will have to transform itself into a private company and compete with other potential bidders.
Gatt claims the government originally wanted to organise the bus owners into a smalls-medium enterprise. But the option was incompatible with EU law.
Studies on bus routes, and the type of buses that will be needed, have also been completed. Gatt is to present his proposals to the Cabinet in November.
“If we decide to issue a tender we will be obliged to give one year’s notice. We will be able to issue the tender by January 2009.”
Gatt also said Gozo will become the ‘test-case’ for public transport reform, but only if Gozitan bus owners accept government’s conditions on improving the service.
“If they do not accept a professional system by investing in new buses the government will have to intervene by setting up a new company which will be initially run by the government.”
However, in that case any company winning the Malta tender would have to operate the Gozitan service as well.
Gatt said Gozo lacks an adequate public transport system and it will be the first region to reap the benefits of reform.
Among other things, bus drivers will be employees rather than single bus owners, and buses will not be used for unscheduled purposes. They will have to abide by EU working hours, while buses will keep on being used by another driver when one driver is at rest.
Buses are also expected to be smaller to be able to enter the smaller villages, and a night service will be proposed, even though the public consultation document states this is not viable without subsidies.

Taxis warned
Gatt has warned taxi owners not to any expect individual payments as compensation for the liberalisation of their service.
While expressing willingness to help the White Taxis Association in restructuring, he is adamantly against forking money to each taxi owner.
That would contrast with the €230,000 he offered to the Motor Hearse Association’s 10 operators, which led to their pulling out of the transport strike back in July.
Using the same criteria, taxi owners which number 200 would be eligible to €4.6 million.
“I would be ready to help the taxi owners set a radio control centre to improve communications, but I will not help anyone individually,” Gatt said.
And to underline the fact that his €230,000 grants to the hearses’ association was made to the organisation as a whole, and not to each operator, Gatt has made it clear he won’t pay any cash until he is given a statute of this organisation.
“I never gave any money to individual hearse owners. The compensation for motor hearse owners was to help the association restructure and invest in advertising and marketing. That is why I asked them for a statute, and I will not pay them until they send me a statute.”
Gatt’s declaration contradicts assumptions by the president of the hearses’ association John Bray in the aftermath of the strike. “I think that’s the whole point of the compensation. We’ll divide them between our 10 members.”
Gatt also defended the decision to issue 500 new taxi licences. “When compared to other countries, on a per capita basis Malta should have around 700 taxis… I think far less will apply. What is clear is that there is sufficient demand for more taxis.”

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