Sakkolain-Saadannon Uudistamisen Vaikutukset Ylinopeusrangaistuksiin, Ajonopeuksiin ja Liikenneturvallisuuteen. (Effects of Road Sanction Legislation Revision on Driving Speeds, Sanctions for Speeding and Traffic Safety.)

摘要

The aim of the study was to find out the effects of the revision of the regulations con- cerning traffic sanctions on driving speeds, sanctions for speeding, traffic safety and police officers' work. In the revision the use of fixed penalties was extended to cover speeding violations up to 20 km/h instead of 15 km/h before the revision. Fixed penalties were also increased and categorised according to speed limit and actual speed. Furthermore, according to the new law the calculation of day-fines, which are imposed for greater speeding violations, is based on the net income of the violator and it is extracted on the spot from the registry of the tax authority. Before the revision the calculation was based on the self-reported gross income of the violator. The minimum day-fine was also doubled from FIM 20 to FIM 40. The monetary sanctions for exceeding the speed limit by 16 to 20 km/h increased about 4 percent in the less than or equal to 60 mpy speed limit areas. In other speed limit areas the monetary sanctions decreased about 10 %. Changes were not statistically significant (significance level 95 %) The sanctions for exceeding the speed limit by more than 20 km/h increased by 27 to 38 percent. The results show that the revision had no effect on driving speeds. Because the changes in driving speeds effect directly on safety, the revision did not cause this kind of reflec- tive effect on traffic safety. A questionnaire study directed to police officers indicated that the duration of fining situations and the frequency of unpleasant fining situations were decreased.