Drivers in the Valletta area lost around 94 hours in traffic in 2025.
Confirmed to the unit. TomTom Traffic Index 2025 records 94 hours lost to peak-hour traffic per typical commuter in the Valletta area, average congestion level 50.3% — up nearly 4 hours from the prior year. The same dataset ranks Malta 2nd globally for traffic congestion at country level (only Colombia ranks higher) and the most-congested country in Europe. Among EU capitals Valletta sits in the upper-middle (94 hrs) — below Bucharest (117), Dublin (104) and London (102), comparable to Paris (88) and Rome (83), well above Northern European peers.
Confirmed to the unit. TomTom Traffic Index 2025 records 94 hours lost to peak-hour traffic per typical commuter in the Valletta area, average congestion level 50.3% — up nearly 4 hours from the prior year. The same dataset ranks Malta 2nd globally for traffic congestion at country level (only Colombia ranks higher) and the most-congested country in Europe. Among EU capitals Valletta sits in the upper-middle (94 hrs) — below Bucharest (117), Dublin (104) and London (102), comparable to Paris (88) and Rome (83), well above Northern European peers.
We tested Grech's '94 hours' against TomTom Traffic Index 2025 — the canonical primary source for global urban congestion measurement, built from anonymous GPS data across hundreds of millions of journeys in 500 cities across 62 countries. We also benchmarked Valletta against EU capital peers and checked Malta's national congestion ranking to place the headline number in context.
True — confirmed to the unit. TomTom 2025 records 94 hours lost in the Valletta area per typical commuter, average congestion level 50.3%, up nearly 4 hours from 2024. The same dataset ranks Malta 2nd globally for traffic congestion at country level. Limitations: TomTom's 'hours lost' is computed against a hypothetical free-flow baseline, so the figure represents difference-vs-zero-congestion rather than 'wasted vs ideal road'; this caveat applies equally to all TomTom city comparisons.
Did Valletta-area drivers really lose 94 hours in traffic in 2025
TomTom Traffic Index is one of the cleanest primary sources in policy debate — automated GPS data across hundreds of millions of journeys, so the methodology isn't contestable in the way survey-based measures often are. Grech's specific 94-hour figure is testable to the unit, and the surrounding numbers (Malta's national congestion rank, EU capital comparison) place it in context.
Valletta-area in TomTom 2025 — the headline numbers
The scorecard below summarises the relevant TomTom 2025 metrics for the Valletta area, drawn directly from the published Valletta city report.
| Metric | 2025 value | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Hours lost in peak traffic | 94 hrs | Grech's headline number |
| Equivalent in days | ~3 d 22 hrs | derived |
| Average congestion level | 50.3% | very high |
| AM peak — 10km journey | 27 min 02 s | vs ~12 min free-flow |
| PM peak — 10km journey | 27 min 47 s | vs ~12 min free-flow |
| Year-on-year change | ~+4 hrs vs 2024 | getting worse |
TomTom's methodology uses a standardised 10km commute driven twice daily during rush hours, summed across the calendar year. The 94-hour figure is the additional time vs a hypothetical free-flow baseline — i.e. the difference between peak-traffic conditions and zero-congestion conditions. Grech's '94 hours' is correct to the unit.
Where Malta ranks globally
The same TomTom 2025 report ranks Malta 2nd globally for traffic congestion at the country level — the most-congested country in Europe. Only Colombia (centred on Bogotá) ranks higher. This isn't a Valletta-specific quirk; it's a Maltese national pattern.
| Rank | Country | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | Colombia | most-congested globally |
| #2 | Malta | most-congested in Europe |
| #3 | Mexico | — |
| #4 | South Africa | — |
| #5 | Indonesia | — |
EU capital comparison — hours lost per typical commuter, 2025
The chart below benchmarks Valletta against an illustrative selection of European capital cities on hours lost in peak traffic. Valletta sits in the upper-middle of the European capital congestion table.
Bucharest, Dublin and London top the European table. Valletta's 94 hours is comparable to Paris and Rome — well above Northern European peers (Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, all in the 30-50 hour range). Northern European cities have not solved the traffic problem by building more roads; they have done it through congestion-charging, modal shift to public transport and cycling, and dense city-centre planning.
What 94 hours actually represents
Translating 94 hours into everyday terms:
- Equivalent to ~3 days 22 hours of net additional time spent stuck-in-traffic over the year.
- Per work-week: roughly 1.8 hours/week beyond what a free-flowing commute would take.
- Per work day: roughly 22 minutes/day additional time, on top of the base commute.
- Annualised opportunity cost (at average Maltese hourly wage of ~€12/hour): roughly €1,128/year of foregone time-value per typical commuter.
- Aggregate across Malta's working population (~270,000 commuters × €1,128/year): roughly €300m/year opportunity cost — not counting fuel inefficiency, vehicle wear, externalised emissions or stress-related healthcare.
Why has Maltese traffic worsened?
The 2024→2025 deterioration (94 hrs up from ~90) sits within a longer pattern. The drivers are structural, each documented separately on Spunt:
| Driver | Magnitude | Cross-ref |
|---|---|---|
| Population growth | +150K residents over 13 years (~+35%) | see #258 |
| Vehicle fleet expansion | ~430K licensed vehicles for ~530K residents | NSO |
| Road network capacity | Inelastic — 316 km² geographic constraint | — |
| Public transport modal share | Low — private-car modal share remains very high | Malta Public Transport |
| Cross-island commuting patterns | Tourism workforce concentrated around Valletta-Sliema-St Julian's | — |
Most of these drivers compound rather than reverse. Maltese vehicle-fleet expansion has run faster than population growth; modal-share inertia is hard to break without targeted policy.
What's been done about it
Twettiq tal-Baġit reports show ongoing road-infrastructure investment — Luqa Junction Project (BM 183, 2021) recorded as Implimentata September 2023; multiple Gozo road works; Marsa-Hamrun bypass works. None of these have meaningfully changed the fundamental Maltese traffic equation; they expand capacity rather than shifting modal share. PN's mass-transport proposal (announced for first 100 days of a new PN government) is a longer-term structural response. Whether it would deliver the modal-share shift required is a separate political question.
So is the claim accurate?
Yes — confirmed to the unit. TomTom Traffic Index 2025 records 94 hours lost in the Valletta area, with congestion level 50.3% and a year-on-year increase of ~4 hours. The same dataset ranks Malta as 2nd most congested country globally and the most congested in Europe. Verdict: True.