VEHICLE ACCESS ZONES (CONTROL) REGULATIONS

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 65.31

VEHICLE ACCESS ZONES (CONTROL)

REGULATIONS

1st May, 2007

LEGAL NOTICE 105 of 2007, as amended by Legal Notices 408 of 2007

and 269 of 2008; Act XV of 2009; and Legal Notices 430 of 2013 and 57 of

2016.

The title of these regulations is the Vehicle Access Zones

(Control) Regulations.

Amended by

L.N. 430 of 2013.

(Regulations 3 and 5)

Localities designated as charging zones and prescribed periods

VALLETTA

The area designated as a charging zone is that specified in the following plan

Prescribed periods

Monday to Friday from 08.00 to 18.00

VEHICLE ACCESS ZONES (CONTROL)

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires

"access" includes access, entry and, or parking;

"access fee" means the fee which is chargeable to persons whose

vehicle accesses the charging zone;

"the Authority" means the Authority for Transport in Malta set

up under the provisions of the Authority for Transport in Malta

Act;

"Board" means the Board set up in terms of regulation 10;

"charging time" means the days and the period of time the

controlled access is in force;

"chargeable vehicle" means a vehicle the owner of which is

charged a fee whenever that vehicle accesses a charging zone;

"charging zone" means the area in which access by a chargeable

vehicle shall be liable to an access fee;

"Council locality" means a locality governed by a Local Council;

"elderly person" means a person who is sixty-one years of age or

more;

"enclosed space" means an area within a charging zone that is

physically definable as a distinct area and which, whilst not being a

garage, is used for the parking of motor vehicles and is not

accessible to the general public for the purpose of car parking

except with the consent of the owner thereof;

"garage" means a lockable building or enclosed space in which to

park or keep a vehicle situated within a charging zone and it

includes an enclosed space and an off-street parking facility;

"keeper of a vehicle" means a person who is in lawful possession

of a leased vehicle or any other car of which he is not the lawful

owner;

"KNPD" means the National Commission Persons with

Disability established under article 21 of the Equal Opportunities

(Persons with Disability) Act;

"immediate relatives" means the daughters and sons of elderly

persons provided that the spouse of the son or daughter may

substitute the son or daughter and if the elderly person has no son

o r d a u g h t e r su c h e l d e r l y p e r s o n m a y n o m i n a t e a n y p er s o n

whatsoever;

"Local Council" means a local government council established in

terms of the Local Government Act;

"motor mechanical workshop" means a workshop where motor

vehicle mechanical or panel repairs are carried out on a commercial

basis;

"night" means, for the purpose of these regulations, any two

consecutive hours between 01.00 hours and 05.00 hours;

"non-chargeable vehicle" means a vehicle which is kept in a

garage or parked on a street within the Council locality during the

night for not less than 15 nights, whether consecutive or not, during

one calendar month, and for not less than seven months within a

calendar year;

"off-street parking facility" means a private area within a

charging zone which is not part of a road;

"operator" means the person contracted by the Authority to

develop, install and operate a Vehicular Access Control System in a

charging zone;

"other emergency vehicles" means any vehicle used by service

providers in the electricity, water, drainage and communications

sectors to give an emergency service;

"owner of a garage" means any person or undertaking that owns

or has on lease the garage;

"owner of a vehicle" means the person in whose name the vehicle

is registered under the Motor Vehicle (Registration and Licensing)

Regulations;

"parking disc" has the same meaning assigned to it by the

Controlled Parking Schemes (Residents and Commercial)

Regulations;

"pedestrian zone" means an area -

(a) which has been laid out to improve amenity for

pedestrians; and

(b) to which the entry of vehicles is prohibited or

restricted;

"residence" means the place where a person has his permanent

abode for at least seven months of the year;

"vehicle" means any motor vehicle intended for use on the road,

with or without bodywork, having at least four wheels and a

maximum design speed exceeding 25 km per hour, and its trailers,

with the exception of vehicles which run on rails and of agricultural

tractors and machinery;

"Vehicular Access Control System" means a system consisting of

surveillance equipment, including cameras and transmission

equipment, which may be used to control and monitor access within

a charging zone, to record data and to detect crime.

Amended by

L.N. 430 of 2013.

(Regulation 3)

Controlled Vehicle Zone Signs

VEHICLE ACCESS ZONES (CONTROL)

(1) There may be established one or more charging zones

within any Council locality.

(2) The areas designated as charging zones shall be those

prescribed in the First Schedule.

