Roads' safety E-Book

Matti Koivurova

• Herausgeber: Books on Demand
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 296

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

History of road transport, history of security. Road traffic affects us all. Security should therefore be of interest to everyone. Basically, everyone wants to live. Traffic has been and still considered dangerous, even though the roads are much safer than before. Security thinking is reasonably young. In the 1960s, it was difficult to get speed limits. Road deaths increased as the number of cars increased. Development was considered inevitable. Seat belts were imposed on the front seats of passenger cars, but use remained voluntary. Safety thinking began to evolve, in less than five years in the late 1970s the use of seat belts became mandatory in almost all countries. The first regulations on the daytime use of headlights were issued in Finland and it happened in 1970. Now, five decades later, the daytime running lights come on automatically when you start driving. The use of helmets by motorcyclists and moped riders was very low in the 1950s, and not very common in the 1960s. The use of a helmet became mandatory in the 1970s for motorcyclists and in the 1980s for moped riders. The use of a cycling helmet began to become more common in the 1990s. Pedestrians and cyclists used to travel on the same lanes as motor vehicles, in the dark, reflectors were used to reduce the risk. Thousands of kilometers of cycle paths have been made in a few decades, when there were hardly any at all in the 1960s. Pamphlet. The author also criticizes in the book, so it can be considered a pamphlet in that regard. Matti Koivurova (b. 1941) is a car engineer at the Helsinki Polytechnic. In his work as a safety engineer, he became particularly familiar with the safety devices of vehicles and pedestrians.

Leseprobe

I dedicate the book to my late wife Pirkko Marjatta and my daughter Tiina Anne-Maria.

Dear reader

The countries’ economies began to grow rapidly in the 1960s. As a result, traffic also increased sharply. In particular, the number and speeds of cars increased. Traffic volumes increased and safety began to develop in a bad direction. Moving on the roads was dangerous. More than half of those killed in traffic were pedestrians, cyclists and moped riders. Something had to be done.

And while the roads and cars weren’t very advanced yet, no general speed limits were set. Some attempts were made in parliament, but they did not receive the support of a majority of representatives. They were not presented by the authorities either. Speed restrictions were turned out throughout the 1960s, and it was not until the next decade that restrictions came.

In Finland, the countries of the northern hemisphere have dark winters and bright summers. The safety of traffic in the dark began to be promoted with lights and reflectors as early as the 1960s. Finland has probably been one of the pioneers in the development and use of pedestrian reflectors. Since the winter days were also quite dark, the use of headlights in the cars during the day was also recommended.

In Finland, good and bad experiences were gained from the recommendation of daytime running lights. Those who used the lights were in a better position than before and those who drove without lights were in an even worse position. The party concerned about security suggested to the party responsible for security that the problem be resolved by imposing usage of driving lights on everyone. The decision to force the use of headlights for the following winter season was taken in July 1970 and entered into force on 1 October 1970.

Forcing cars to use headlights was, in many ways, a major act after the failure to impose speed limits. Finland was the first country able to do so. After all, the country monitors what has been done elsewhere and does the same. Now there was no country from which we could have taken an example and experienced. Finland was now an example for others, such as Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Canada. Sweden first in 1977 and others following Sweden. Canada’s message to Finland: It would not have been possible without Finland’s pioneering work!

