Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1512576
duce around 6% of global mari- time Carbon Dioxide emissions: making us the seventh biggest contributor in the world, after Li- beria, Panama, Marshall Islands, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Chi- na. Meanwhile, we also know that: "In 2022, there were an estimated 858 million tonnes of CO2 emis- sions globally from the shipping industry, compared with 739 million tonnes of CO2 emissions from air transport (domestic and international flights…" (which ef- fectively means that 'tiny Malta' is also the seventh biggest contribu- tor, to arguably the single largest source of CO2 emissions, in the entire global transport sector.) Ah, but never fear! For didn't we all just hear our Prime Minister, with our own ears, telling us how very 'enthusiastic' he was, 'to be part of the change for the good of humanity'? (And, moreover, that we still have 'lots to do', to combat Climate Change?) And on his way into COP28, too! I mean… what better opportuni- ty could there even be, for Prime Minister Robert Abela to prove his earlier point – 'Doing nothing is not an option', remember? - by actually DOING SOMETHING, about Malta's (rather enormous) contribution to the problem, on a global level? But… well, how can even I put this? You didn't really think that Robert Abela would actually MEAN any of those fine words, did you? And just as surely, you will not need me to remind you, that he has effectively done the OPPOSITE of everything he said, over the last two or three years alone. Right now, for instance, Abela's government is fighting tooth-and- nail against the EU's 'Emission Trading Scheme (ETS)' direc- tive: described as "a fundamental element in the European Un- ion's strategy to address climate change, serving as a pivotal instru- ment for efficiently diminishing greenhouse gas emissions." And while, to be fair, Malta does have a small point, in resisting this directive (as usual, the EU seems to have forgotten that at least one of its member states, is roughly half the size of Birmingham…) the fact remains that our govern- ment is not only trying to block any external attempt, to ever force us to REDUCE our problemati- cally-high maritime CO2 emis- sions… … but Malta has meanwhile al- so been busy flagging MORE ves- sels (and MORE, and MORE, and MORE!)… with the result that – just like our population; and the energy demands it generates – our global maritime carbon emissions likewise just keep growing… and growing…. and GROWING! At the same time, however: so, too, are Malta's chances of ever actually 'winning an internation- al sporting competition', for a change. Because at the rate that Robert Abela is honing all those skills of his, in the athletic disci- pline of 'saying a lot, without say- ing anything at all'… … make no mistake: that Olym- pic Gold Medal is as good as ours, already… MOVING people and stuff from A to B is one of the biggest sources of carbon emissions in Malta. Years and years of unrelenting focus on building new roads and junctions has baked in car depend- ency, forcing people to drive for most journeys. But it doesn't have to be like this. Sustainable transport is not just key to making sure we reduce our carbon emissions, but will make us healthier and happier as well. Imagine a future where going to work or the shops is not an enraging experience of being stuck in traffic and then struggling to find a parking space. What would that be like? Let's fast forward a decade to 2033. The number of cars on the islands is going down, not up. Malta no longer subsidises fu- el costs, as more and more drivers switch to clean, low-cost electric vehicles. This frees up investment in sustainable trans- port projects, mean- ing Malta's first tram line between Valletta and Sliema opened in 2030 and another one, connecting Val- letta to Birkirkara, is being built. Whisper it quietly, but there's even talk of an un- derground metro because sustainable transport paves the way for sustainable growth. After years and years of bus rider- ship going up thanks to the end of fares in 2022, the government took the diffi- cult decision to prioritise buses on the roads, implementing an all-encompass- ing network of bus lanes and blocking rat runs through town centres. While in the short term this meant car jour- neys taking longer, over time as more people switched to buses, traffic went down. Buses are now frequent, reliable and just as fast as driving. The planned active mobility network, which started construction in 2024, is finally com- plete, meaning all journeys can be cy- cled on segregated cycle paths or quiet streets. Pjazza's are no longer car parks, but pedestrianised areas. All this means fewer unnecessary pol- luting car trips and less traffic, speed- ing up journeys for those who genuinely need to drive. Let's take a look at what this means for some typical journeys in 2033: a moth- er is taking her kids to football practice. Rather than chucking everything in- to an expensive, bloated car, they hop into an electric cargo-bike with much lower running costs. The kids are hap- py watching the world go by from the front, rather than being trapped in a two-tonne metal box. A pensioner would like to go to his local shop. Instead of rely- ing on a family mem- ber to drive him or calling a taxi, he uses his mobility scooter in the segregated ac- tive mobility lane to make the short jour- ney to the town cen- tre. A young profession- al living in Gozo has a business meeting in Valletta. She cycles her e-bike to the fer- ry terminal, checks her emails for the 45-minute ferry trip, then cycles off at the other end directly to the meeting, where she can park her bike securely outside. No stressing about the traffic levels on the coast road or finding a place to park in Val- letta. A group of teenagers are planning a night out in Paceville. Rath- er than wasting half their money on a cab, they can rely on the bus to get them there on time, and to get them home at the end of the night safely. More sustainable transport will give people a choice how to make their jour- neys. In this future, an event attended by 25,000 people won't break the entire country's transport system. The sustain- able travel option will be the most con- venient one. Traffic and road-rage will be distant memories of a long-ago 2023. In 2033, the question won't be "do you remember how much we used to drive?" but "why didn't we do this sooner?". maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 DECEMBER 2023 OPINION 11 Mark Trapani is president of Rota, a cycling advocacy group Fast forward 10 years: The first tram line, fewer cars and cleaner air Mark Trapani The planned active mobility network, which started construction in 2024, is finally complete, meaning all journeys can be cycled on segregated cycle paths or quiet streets. Pjazza's are no longer car parks, but pedestrianised areas Prime Minister Robert Abela address COP28, the UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai