Ahjar bqajna bis-servizz l-antik....jew almenu bir-rottot l-antiki
Think back at the comments you've heard from people or maybe the comments you've read on Facebook or timesofmalta.com and ask yourself whether you've read that comment a couple of dozen times. It saddens me to read such comments but it doesn't surprise me the least bit. First of all I would choose to split that statement in two and examine each half separately. The more commonly said half is definitely that of the old routes being retained. It is crystal clear that anyone saying this simply has no idea as to the whole concept behind the reform. The whole point of this reform is not to get new air conditioned buses, or drivers in ties instead of shirts but rather the whole point of the reform is to introduce a new way of operating public transport in Malta. Our old system pretty much goes back to 1905 and has no currency in the modern day world. The concept of a system built around the centrality of Valletta as the main city in Malta and with routes which are short and uncomplicated but often not so frequent is miles away from a modern day European system which sees routes which are perhaps longer and more complex but are by far more frequent and hence more efficient. It is precisely in attempting to make this shift, from a 1905 system to a modern day European system that we chose to abandon the old routes and go for a new network altogether. Some have suggested that perhaps it would have been wiser to retain the old network and merely add new routes to it. Yet this would have still saddled us with a 1905 system making the adoption of a new European style system impossible and can perhaps be best described by using the Maltese idiom, "traqqa l-pannu bil-qargha hamra".
This of course leaves the less common but still uttered phrase of nostalgia for the old service. I'm not a betting man but I'm ready to play my ten cents that the people saying this are the same people who a few weeks ago where complaining how Malta's bus service is shoddy and uncomfortable and how it needs changing immediately! To feel any sort of nostalgia for the old service per se only proves that one is complaining for the sake of doing so or merely that one is not a frequent commuter of Malta's public transport service.
L-Aircondition ma hadimx...l-aircondition kien kiesah wisq....l-aircondition ma kienx kiesah bizzejed.....Domt siegha nistenna f'xemx tizreg....Tant domt sejjer li fil-hin li ghamilt fuq tal-linja kont nasal l-Alaska...u hafna hafna HAFNA aktar...
It seems our English teachers are guilty of not teaching us the English idiom 'Rome was not built in a day'. Was Arriva's launch perfect? Was it problem free? Where there absolutely no hitches and glitches? Of course not and anyone who expected something different was evidently not being very realistic. Just think back to your first day at the job or your first exam, was it easy and problem free? Highly unlikely I would say! Don't get me wrong; I honestly really feel sorry for those commuters who had to wait in the basking Maltese sun and every attempt should be made to solve the kinks in the service as fast as possible to avoid such situations. I honestly also feel sorry for those workers who turned up late at the job because of the bus service and hope that they will not face penalization when they have no guilt. However lets not loose sight of the fact that Arriva is still in its beginning stages here in Malta and its going to take some time to settle in. Add to this the decision of some 60 plus of the old service drivers who chose to take up employment with Arriva who on the eve of the launch decided to strike unilaterally even when their trade union urged them to turn up work thus leaving Arriva under staffed and with some routes impossible to man; the situation was bound to be difficult. Does this mean that the reform has failed? Does this spell doom for Arriva in Malta? Far from it; with a bit of patience and a bit of time to settle in, Arriva can and shall be a success in Malta; we just need to hold on a bit; it shouldn't be too difficult; we've been saddled with the same service since 1905, surely a week or two more isn't going to kill us is it?
As for the comments on air conditions being too cold or too hot...all I can say is...keep them coming...if thats the only problem you can notice about the service then the service can't be that bad!
Taf x'qalulna...min irid jitfa l-uniformi hawn...ghada nigu u ma nohorgux ebda trakk
The scenes broadcast last Saturday on timesofmalta.com were sad and worrying. The days of the bullying tactics, obscene yelling and total disregard for the public are over and anyone not willing to accept this simple fact should have no space in Arriva. It is thus with gladness that I read that those workers who simply did not turn up for work have now been given the sack! They deserved no better. My hope is that they will not be allowed to somehow put their name on the unemployment register. They had a job and they only lost is because they where capricious with it! There actions have inflicted much anguish on Maltese public transport commuters.
Imma jahasra l-antiki kienu tant sbieh...ser narmuwhom hekk qishom qatt ma kienu?
Perhaps one of the few sensible discussions taking place as a result of this reform is the question of what to do with the old buses. It is without doubt that the old buses have more than done their time as vehicles of public transportation and it is without doubt that changing them in their entirety was long overdue and very much a necessity. I do believe however that perhaps a token amount of no more than 10 of the old vintage buses, such as the one in the picture above should be retained and turned into tourist buses. These token sample would serve as a historical reminder of the Malta bus that has dominated our roads for such a long time. Naturally not every old bus is a vintage bus. Indeed one must distinguish between vintage and traditional such as the one pictured above and merely old and run down.
...u dawn tal-arriva min fejn il-madoff inqalaw....
I left my person favorite for last. This comment really cracked me up. For anyone doubting Arriva's competence allow me to here produce a list of countries in which Arriva is active; United Kingdom, Netherlands, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Spain, Portugal, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary. Sounds pretty well spread and pretty European to me!
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