In Rovaniemi on December 12, 2021 Matti Koivurova

Liikenneturva’s Road safety poster

Table of contents

Intro

Accidents

Accident Prevention Begins

Parliamentary Survey on Traffic Safety 1952

Desire Initiative on Road Safety

Governors Woke Up

Another Committee

Campaign against Speed Limits

Parliamentary was Awaken - the President, too

In Those Years

ROAD TRANSPORT SECURITY HISTORY 1734 - 2017

Left to Right and Back to Left

Land Law - Road Width 1734

Left-Hand Drive 1736

Russian Finland from Left to Right 1858

Finland’s First Traffic Regulations 1919 - 3 § went wrong

Roads to the State 1921

Mandatory Registration 1922

Driving License Compulsory 1923

No driving license for motorcycle

City Rules max Speed on Daylight 30 km/h

Compulsory Traffic Insurance 1925

Traffic Security Mentioned 1926

Motor Vehicle Decree

Rural Transport Decree 1928

Motor Vehicle Regulation 1929

General Traffic Decree

Traffic Safety Work Begins

Traffic Signs and Mobile Police 1930

Accident Statistics 1931

Guide for Schoolchildren 1932

Roads of the Country 1933

First Traffic Week 1934

Security Work 1935

Suffered a Car Accident 1936

Car Liability Law 1937

Penalties Increased

Annual Inspection Mandatory 1938

Road Days canceled

TALJA Founded 1939

Second World War 1940-1944

Temporary Speed Limit 1945

Traffic Safety Council 1946

Car Decree 1948

Traffic safety was Funded by Lottery

Committee on Road Traffic Safety 1949

Financing Road Safety Work 1950

Traffic Safety Report 1951

Traffic Safety Work Decree 1952

Parliamentary Survey on Traffic Safety

Helsinki Olympics

Local and Regional Traffic Safety Work 1953

Traffic Education Compulsory 1954

New Director for Accident Prevension 1955

TALJA to Support Municipalities 1956

Road Traffic Law 1957

Road Traffic Decree

Speed Radars for Police 1958

Traffic Insurance Law 1959

Traffic Safety Fee Law 1960

Police Proposed Higher Speed Limits in Helsinki

Parliament Wishing Initiative 1961

Speed Limits for Investigation 1962

Roof Speed Holiday Weekends 1963

Holiday Roof Speed 90 km/h 1964

Viikkosanomat, Aamulehti, Car Inspection 1965

Urban Traffic Safety Congress 1966

Traffic Learning Age All 1967

Volvo’s Safety Belt Survey

Car Inspection for State 1968

Seat Belt Utilization 50%

Daytime Driving Lights for Ministry 1969

To Ministry of Transport and Public Works, Helsinki

Daytime Driving Lights Use October 1, 1970

Research Committee on Speed Limits

The Battle for Speed Limits

Speed Limits and Roof Speeds

Bicycle Cat Eyes trinkets 1971

The Saddest Year on Roads 1972 - 1156 killed

Mandatory Seat Belt Initiative

Motorcycle Safety

Mopedists Turned Left not Turning Heads

Parliamentary Committee

President: ”Road Accidents are a Problem” 1973

President: ”Satan’s bunglers”, Get to Work

Public Liikenneturva Starts 1974

Mandatory Use of Seat Belts 1975

Speed Limitation System 80-100-120 km/h 1976

First Daytime headlight usage investigation

Windscreen Wipers Cleaning Grooves

Motorcyclist Training Program 1977

Heavy Vehicle Tachograp, Motorcyle Helmet

Proposals from the Speed Limit Committee 1978

Tachographs for Heavy Vehicles 1978

Standards for Pedestrian Reflectors 1979

Mud Flaps out of Passenger Cars 1980

Studies on Bicycles and Mopeds 1981

New Road Traffic Law 1982

Penalty Law 1983

Study: Defects in Lighting Equipment 1984

Study: Kids in the Car 1985

Motocyclists’ Outfit, Debate 1986

Winter Speed Limits and Bicycle Study 1987

Baby Car Seats Rental 1988

Liikenneturva 50 Years 1989

Compulsory Use of the Tachograph 1990

Parliamentary Committee Report 1991

Sustainable Development in 1992

Advisory Board on Road Safety 1993

Personal Warning Clothing 1994

CEN Standard for Pedestrian Reflectors 1995

Cycling Helmets Very Protective 1996

Cyclist and Mopedist have to Yield 1997

Zero Campaigning 1998

Mandatory Use of Tachograph 1999

International Motorcycle Conference 2000

Driving into People - Campaign 2001

Collision Safety Conference 2002

Reflectors, Helmets, Hands-free Calling 2003

Driver’s State of Health 2004

EU: Speed Limiters Mandatory 2005

EU: Seat Belt Obligation Expands 2006

World Road Safety Week 2007

The Government’s Policy for the Future 2008

Finnish Intermediate Level 2009

Speeds, Consumptions, Emissions 2010

EU: Daytime Running Lights for Cars 2011

EU: DRL for Heavy Vehicles 2012

EU: Driving License Reform 2013

Inspection Extend Life of Cars 2014

EU: Cross-Border Enforcement 2015

Study on Accident Costs 2016

EU Road Safety Conference 2017

Some security measures implemented in Finland 1970 - 2017

Decision of the Ministry of Transport

Greetings from Transport Canada

Intro

The pamphlet is defined critical, it often handles issues and the author expresses his own opinions directly.

Let’s start far from the 17th century, leaning on Peter Englund’s book ‘The Years of the Great War’.

