By 2024, Gozo and Malta will be connected by a tunnel!

The media in Malta is reporting that plans for the construction of a tunnel linking Malta to Gozo, are gaining momentum. The project is due to be completed in six years, in 2024. Ian Borg, Malta’s Transport Minister, has said that detailed plans for the tunnel will be ready within six months. The investment is controversial among some locals who suggest that it will irreparably ruin the island of Gozo.

[blockquote style=”2″]”We have already shown that when it comes to key, big projects, we can see things through to the end. That is why you can believe me when I say this tunnel will be built,” said Minister Ian Borg[/blockquote].

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The tender for the design, construction, maintenance and operation of the tunnel will be published by next summer. The decision to build was also supported by Malta’s Prime Minister Joseph Muscat.

[blockquote style=”2″]”We are changing Malta for the better. In the future, people will wonder and ask how we could live without the infrastructure we are creating now, including the Gozo tunnel.” – prophesies Prime Minister Muscat[/blockquote].

Current plans call for a 13km tunnel, with one lane in each direction and an additional safety lane. Studies carried out assume that around 6,500 cars and lorries will use the tunnel every day.

The tunnel is expected to open by 2024 and will connect L-Imbordin on the edge of the Bay of St Paul with the Ta’Kenuna area of Nadur. Local business representatives have unabashedly welcomed the news, reasoning that the tunnel was “essential” for Gozo’s continued economic growth.

A representative of the Gozo Business Chamber said that he hoped that the process “will continue unabated”. Former Chamber President Michael Grech, on his part, predicts that the tunnel will bring economic prosperity to Gozo, as well as increase tourism throughout the year.

[blockquote style=”2″]”We do not want Gozo to become another Bugibba. We don’t want tall buildings here. We want to preserve the existing character of the island.” – [/blockquote] Grech ventured.

Source: bay.com.mt

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