Here you can read about how the police work against traffic violations like speeding, and driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Information on vehicles, importing vehicles, and traffic rules, as well as taxes and fees, can be found at the Swedish Transport Agency. Information on everything concerning driver’s licences for cars, motorcycles, tractors, all-terrain vehicles, and EU mopeds can be found at the Körkortsportalen website.
Traffic safety cameras
On roads where traffic safety cameras have been set up, the number of fatal accidents and serious traffic injuries has decreased significantly.
Speeding violations recorded by cameras are investigated by the Automated Traffic Safety Inspection (ATK) section of the Swedish Police, in Kiruna. The cameras can be turned on and off from here. Whether the cameras are activated or not does not depend on how heavy traffic is, or how hazardous the stretch of road in question is.
When a vehicle approaches a camera, its speed is measured with the help of radar. Traffic safety cameras only photograph vehicles exceeding the speed limit. The picture is then processed manually. The passenger seat is masked, regardless of whether someone is sitting there or not. During the investigation, the vehicle and possible drivers are verified in various registers. The picture of the driver is compared with passport or driver’s licence photos. If the picture of the driver matches the passport or driver’s licence photo, a document is sent with a picture and measurement data to the suspect. If the driver cannot be identified, an inquiry is sent to the vehicle’s owner as to who was driving the car.
Drunk driving and drunk sailing
The limit for drunk driving is 0.10 milligrams of alcohol per litre of exhaled air, which corresponds to 0.2 parts per thousand in the blood. Drunk driving is punishable by fines or a prison sentence of up to six months.
The limit for aggravated drunk driving is 0.50 milligrams of alcohol per litre of exhaled air, which corresponds to 1.0 parts per thousand in the blood. The driver can be sentenced to prison for up to two years. Even drivers who have been significantly affected by alcohol or other drugs, or who have constituted a grave danger to traffic safety, can be sentenced for aggravated drunk driving.
The lower limit for drunk sailing is 0.2 parts per thousand. The limit for aggravated drunk sailing is 1.0 parts per thousand. Drunk sailing is punishable by fines or a prison sentence of up to six months. For aggravated drunk sailing, the operator can be sentenced to prison for up to two years. The Swedish Police, the Swedish Coast Guard, and Swedish Customs have the right to conduct breathalyser tests at sea.
The limit for confiscation of a driver’s license is 0.15 milligrams of alcohol per litre of exhaled air.