During those old days, when there were no faster ways to move than on foot or on horseback, traveling was slow and inefficient and sluggishness was a natural part of people’s daily lives.

Even speed had to be avoided, as it was neither great nor appropriate and through slowness, people showed that they owned their own time.

The slowness of the movement might be due to natural conditions, for example, constant rain made the road impassable.

The arrival of ice and snow was downright expected as it facilitated movement, the country roads were bad and therefore slow.

Most walked, not everyone had a horse: the horse owner loaded the horse’s back or pulled it with horse-drawn wooden poles; horsedrawn carriage was also a rarity.

Most roads were curvy, narrow, and poorly constructed, bridges across rivers were rare.

Accidents

Traveling was dangerous, due to the poor condition of the roads, accidents when traveling in wagons were common.

Clashes were common, especially on the narrow streets of cities and accidents occurred due to unclear evasion rules; in Germany, for example, you had to turn right when you encountered them, but not everywhere.

Another commonly known danger was highway robbers who robbed, beat, or killed passengers.

For a 17th century man, the journey must have been great and miraculous and people were proud to share their experiences.

There were good sides to moving slowly where it was easy to stop and chat with other passers-by, along the way, people could plan their future activities.

This was life and movement until the 19th century, and even after trains, bicycles, motorcycles, and cars appeared.

The engines displaced horses more widely only after World War II and people no longer walked longer distances.

Accident Prevention Begins

From the late 1920s onwards, car associations began to distribute enlightenment to their members like other countries.

Safety was promoted by setting up a Transport Culture Committee with organizations and the public administration.

Statistics on accidents began a couple of years after the establishment of the Culture Committee.

The maximum speed for passenger cars was raised to 70 km/h and in urban areas to 45 km/h. In 1931 there were 41,527 motor vehicles, 113 people died in accidents.

The Traffic Culture Committee joined the Traffic Division of the Accident Prevention Association, which had been established in 1939.

There was a violation in the 1948 car ordinance: the speed of cars and motorcycles was not limited; apparently there was trust that ”the driver controls his vehicle in all situations”.

In addition: ”high speed may only be used when the road is wide enough, the view is clear and traffic is usually easy to assess”. The judgment of all drivers cannot always be relied upon.

In the 1950s, the state became more active in promoting security works, a 2% road safety charge was introduced and the share was ordered to be taken from car insurance premiums. Work with a significant impact on security would have been a direct activity of the state.

The regulation on the Road Safety Authority and its tasks was then laid down and Talja was entrusted with the task.

Parliamentary Survey on Traffic Safety 1952

Representative Jaakko Hakala and others marveled at the lack of speed limits and training for motorcyclists; the minister replied that ”road safety and the factors affecting it are a very difficult problem”.

Representatives also asked whether the government had paid attention to the increase in traffic accidents and what measures had taken or intended to take to improve road safety.

Just a couple of years earlier, the committee suggested that work on road safety should be organized centrally. Committee: ”The problem is psychological, it is a question of the driver’s sense of responsibility”.

The Committee believes that there should be educational training and teaching in schools. ”There is nothing wrong with our current law under which insecurity could be due to it”.

”Provisions of law, fines and imprisonment for violating them are only of secondary importance”. How well was this information true?

The law must first be learned and embraced before distributing penalties for breaking it. There was no desire to legislate, even for experimental purposes.

Desire Initiative on Road Safety

1961 Antti J. Rantamaa and e.g. Johannes Virolainen, Juha Rihtniemi, Veikko Helle and Veikko Vennamo, altogether 80 MPs in Parliament.

The initiative stated that ”the government will take urgent measures to improve road safety.” The initiative was justified by 18,690 accidents in which 649 people and 111 children died.

It was suggested that ”general speed limits should be considered initially as an experiment. Limits should be low rather than high, such as 80-90 km/h, which may seem unreasonably severe, but something needs to be done”.

Why just a desire initiative? Why only 80 representatives? Did the majority of representatives consider the development to be natural? Nothing could be done, as the number of cars increases, so does the number of accidents.

Governors Woke Up

In 1962, a meeting of county governors made a proposal to set up a committee to study the effects of speed limits. Already a couple of months later, the committee proposed a 90 km/h roof speed test in the three southern counties for the summer months.

The results of the roof speed test showed that accidents in restricted counties decreased by 5.4% and deaths by 10%, while accidents in other counties increased by 35.1% and deaths by 37%.

