Uninsured vehicles are most common in Vidzeme; least common in Latgale
In April, the Latvian Motor Insurers Bureau (hereinafter – LTAB), in cooperation with the CSDD, is implementing a social campaign “If you don’t have a OC/TA – don’t drive!”. As part of it, traffic flow control is carried out throughout Latvia with both photo radars and a specially equipped vehicle to find out whether the car has a valid OCTA and technical inspection. “In two weeks, the specialized vehicle has checked more than 28 thousand vehicles, of which 427 did not have a valid OCTA, and 397 – the technical inspection validity period has expired,” says LTAB Chairman of the Board Jānis Abāšins.
During the campaign “If you don’t have a OC/TA – don’t drive!”, several speed cameras throughout Latvia carry out traffic accident and technical inspection checks in an extraordinary mode – i.e. regardless of the speed of the vehicles. Also, traffic flow (to obtain statistical data) is monitored by a specialized vehicle equipped with the “Eunomia Traffic” system developed by SIA “Jarva”, which records the speed of several objects in motion, as well as provides 360-degree video processing and automatic license plate recognition online.
“At the moment LTAB have collected data from a specialized vehicle that has been conducting traffic flow control throughout Latvia for two weeks, checking 28039 vehicles. The data obtained confirms LTAB "The statistics announced before the campaign show that there are approximately 1-2% of uninsured vehicles on Latvian roads. The highest number of uninsured vehicles – 1,91% – was recorded in Vidzeme, but the lowest (1,35%) – in Latgale. Specialized vehicles in Kurzeme recorded 1,45% of cars without a valid MTPL, but in Zemgale there were 1,37% of them," informs J. Abāšins.
Uģis Beļavskis, Chairman of the Board of SIA “Jarva”, points out that SIA “Jarva” has unhesitatingly agreed to participate in the implementation of this campaign by offering its specially equipped car: “It is important for us as a company to support this social campaign so that all drivers can get an idea of how many cars there really are that are participating in road traffic without an OCTA or technical inspection, and, perhaps, some people would think about what consequences this can have. We ourselves found it very interesting to learn about these statistics and once again prove to ourselves and others that the product we created “Eunomia Traffic”, which is also used by the Latvian State Police, is a modern, convenient and fast way for road traffic supervisors to obtain data with added value.”
As part of the information campaign, extensive explanatory work is also being carried out, explaining that the MTPL or technical inspection is not an unnecessary formality imposed by the state on drivers, but rather a guarantee of safety for the driver himself, passengers and other road users. The campaign is financed from the funds of the Road Traffic Accident Prevention and Control Account, which are formed by contributions made by insurers from MTPL policies.
Campaign website: www.ltab.lv/radars
Campaign informational video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcmaPc3zSYE