Most drivers in Latvia systematically break the speed limit, said Transport Minister Kaspars Briskens (Progressives) in an interview with TV3 this morning.
“There is a speed pandemic in Latvia,” Briskens said.
He pointed out that according to a study by Riga Technical University, speed has a direct correlation with fatalities, including 20 lives that could be saved if the average speed were reduced by two kilometers per hour.
Briskens also mentioned that according to the study, only 29 percent of drivers in Latvia respect the speed limit. “This creates a mythology about slow drivers who supposedly slow down the traffic and therefore create a danger. No, it is these slow drivers who drive in accordance with the rules, while everyone else systematically and regularly breaks the speed limit,” said the Minister.
He also said that there is a need to increase the penalty for speeding up to 10 kilometers per hour. “I will inevitably push such a proposal again,” the Transport Minister said.
Briskens also said that as much freight transport as possible should be shifted from road to rail, and that time limits for trucks could possibly be considered, preventing freight transport during certain hours.
He also pointed out that the causes of road accidents should be analysed in detail. The Minister pointed out that the most frequent cause of accidents in the data at present was “other”. Therefore, the level of detail of the information is not sufficient to draw conclusions on necessary improvements.
As for the idea, which was floated several years ago, of converting the country’s main roads into four-lane expressways, Briskens pointed out that this idea had never had the financial backing.
As reported, in 2020 it was announced that four-lane expressways would be built in Latvia by 2040, with a length of just over 1,000 kilometers. At that time, the indicative construction cost of converting the country’s main roads into two-lane expressways was estimated at EUR 5.206 billion in 2020 prices.
Source: BNS
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