In the Gallup Interview Survey in Finland, 79% considered a roof speed test necessary and 78% of Talja’s respondents supported a roof speed test.

In 1963, in accordance with the proposal of the above-mentioned committee, the Ministry of Transport decided to carry out a 90 km/h roof speed test on public holidays throughout the country. 913 road deaths were recorded, an increase of 12.7% compared to the previous year.

Another Committee

In 1968, the Transport Ministry set up a committee to examine the results of the experiments, it failed to reach a consensus and 939 people died in road accidents.

In 1970, the committee published the results: since short-term speed limits in 1968 did not affect the number of accidents, the experiments could be stopped.

Although the number of accidents did not change, it decreased, as shown by a 3.4% reduction in road deaths, but this was not enough evidence.

Restrictions on the holiday weekends alone reduced the number of deaths by dozens of victims (from 973 to 939), the conclusion should have been different.

Instead, the committee said that if the holiday weekends restrictions were extended, the limit should be raised from 90 km/h to 110 km/h.

Campaign against Speed Limits

An unprecedented campaign against speed limits was launched in the media. Some authors suggested that all people should be able to decide their own driving speed; as a result, the speed limits were postponed for a few more years.

Parliamentary was Awaken - the President, too

In 1971, Minister of Transport Veikko Saarto said that general speed limits were planned for the country.

This would have reduced road deaths by just a third. It is a cheap, fast and effective security measure.

In 1972, the Speed Limit Committee published a report stating that ”section-specific or general speed restrictions for the entire road network would become necessary and enforcement should be strengthened”.

The report did not lead to immediate action; no, even though road traffic killed 1,156 people, the largest number in history.

In March 1972, a Parliamentary Committee was set up, establishing the Road Safety Division.

In his 1973 New Year’s speech, President Kekkonen asked: ”Is there anything wrong with our traffic conditions when we still do not have general speed limits?”

The parliamentary committee immediately set up a working group on speed. One month later, the working group established that the vehicle-specific limit for a motorcycle is 120 km/h; the committee approved and presented it to the ministry.

A three-year speed limit trial began in seven southern counties, where the era of free speeds was over.

In 1976, it was decided that the speed of the whole country would be 80 km/h, unless a traffic sign indicated a higher or lower speed. The country received a democratically decided speed limit system of 80-100-120 km/h.

In Those Years

Speed limits would have been especially necessary, because pedestrians, bikers and mopedists had to travel on the narrow road shoulder, because there were hardly any bike paths and road lighting was low and rare.

The cars were not yet very safe in collisions; their lights was still weak, the daytime driving light use and studded tires were just coming, the use of seat belts and child restraints was almost nonexistent.

The use of a pedestrian reflector started to increase, the reflectors on the bikes were trinkets, motorcycles and mopeds were poorly equipped. Motorcyclists were not trained, they were allowed to drive with a car license and the use of a helmet was not mandatory and not general.

Police oversight was weak, because of the lack of vehicles and equipment.

Road deaths were about 1,100 per year between 1971 and 1973. Parliament could have set very simply maximum speed limits for the roads; it would have been even easier and cheaper to impose restrictions by prescribing maximum vehicle-specific speeds for cars and motorcycles.

Limiting driving speeds would have saved a large number of accidents and victims.

ROAD TRANSPORT SECURITY HISTORY 1734 - 2017

Left to Right and Back to Left

Sweden was one of the pioneers in the regulation of left-hand traffic. Maybe it had to be put into law, because Charles XII had ordered the road users to take place on the right. The first decree on right-hand traffic was issued in 1718; when in 1734, there was a move to the left, it was worth putting into law. People hardly always knew which side of the road to dodge and accidents could follow. Of course everyone drove in the middle of the road, because of the oncoming to be dodged. In England, the regulation of left-hand traffic was first issued; in Sweden twenty years later, in 1756.

Russia and France to the right; Russia initially had left-hand traffic, but in 1752 Russian cities were ordered to use the right-hand side of the road. In Copenhagen, traffic was also ordered to go to the right side in 1758. In France, Napoleon always marched his troops on the right side of the road, and many of the countries Napoleon and his troops visited, adopted traffic on the right side.

Land Law - Road Width 1734

In 1734, the Land Act set the width of the road at ten cubits, or about five meters, it had to be enough to meet the carts. Apparently, according to a hundred-year-old custom, the oncoming was yielded to the left; on the left side of the road, the encounter was perceived as safer in horse-drawn carriages, because the majority of people were right-handed. Respondents were greeted with the right hand or defended with a gun in the right hand. Reins were held in the left hand, walking on the left became a common habit.