(3) In areas designated as charging zones, the Authority shall

cause to be placed, and thereafter the Local Council shall cause to

be maintained, appropriate signs, as contained in the Second

S c he du le , i n su c h p o s it i on s a s t h e Au th o ri t y m a y co n s id e r

necessary for the purpose of providing adequate warning and, or

directions to drivers at all entries to and exits from a charging zone.

(4) Controlled access within the respective charging zone shall

remain in force throughout those periods of times and days of the

week as prescribed in the First Schedule.

Substituted by

L.N. 430 of 2013.

(Regulation 5)

1. (a) The fees to be charged for accessing a charging zone shall be the

Access for first 30 mins

Free

Access over 30 mins up to 60 mins

€0.82

Access over 60 mins

€0.82 per hour or part

thereof with a maximum

daily charge of €6.52

Public holidays falling on a day during which the

charging zone is in force

Free.

(b) Payment of access fees

Access fees imposed for accessing a charging zone shall be paid by the owner or

keeper of the vehicle to the Operator either personally, or by post or on-line or by

other methods offered by the Operator. The Operator shall pass all the fees collected

over to the Authority.

(c) When the area designated as a charging zone is accessed during periods of

time when the charging zone is not in force, access is free.

2. The charges provided in paragraph 1 above shall be increased or decreased by the

percentage indicated below in the circumstances indicated

F o r p a y m e n t s b e f o r e i n v o i c e i s se n t a n d f o r

Applicable

charge

automatic debit

discounted by 10%

Payment at invoice

Applicable charge

Payment after 30 days after first invoice

Applicable

charge

increased by 2% or €5.82,

whichever is the higher, if

not settled within 30 days

and by another 2% if not

settled within the next 30

days

Payment after 90 days after first invoice

Applicable

charged

increased by 100%.

3. In the case of the locality designated as a charging zone in the First

Schedule -

(a) no access fee shall be charged in respect of a chargeable vehicle which

accesses the charging zone after 14.00 hrs and exits that zone before

08.00 hrs of the following day;

(b) where a chargeable vehicle accesses the charging zone 30 minutes

before the time in which the charging zone discontinues to remain in

force, no access fee shall be charged if the vehicle remains within the

charging zone until the time in which the charging zone discontinues to

remain in force; and

(c) where a chargeable vehicle accesses the charging zone any time

between 08.00 and 14.00 and remains in that charging zone after 14.00

the access fee shall be charged -

(i)

for the time the vehicle remains in that zone before 14.00 other

than for the first 30 minutes, and additionally

(ii) for the time it remains in the said zone between 14.00 hrs and

18. 00 hrs.

(1) Access to a charging zone may be controlled and

monitored by the use of a Vehicular Access Control System

installed and operated by an operator authorised for the purpose by

the Authority.

(2) Data collected through the use of cameras shall be used for

the enforcement of the charging zone and for charging access fees

and the information may be disclosed by the operator to the

Authority, the Local Council, the Police, the Community Officers

for enforcement purposes, crime detection and for the collection of

fees.

(1) The owner of a chargeable vehicle which accesses a

charging zone during the charging days and times established in the

First Schedule shall pay a charge equivalent to the amount as

prescribed in the Third Schedule, such payment to be effected as

provide for in the said Schedule.

(2) The Third Schedule may be temporarily suspended or

amended by the Board in order to cater for special occasions

provided that the Board publishes a notice in the Gazette at least

three days in advance and specifies in the said notice the period of

validity of the said notice.

(3) Where the owner of a vehicle fails to pay the applicable

access fees within thirty days from the date appearing on the

invoice for such payment, the Authority shall, when the road

licence of the said vehicle comes up for renewal, withhold from

renewing that vehicle’s road licence on the expiry thereof until

such time as the payment of the access fees are effected

Provided that such measure shall not be applicable if the

said invoice is being contested in accordance with these

regulations.

(4) Where the owner of a vehicle fails or refuses to pay the

applicable access fees within a period of thirty days from the date

on which he has been invoiced for such payment, the Authority

shall not allow and register the transfer of that vehicle to another

person and shall not allow the scrapping or garaging of that vehicle

until such time as such access fees have been settled.

