Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Regulations, 2024

L.N. 113 of 2024

TRAFFIC REGULATION ORDINANCE

(CAP. 65)

Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Regulations, 2024

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by article 54 of the

Traffic Regulation Ordinance, the Minister responsible for transport

after consultation with the Authority for Transport in Malta, has made

the following regulations:-

The title of these regulations is the Motor Vehicles Citation.

(Amendment) Regulations, 2024 and these regulations shall be read

and construed as one with the Motor Vehicles Regulations, hereinafter S.L. 65.11.

referred to as the "principal regulations".

Regulation 78 of the principal regulations shall be amended Amends

(a) sub-regulation (1) thereof shall be substituted by the

following new sub-regulation

"78. (1) Where any area or space in any road

or square is marked as, or allotted to, a reserved

parking, and the Commissioner of Police or the

Authority issue a written permit in favour of the

owners of vehicles who may make use of such area or

space, no motor vehicle may be parked therein unless

the relative permit is affixed on the front windscreen

of the vehicle in such a way that the relative permit is

clearly and fully visible.";

(b) sub-regulation (3) thereof shall be substituted by the

following new sub-regulation

"(3) The Authority may reserve a personalised

designated parking space for disabled persons for the

parking therein of a particular motor vehicle registered

in the name of a Blue Badge holder when the driver of

such motor vehicle, besides being the holder of a valid

Blue Badge issued in accordance with the Parking

Concessions for Persons with Disability Act, is also a

person with a long-term and substantial physical

impairment resulting in his full dependence on a

wheelchair for his mobility

Provided that the particular motor vehicle

shall be specially modified to be driven solely by the

Blue Badge holder who is a wheelchair user in

accordance with this sub-regulation

Provided further that the Authority shall

have the right to request any information as it may

deem necessary to determine the Blue Badge holder’s

full dependence on a wheelchair for his mobility

including, inter alia, such medical certificates issued

in his name which indicate that he has a long-term and

substantial physical impairment that results in the full

dependence on a wheelchair for his mobility.";

(c) sub-regulation (4) thereof shall be substituted by the

following new sub-regulation

"(4) The Authority may also reserve a

personalised designated parking space for disabled

persons for the parking therein of a particular motor

vehicle registered in the name of a person holding a

valid Blue Badge issued in accordance with the

Parking Concessions for Persons with Disability Act

or in the name of a person entrusted with his care, if

besides being the holder of a valid Blue Badge issued

in terms of the Parking Concessions for Persons with

Disability Act, is also a person with a

(a) substantial and long-term physical

impairment that results in

(i) an absolute inability to walk

more than twenty (20) metres; or

(ii) a condition wherein if he walks

for more than twenty (20) metres this could

be life threatening and or, severely

detrimental to his health and well-being, or

(b) long-term mental, intellectual or

psychosocial disability manifesting, inter alia, in

behaviour of concern, and due to such behaviour

he requires continuous human support

Provided that the Authority shall have the

right to request any information it may deem necessary

to determine the Blue Badge holder’s long-term and

substantial physical impairment or the severe and

long-term mental, intellectual or psychosocial

disability manifesting, inter alia, in behaviour of

concern, described in this sub-regulation including,

inter alia, such medical certificates issued in his name

which indicate that he has the impairments attributed

to the Blue Badge holder

Provided further that whenever a Blue

Badge holder is dependent on one or more persons,

who is also entrusted with the care of the Blue Badge

holder throughout the whole day and night, for his

ambulation, the Authority shall have the right to

request any information it may deem necessary to

determine that the persons entrusted with the Blue

Badge holder’s ambulation are permanently residing

with the Blue Badge holder at his primary residential

address including through, inter alia, certified copies

of the identification documents of the persons

entrusted with the ambulation of the Blue Badge

holder and, whenever these are available, utility bills

issued in the name of said person that clearly indicate

that his permanent residence corresponds with that of

the Blue Badge holder.";

(d) sub-regulation (5) thereof shall be substituted by the

following new sub-regulation

"(5) When the Authority reserves a personalised

designated parking space for disabled persons in the

circumstances referred to in sub-regulation (3), the

parking space shall have clearly and prominently

marked or indicated in it the registration number of the

authorised motor vehicle, whereas when the Authority

reserves a personalised designated parking space for

disabled persons in the circumstances referred to in

sub-regulation (4), the parking space shall have clearly

and prominently marked or indicated in it the Blue

Badge number of the Blue Badge holder for whose

benefit such a personalised parking place has been

reserved.";

(e) sub-regulation (8) thereof shall be substituted

by the following new sub-regulation

"(8) Any authorised person who parks a motor

vehicle on a designated parking space for disabled

persons shall be obliged to display the Blue Badge in

its entirety or, in the case of a personalised designated

parking space for disabled persons, the Blue Badge of

the disabled person for whose benefit the Authority has

reserved that personalised parking space, on the

vehicle's front windscreen in such a way that the front

of the Blue Badge, that is the side which displays the

symbol of access, is clearly visible in its entirety in such

a way that the authenticity and validity thereof may be

verified.";

(f)

sub-regulation 12 thereof shall be substituted by the

following new sub-regulation

"(12) A person who breaches sub-regulation (6)

or (7) or (8) or (11) shall be guilty of an offence and

shall be liable, on conviction, to a fine (ammenda) of

two hundred and thirty three euro (€233)."; and

(g) immediately after sub-regulation (12) thereof, as

substituted, there shall be added the following new sub-

regulation

"(13) The

Authority

shall

revoke

the

personalised designated parking spaces or shall

otherwise modify the designated parking space

including the signage and indications related to such

personalised designated parking spaces issued in

accordance with the provisions of sub-regulations (3)

and (4), if it is established that

(a)

the Blue Badge holder, or the

persons entrusted with his care and, or

ambulation, have obtained the personalised

designated parking spaces solely by means of

fraud, deceit or false or misleading declarations,

submissions and misrepresentations;

(b) the Blue Badge holder, or the persons

entrusted with his care and, or ambulation, have

changed their primary residential address, or are

no longer entrusted with his care and, or are no

longer permanently residing in the address kept

in the Authority’s records;

(c) following a review of the information

submitted to the Authority in accordance with

the provisions of sub-regulations (3) and (4) or

by an audit conducted by the Authority on the

personalised designated parking spaces on its

records, it transpires that the information

previously submitted is no longer correct or does

not adequately reflect the actual circumstances

of the Blue Badge holder, or the persons

entrusted with his care and, or ambulation, due

to recent changes to the circumstances of said

persons which were not duly communicated to

the Authority for its approval; or

(d) the Blue Badge holder, or the persons

entrusted with his care and, or ambulation are

deceased

Provided that it shall be the sole

responsibility of the Blue Badge holder, or the persons

entrusted with his care and, or ambulation, including

legal persons that operate residential institutions to

update the Authority with any material changes to

their residential address or any other relevant

information by means of a written communication and

subsequently request the Authority’s approval for an

alternative personalised designated parking space in

such other location close to the Blue Badge holder’s

new permanent address

Provided further that any person who feels

aggrieved by the decision of the Authority to refuse an

application or request submitted in accordance with

the provisions of sub-regulations (2), (3), (4) and, or

this sub-regulation, or to revoke or modify the

personalised designated parking space, shall have the

right to appeal the decision in accordance with the

provisions of this sub-regulation by means of an

application filed before the Administrative Review

Tribunal within twenty-one (21) days from the service

of the decision of the Authority and such application

shall clearly state the grounds for the judicial review

of the Authority’s decision and the remedies sought by

the appellant.".

€0.54