In his book, ‘The Years of the Great War’, Peter Englund describes life at the beginning of a new era: in Europe, people took care of themselves, the state was a foreign and evil natural phenomenon for most, like war, plague, and disappearance. In the 16th and 17th centuries, it began to move on people, most of which glanced at them and continued as before. So it is no wonder that even the new commands were not so well known and obeyed.

Left-Hand Drive 1736

The first traffic rule had been approved by the parliament in 1734 and its entry into force was decided by King Fredrik I of Sweden in September 1736. The Finnish version of the law did not appear until 1759. The law had to be complied with under penalty of a fine.

Chapter 28, Section 23: “When those who travel in the city, or in the land, come against each other, let both of them be put on their left hand, so that they may get to each other without hindrance, under the threat of a fine of ten silverthalers for whom violates it. If the road is so narrow that another must necessarily be pushed aside, the man on foot yields the horserider, the rider yields the driving cart, the driver yields the bigger cart and the small cart yields the bigger ones, then the empty cart yields the cart with people or other load”.

”At the end of the narrow bridge, wait for the one who has first been warned or shout until the other has crossed. Let him walk on a steady way, depart from before him who comes down the hill; if either has to retreat back due to the congestion of the road, the one with the shortest distance or who else woipi, can do it more easily. If neither sowi retreat, that one may unload his load or take his vehicle apart, and the other shall assist him both in unloading and carrying the load and in dismantling and assembling the vehicle. If he doesn’t, let’s pay for the wahingo that might come from it.”

”At the end of the narrow bridge, wait for the one who has first been warned or shout until the other has crossed. Let him walk on a steady way, depart from before him who comes down the hill; if either has to retreat back due to the congestion of the road, the one with the shortest distance or who else can do it more easily. If neither have enough room to retreat, that one may unload his load or take his vehicle apart, and the other shall assist him both in unloading and carrying the load and in dismantling and assembling the vehicle. If he doesn’t, let’s pay for the damage that might come from it”.

Russian Finland from Left to Right 1858

Russia and France allied and as a result Russia was allowed to take over Finland from Sweden, which in 1809 became an autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland and part of the Russian Empire. Traffic in Russia was on the right side of the road, while Finland still had the Swedish heritage on the left side or was it anyway. It took a long time before traffic was regulated on the same side of the road in Finland and in Russia. It was not until 1858 that the Land Act was amended; section 23 of the Kestikievari (traveller’s inn) Rules was amended in such a way that “travelers and passers-by, when confronted with each other, at the risk of the fine imposed therein, shall be left out of their right hand”.

Standards were drawn up for the construction of roads as early as 1818, which began to be assisted in 1840 by the Board of the Road and Water Transport Administration, later by the General Government.

The first cars came to Finland in the late 19th century, the French Cugnot had manufactured its first car as early as 1769 and it was fuelled by steam power. His compatriot Lenoir built his first car nearly a hundred years later, it was completed in 1862 and was powered by gas. The German Marcus completed his cars in 1877 and Benz in 1885, powered by a gasoline-powered internal combustion engine. Helsinki’s horse-drawn Omnibus Company was founded in 1887.

Standards were drawn up for the construction of roads as early as 1818, which began to be assisted in 1840 by the Board of the Road and Water Transport Administration, later by the General Government.

The first cars came to Finland in the late 19th century. The French Cugnot had manufactured his first car as early as 1769 and it was fuelled by steam power. His compatriot Lenoir built his first car nearly a hundred years later, it was completed in 1862 and was powered by gas. The German Marcus completed his cars in 1877 and Benz in 1885, powered by a gasoline-powered internal combustion engine. Helsinki’s horse-drawn Omnibus Company was founded in 1887.

