Speed limits back to summer mode this week

Speed limits on Finnish highways are set to rise in many places this week as the Finnish Road Administration begins to dismantle the winter speed restrictions that have been in force since last autumn.
      The main changes are the raising of limits from 80km/hour to 100km/hour on major roads and from 100km/h to 120km/h on motorways.
     
Speed limit signs will be changing in the course of this week on approximately 9,300 kilometres of highway, and the new limits are in force just as soon as FinnRa staff get around to replacing or flipping the old signs.
      Basically what it means is that a journey of 100 kilometres that might take 75 minutes in the winter can now be covered in an hour - always assuming weather and traffic conditions permit.
     
On the first front, the weather forecast for the south of the country is not that inspiring for the beginning of the week, with a dusting of snow possible overninght tonight.
      As for traffic, well, this coming weekend is Easter, which usually means a minor exodus on the roads as people visit relatives or go to check how the sumer cottage has fared over the winter months.
     
The changeover to summer tyres is always an iffy matter: legally drivers have been permitted to switch back to summer tyres from March 1st, but a careful eye on the weather forecast is advised, and anyone planning to travel to the north should probably think again about changing, as the roads in Northern Finland can still be snowy and icy for some time yet.
     
One further point for anyone who has not become aware of it - fines for speeding in Finland (over a certain limit above the regulated speed) are income-linked. This means day-fines according to your taxable income, and not just a flat fine. