Residents of Xemxija have issued warnings over speeding cars and reckless driving along a hill in the locality in the aftermath of the death of a 30-year-old Tunisian woman. 

“It’s like living on a race track, especially on Sundays,” one resident said.

On 14th November, the woman, who is believed to have been on holiday in Malta with her husband, was crossing the road when a Mercedes Benz C350 driven by 42-year-old Maltese man from Mellieħa struck her

Witnesses on the scene described the husband’s cries of despair and pain after seeing his wife lying dead on the ground. He is still recovering in hospital days after the night that changed his life forever.

The road is particularly dangerous. Traffic accidents on Xemxija Hill have claimed three lives over the last two years, with several people have been left injured. 

Countless residents have reached out to Lovin Malta following the crash, raising concerns that the constant speeding in the area means that another horrific accident is simply waiting to happen. 

“We have literally been begging for help from councils, police, LESA, and Transport Malta, but nothing is ever done about it,” one person said.

“How is there no enforcement when every single Sunday the road from the bypass to the hill is filled with over speeding cars?”

The long stretch of road, which connects Xemxija Hill, Triq il-Mistra, and Selmun Hill, is the only properly equipped road connecting the two localities and is a crucial part of the journey for people visiting Gozo. Crashes there are common, with many people dying in the process. 

Unfortunately, these stories are nothing new. In April 2021, Lovin Malta spoke to Wane Tabone, a Maltese/British national who served in the UK armed forces as a commando. Tabone was left hospitalised because of a pothole on the long street, one of many that litter the road. 

“This road is an accident blackspot, yet nothing has ever been done about it,” Tabone said. 

“I am lucky to be alive. I have been riding for 22 years and never had something like this happen.”

The government has slowly begun to address the growing number of potholes in the area. The Xemxija stretch was fixed towards the end of last year after a fatality and a serious traffic accident happened in quick succession. Both were caused by a massive pothole. 

However, a series of incidents since then, including the most recent death, indicate that the problems of the road are far deeper than infrastructural issues. 

Why do you think there is a lack of enforcement?