In the same year that Benz completed his car, the American patented the Claghorn seat belt, whose purpose was to prevent you from falling out of the car. Twenty years later, the Frenchman Leveau built a combination of a hip belt and a shoulder belt, the precursor of the current three-point belt. A Transport Commission was set up in 1892 to deal with traffic matters, initially with four officials under Senator Georg von Alfthan. Levin bought Oldsmobil in 1898 and Hinder Linder Renault in 1900, as well as a Forselius Benz car in 1900. Horse-drawn tram traffic began in Helsinki in 1900 and electric tram traffic a year later. Helsinki’s first rental car company started in 1906. Finland’s first car accident may have occurred at Helsinki’s Railway square in 1907, when a car collided with a traffic light. It was estimated that there were about 200 trucks in Finland in 1914. Traffic without rules went wild. ”Cars are starting to hit Helsinki as a scourge, not so much because of their numbers, but because of the insane dizziness and carelessness of the drivers. I wonder if the police could set little limits on that sport, because the drivers themselves don’t seem to have the intellect to curb their excessive fervor”. Uusi Suomi 9/29/1905

In the same year that Benz completed his car, the American patented the Claghorn seat belt, whose purpose was to prevent you from falling out of the car. Twenty years later, the Frenchman Leveau built a combination of a hip belt and a shoulder belt, the precursor of the current three-point belt. A Transport Commission was set up in 1892 to deal with traffic matters, initially with four officials under Senator Georg von Alfthan. Levin bought Oldsmobil in 1898 and Hj. Linder Renault in 1900, as well as a Forselius Benz car in 1900. Horse-drawn tram traffic began in Helsinki in 1900 and electric tram traffic a year later. Helsinki’s first rental car company started in 1906.

Finland’s first car accident may have occurred at Helsinki’s Railway square in 1907, when a car collided with a road light pillar. It was estimated that there were about 200 trucks in Finland in 1914. Traffic without rules went wild. ”Cars are starting to hit Helsinki as a scourge, not so much because of their numbers, but because of the insane dizziness and carelessness of the drivers. I wonder if the police could set little limits on that sport, because the drivers themselves don’t seem to have the intellect to curb their excessive fervor”. Uusi Suomi 9/29/1905.

World War I interrupted development for many years, but fortunately no hostilities took place on Finnish soil. Luckily, the Civil War in early 1918 lasted only a few months. Traffic began to increase, partly due to new vehicles and also due to new and better roads. Bicycles, cars and motorcycles appeared among the horses. While the speeds weren’t soaring, something had to be done and to be started.

Finland’s First Traffic Regulations 1919 - 3 § went wrong

At the beginning of the period of independence, the Government certainly had much more important things to do than make regulations on how to move on the road. The roads in the country, for example, were privately owned and so in administratively poor management. However, in the midst of all urgency and importance, the state enacted the Decree No. 24 of 25 February 1919 “on what drivers should take into account when confronting or passing each other”.

Confronting. “According to the first section, let the drivers both give way to the right when they are oncoming each other.” The traffic was thus kept on the right and was not changed to the Swedish model or its own previous practice. The decree stated that the provision in the land law at the beginning of the independence has not changed.

Bypassing. Section 3: ’When, in the same direction traveling behind has to pass driving in front, the latter retreats left and stops until the behind coming has passed.

Ordering the bypass to move from right to left during the overtaking was a bad blunder that took a surprisingly long time to be corrected. It might have been that the jurist making that, was thinking about the law in Sweden where side traffic was left.

Prohibitions on overtaking. At the same time, the third section imposed a prohibition on overtaking: on narrow bridge, steep downhill or depending on road risk, it was obvious not to let the behind driver try to bypass.

Section 3: When driving further in the same direction, the driver must be able to pass the driver, let the latter retreat on the right, the driver driving past him on the left.

Above mentioned error was corrected by a new decree no 256, three years later, on November 25, 1921. New Section 3: when driving in the same direction, the driver behind has to pass the driver in front, let the latter retreat to the right, and the driver behind bypass him from the left.

Roads to the State 1921

Attempts were made to transfer the construction and maintenance of roads from the private to the state for decades. This succeeded only after independence in October 1918 and the law came into force in early 1921. At that time, it was stated that Finland was the first in the world to nationalize roads. For centuries the construction of roads had been incumbent on landowners and industrial plants who were deemed to need and use roads.

At the same time as roads were nationalized, they were transferred from private to state without compensation.

However, the obligations to build and maintain roads were transferred from the landowners to the state, which was enough to compensate the landowners. From the beginning of 1921, 23,800 km of roads were transferred to the state. After that, the main roads of the country could be designed, built and maintained in a safer condition than before. From now on, the state was responsible for building new roads, spreading old roads, bridges, castles and ferries. It took a lot of labor to make the roads; for example, the 16-kilometer-long and 5-meter-wide road between Arpela and Paakkola was built in 1930-32, and it took 70,000 horse-hours and 180,000 man-hours.