VEHICLE ACCESS ZONES (CONTROL)

The following vehicles shall be exempt, under such

conditions as laid down in these regulations, from the application

of the charge for accessing and, or parking within the charging

(a) non-chargeable vehicles,

(b) vehicles registered on and, or used as part of their

duty, by the Armed Forces of Malta, the Police Force,

the Civil Protection Department, the prison

authorities, Local Community Officers and Authority

for Transport in Malta Enforcement Officers,

(c) ambulances,

(d) other emergency vehicles,

(e) official vehicles used by the President of the Republic,

the Prime Minister, the Archbishop, the Chief Justice,

the Speaker, Cabinet Ministers, Parliamentary

Secretaries, the Leader of the Opposition, the Bishop

of Gozo, and foreign dignitaries and accompanying

delegations in vehicles issued with DDV registration

plates,

(f)

one vehicle registered in the name of every Member of

Parliament,

(g) vehicles registered to be parked in a garage within the

charging zone,

(h) vehicles registered on each immediate relative of an

elderly person residing within the charging zone,

(i)

all public transport vehicles, excluding self-drive

vehicles,

(j)

vehicles registered on voluntary organisations for the

carriage of disabled persons,

(k) vehicles registered and used by persons with mobility

problems who are certified as such by the KNPD and

who work within the charging zone,

(l)

vehicles which are registered to carry more than eight

passengers besides the driver,

(m) electric motor vehicles and hybrid vehicles,

(n) waste collection and street cleaning vehicles,

(o) motorcycles, and

(p) other vehicles, including vehicles used to render

medical or health care services, that may be

exceptionally registered as such by the Board in terms

of these regulations.

In order to qualify for the exemption provided for in

regulation 6 -

(a) the persons qualifying under paragraphs (f), (h), (j)

and (k) shall register the relative vehicles with the

Board and only those vehicles shall be exempt;

(b) to qualify for an exemption under paragraph (g), the

owner of a garage shall register the garage and the

vehicles making use of the said garage with the Board

provided that the number of vehicles to be registered

shall be equivalent to the vehicle capacity of the

garage leaving space for free movement of the said

vehicles

Provided that vehicles so registered shall not park on the

street in any road within the charging zone, except for the area

directly in front of the garage, for more than ten minutes during

which time the owner or driver of the vehicle shall exhibit behind

the vehicle’s windscreen a parking disc, obtainable from the

Authority or Local Council, showing the time of parking as

correctly as possible and if the vehicle is left parked on the road for

a period longer than the maximum permitted, the owner of that

vehicle shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction, be

liable to a fine (ammenda) of fifty-eight euros and twenty-three

cents (58.23) and shall have the exemption withdrawn for a period

of one year and where that vehicle has exceeded the parking period

by one hour or more, that vehicle shall also be clamped or removed

in accordance with the Clamping and Removal of Motor Vehicles

and Encumbering Objects Regulations.

(1) For the purposes of the exemption under regulation

6(h), an elderly resident shall only be considered as resident within

the charging zone if he meets all the following requirements

(a) his place of residence is within the charging zone;

(b) he presents telephone, water, electricity and other

utility bills relative to that place of habitation that

evidence a monthly consumption consonant with an

average residence;

(c) he is a registered voter in the electoral division to

which the charging zone belongs;

(d) there are no commercial licences registered on that

place of habitation;

(e) the same place of habitation is the sole registered

address with the Income Tax Department and Social

Security Department;

(f)

he has no forwarding address with any postal service;

(g) his television and, or cable television service is

registered to the same place of habitation;

(h) any motor vehicles that may be owned by him are

registered to the same place of habitation; and

(i)

he receives a pension or social security benefits at the

same place of habitation.

(2) Where the resident referred to in sub-regulation (1) does

not have immediate relatives, he may apply to have no more than

two vehicles owned by his siblings or by his immediate nephews or

grandchildren or ascendants to have these vehicles exempt from the

charging fees for accessing the charging zone.

VEHICLE ACCESS ZONES (CONTROL)

(1) The Board shall exercise the powers granted to it in

terms of regulation 6(p) only with respect to the following classes

of vehicles

(a) vehicles used for the delivery or selling of goods

provided that the exemption shall only apply if those

vehicles access the charging zone during the following

times and days of the week

Monday

08.00. to 09.30 hrs

30 to 16.30 hrs

Tuesday to Friday

08.00 to 09.30 hrs

13.00 to 16.00 hrs

The Board may, due to exceptional circumstances,

approve other delivery times other than those aforesaid;

(b) vehicles owned by licensed hawkers for the carriage of

goods to be sold on an open air market within a

charging zone shall be exempted from the payment of

the charging zone access fee for a period of time

starting 90 minutes before the opening time and ending

90 minutes after the closing time of the market;

(c) any chargeable vehicle that is presented for repairs or

for a service at a motor mechanical workshop within a

charging zone

Provided that in such a case the exemption is given

only for a period of no more than ten working days;

(d) any vehicle owned by a person who is resident in a

charging zone but for reasons that the Board deems

justifiable does not qualify as a non-chargeable vehicle

for the sole reason that the owner or keeper thereof is

in the impossibility of keeping it so parked for and in

the required time

Provided that a person shall not be considered as a

resident in the charging zone unless he satisfies the

requirements of regulation 8(1)(a) to (h);

(e) any vehicle owned by a person who is in possession of

a blue sticker issued by the KNPD and who works

within a charging zone;

(f)

vehicles, including cranes, used in the construction

industry or for road excavation;

(g) on an exceptional basis, any other vehicle that the

Board considers to be deserving of an exemption

considering that it is used by persons that carry out a

public service.

