A tiny village in Gozo has just ended a trial run of banning heavy vehicles from its locality for an entire week and are considering doing it again following its success.

As the sounds and sights of construction become commonplace on every corner of the Maltese islands, the Għarb Local Council wanted to pause the use of vehicles that consistently disrupt the lives of residents via noise and air pollution for seven days.

The village, which hosts around just 1,300 people, closed to locality off to heavy vehicles such as construction trucks between the 16th and 22nd September as part of worldwide Mobility Week. It also stopped giving out new construction permits for the week.

Now, they are discussing whether they should continue introducing this idea throughout the year.

Mayor David Apap said the event had a “very favourable impact for a few days – the locality was quieter, more accessible to road users, with less pollution from construction work in the air and noise”.

“It was not easy, but the council was determined to give a breath of relief to residents who face daily problems related to the construction industry,” he continued, saying residents will always be given priority over “everything” and that the council is committed to protecting the health and lives of people first.