{"id":8286,"date":"2025-07-09T19:05:41","date_gmt":"2025-07-09T17:05:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/?post_type=article&p=8286"},"modified":"2025-07-09T19:08:18","modified_gmt":"2025-07-09T17:08:18","slug":"wasal-iz-zmien-li-tidhol-rotta-tal-merkanzija-ghal-ghawdex-mill-port-il-kbir","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/article\/wasal-iz-zmien-li-tidhol-rotta-tal-merkanzija-ghal-ghawdex-mill-port-il-kbir\/","title":{"rendered":"Time to re-introduce Gozo cargo trips from Valletta"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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In 2016, Malta discontinued the cargo ferry route from Sa Maison, Piet\u00e0 (Grand Harbour) to Gozo\u2014making room for a yacht marina\u2014and rerouted all heavy traffic via \u010airkewwa. Nine years on, the effects of that decision are clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cargo and construction vehicles bound for Gozo must travel along the St\u202fPaul\u2019s Bay\u2013Mellie\u0127a corridor, threading through Xemxija and Selmun. This winding route, characterized by narrow lanes, steep gradients, and limited shoulders, was not designed to accommodate sustained heavy\u2011vehicle use. Relying exclusively on this over-stretched single corridor is neither practical nor efficient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, this imposes a heavy environmental toll. Experts at the Malta Maritime Forum estimate that transferring just 30% of this cargo to a roll-on\/roll-off ferry departing from Grand Harbour could save an estimated 2 million kg of CO\u2082 annually. This change would help reduce congestion and emissions\u2014outcomes that align with national environmental targets .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover, Grand Harbour is investing in shore\u2011to\u2011ship electrification infrastructure. Projects like the Grand Harbour Clean Air Project enable docked vessels to draw power from the grid, cutting nitrogen oxide emissions by over 90\u202f% and CO\u2082 emissions by around 40\u202f%\u2014demonstrating that maritime freight can be both efficient and cleaner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From a logistical standpoint, operating cargo from Grand Harbour is sensible: the port is closer to central and southern Malta\u2019s industrial zones, which simplifies land\u2013sea transfer and helps reduce hauling costs. While longer sea crossings via Gozo Channel might increase fuel costs slightly, these are likely offset by shorter freight distances, fuel savings, and reduced emissions on land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A feasible first step is to launch a limited pilot: a single daily round\u2011trip Monday\u2013Friday using the MV\u202fGaudos, whose fixed deck allows cargo without affecting the regular passenger fleet. This low-cost trial can validate viability before committing to a dedicated fifth vessel. If successful, a new cargo ferry could follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This proposal isn’t bold\u2014it corrects a nine-year-old oversight. The 2016 shift to build a luxury marina served leisure interests but overlooked the strain it would place on inter\u2011island logistics and infrastructure. Reinstating a cargo ferry from Grand Harbour would relieve pressure on the northern road network, reduce emissions, and better serve Malta’s economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking ahead, Malta could explore another possibility: operating cargo sailings from the Freeport in Bir\u017cebbu\u0121a. This would align maritime freight with global decarbonisation efforts and potentially offer even more efficient routing in the future .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s time to rebalance Malta\u2013Gozo transport. A return to sea\u2011borne cargo would deliver cleaner air, smoother logistics, and smarter use of our ports.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2016, Malta discontinued the cargo ferry route from Sa Maison, Piet\u00e0 (Grand Harbour) to Gozo\u2014making room for a yacht marina\u2014and rerouted all heavy traffic via \u010airkewwa. Nine years on, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":8278,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"spay_email":""},"issuem_issue":[433],"issuem_issue_categories":[7],"issuem_issue_tags":[],"translation":{"provider":"WPGlobus","version":"2.8.8","language":"en","enabled_languages":["mt","en"],"languages":{"mt":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"en":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/8286"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/article"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8286"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/8286\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8288,"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/8286\/revisions\/8288"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8278"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8286"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"issuem_issue","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issuem_issue?post=8286"},{"taxonomy":"issuem_issue_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issuem_issue_categories?post=8286"},{"taxonomy":"issuem_issue_tags","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/weekly.uhm.org.mt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issuem_issue_tags?post=8286"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}