Malta’s Major Traffic Problem

In today's post, I want to look at a topic from everyday life here: driving in Malta. In theory, this shouldn't be anything special, but in Malta, it really is. It is a spectacle in its own right. For many reasons, you simply can't compare it to what you might be used to in Germany or the UK.

Nearly 700 cars per 1,000 inhabitants

Coming from Germany, I was used to perfectly paved roads, clear signage, and organized cycle paths. The choice of transport there is usually based on personal preference rather than necessity. In Malta, despite the roads not being anywhere near that standard, almost everyone still chooses the car. Owning a vehicle is practically a given here. We have nearly 700 cars for every 1,000 residents, which is one of the highest car densities in the world.

Now, you have to remember that Malta is a small island with very limited space, meaning the roads are correspondingly narrow. This combination is a recipe for constant traffic jams and scraped bumpers. If you want to drive in Malta (remember, we drive on the left here, just like in the UK), you need to plan your route and timing carefully. I'm not exaggerating when I say that during rush hour, a trip can take ten times longer than usual.

Cars as a status symbol in Malta

The car is an absolute status symbol in Malta. That is the only way I can explain why so many new vehicles are still being imported. What many people don't realize is that importing new and used cars is an expensive undertaking here. Especially with used cars, the registration tax often exceeds the value of the car itself, which is a painful realization for many expats moving to Malta.

When clients ask me for advice on this, I always recommend planning without a car at first. If you live in the main hubs like Valletta, St. Julian's, or Sliema, in my opinion, you can get by perfectly fine without one.

At the end of the day, the Maltese "addiction" to cars isn't quite as terrible as this post might make it sound. Every nation has its quirks – in Malta, it happens to be the traffic.