In 1921, the city of Helsinki began regular bus services.

Mandatory Registration 1922

Government Decision No. 117 of May 18, 1922 ordered automobiles and motorcycles to be registered and inspected beforehand. Registration had to be done in the county where the owner lived. The governor was appointed as registrar. The application made to the governor had to contain an inspection book, which showed e.g. owner and driver information and horsepower. This was the first inspection.

For inspections, the governor ordered the necessary number of surveyors in his county. The inspector had to be fully acquainted with the construction, care and steering of the car and motorcycle, as well as fully familiar with the regulations concerning motor vehicle traffic. There were 1,131 cars, 623 trucks and 837 motorcycles on the register.

The maximum speed limit for passenger cars was 35 km/h in rural areas, 30 km/h in urban areas, and 20 km/h for buses.

Driving License Compulsory 1923

In the same year, 1922, issued the decree No. 237 on automobile traffic, signed by the President of the Republic K.J. Ståhlberg, which entered into force on 1 January 1923. The regulation provided that ‘the police authority shall ensure the closest monitoring of traffic in its district and shall be entitled, within the limits of this regulation, to give such detailed instructions on traffic as may be considered necessary for public transport’. The following are the main points of the regulation:

Driving license required.

”An automobile may not be driven by anyone other than who has been approved by a police authority and who has obtained a so-called driving license from the same authority. Such driving license shall be valid for a period of five years from the date of issue. He shall have a good sense of sight, hearing and shall not suffer from any disease or defect which renders him unfit for driving.”

Automobile safety requirements. The regulation imposed the first safety requirements on cars; according to it, for example, hocking tires or any other comparable measure is permitted in winter; the engine must not emit smoke, steam or bad-smelling gas to such an extent or in such a way as to cause harm; the automobile must be equipped with a reliable steering device, two independent, efficient brakes and a device to stop the engine in the blink of an eye, as well as a suitable audible warning device; in addition to the above, the automobile must have two lanterns on the front that show a white light of at least 10 meters and one lantern that shows a red light on the back.

The maximum permitted speed for passenger automobiles was 45 km/h. Let the maximum speed of a automobile be 30 kilometers per hour in daylight in urban areas and 35 kilometers per hour elsewhere. When the road is straight, flat and dry and there are no other drivers visible or otherwise if you are afraid of coincidences, the speed may be increased by 10 kilometers. In the dark or fog, the maximum speed allowed is 20 kilometers per hour. The maximum speed of a lorry automobile shall be 20 kilometers per hour in daylight and 15 kilometers in the dark or fog for those weighing less than 3 tonnes and 5 kilometers less for those weighing more than 3 tonnes. A pneumatic tires lorry automobile can increase speed by up to 10 kilometers per hour, but in the dark or fog the maximum speed is 20 kilometers per hour.

In the event of an accident. ‘When driving an automobile, its driver must take the utmost care to avoid injuries and accidents’. In the event of an accident caused by or in connection with the use of an automobile, the driver must stop immediately, state his or her name and apartment and, if necessary, assist the injured. Likewise, the driver of the automobile is obliged to stop immediately at the request of the police officer or to give the information which may be required of him both about himself and the automobile, as well as to present him with a driving license and an appropriate extract from the motor vehicle register”.

No driving license for motorcycle

Motorcycles were subject to the requirements of motor vehicles, with some exceptions. The motorcycles had one brake and two lanterns, one at the front and one at the rear.

”In order to be entitled to drive a motorcycle, a driving license was not required, but only a certificate issued by an inspector stating that the driver was fully acquainted with the care and steering of the motorcycle was sufficient”. No maximum speed was set for motorcycles.

It was perhaps considered that their structural speed is not too high, especially in relation to the condition of the roads.

If the motorcycle had a sidecar, this must also be fitted to the front of the lantern, a motorcycle and its driver are subject to all the provisions relating to the automobile and the automobile driver.

The driver of a sidecar motorcycle was equated with the driver of a car, so he had to be in possession of an automobile driver’s license.

The compulsory driving license at the latest started training to obtain a license. The first driving school had started in Turku as early as 1912.

A major automobile race was held on the route Helsinki-Haparanda-Stockholm. It was attended by e.g. Gustaf Ericsson, son of Lars Magnus Ericsson, founder of L M Ericsson & Co.

City Rules max Speed on Daylight 30 km/h