(2) Persons requiring an exemption in terms of these

regulations shall apply on the appropriate form and the conditions

of regulation 10(5) and (6) shall apply.

(3)

Vehicles owned by other persons who are exempt by the

Ministry responsible for finance from the payment of the vehicle’s

annual road licence, shall not be exempt from the access fee but,

upon registration of their vehicle with the Board, they shall be

entitled by the Authority to a maximum annual credit equal to the

amount paid in access fees but not exceeding the sum of forty-six

euros and fifty-five cents (46.55) in any one year.

10. (1) The Authority shall establish a Board to administer

these regulations and the Board shall act under the general

direction of the Authority.

(2) The Board shall consist of a Chairperson appointed by the

Authority and two other persons, one appointed by the Local

Council and the other representing the retail sector in the charging

zone.

(3) The Board shall act unanimously but shall be bound to

follow any directions and decisions that may be given to it by the

Authority.

(4) The Board shall have the power to create the appropriate

forms, request any information and establish the necessary

procedures for the better fulfillment of these regulations but shall

not have the power to establish any fee not already established by

regulation.

(5) Any application made to the Board shall be made on the

appropriate form and by the mere act of applying the applicant shall

be considered as having authorised the Board and Local Council

where the charging zone is situated, to check, even through

physical access, the validity of the information provided to

determine whether or not the applicant qualifies for such an

exemption and the Board shall issue the permit only after it

certifies in writing that it has ascertained the fulfillment of all the

conditions.

(6) Any vehicle, qualifying for an exemption under regulation

6(d), (f) to (h) and (l), that is granted an exemption shall have its

registration number registered by the Board, shall pay an annual

registration fee of forty-six euros and fifty-five cents (46.55),

which fee shall be independent of the vehicle road licence, and

such exemption shall, unless renewed, cease ipso iure on the

termination of the period of validity.

(7) Where a person filing an application for exemption

knowingly supplies false or incorrect information, such person

shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a

fine (multa) of not more than six hundred and ninety-eight euros

and eighty-one cents (698.81).

11. (1) The owner of any vehicle who feels aggrieved by a

decision taken by the Board set up under regulation 10 or by an

invoice received and, or penalty imposed in connection with the

accessing of the charging zone shall have the right to contest such

decision, or invoice or penalty as the case may be.

(2) Such contestation shall be forwarded in writing and by

registered mail to an independent Contestation Board, to be set up

by the Authority, within twenty days from the date when such a

decision is communicated to him or her or within twenty days of

the date of the invoice or penalty in question.

(3) The contestation shall be accompanied by the following

administrative fee

(a) contestation of an invoice/penalty

up to €2.33 ............................................

€1.16

(b) contestation of an invoice/penalty

between €2.35 and €11.62 ................

€3.49

(c) contestation of an invoice/penalty

between €11.65 and over .....................

€11.65.

(4)

The decisions of the Contestation Board shall be final.

(5) Where the Contestation Board decides in favour of

contestant, the administrative fee shall be refunded to him or her.

12. (1) There may be established, in any charging zone,

pedestrian areas in which the access of vehicles shall be strictly

prohibited or restricted.

(2) Where a pedestrian area is established, the Authority shall

cause to be placed, and thereafter the Local Council shall cause to

be maintained, appropriate signs in such positions as the Authority

may consider to be necessary for the purpose of providing adequate

warning and, or directions to drivers.

13. (1) The owner of a vehicle commits an offence if he

obscures the letters or numbers on the vehicle’s registration plate

even by using a coating or protective material that distorts visibility

or detectability, and shall be liable, on conviction, to a fine (multa)

not exceeding one thousand and one hundred and sixty-four euros

and sixty-nine cents (1,164.69).

(2) A person who accesses the charging zone with a vehicle

whose registration plate has been obscured as mentioned in

subregulation (1) commits an offence and shall be liable, on

conviction, to a fine (multa) not exceeding one thousand and one

hundred and sixty-four euros and sixty-nine cents (1,164.69).

14. The Authority shall provide, and thereafter the Local

Council shall cause to be maintained, within the Council locality

where there exists a charging zone, appropriate parking bays for

residents within that Council locality.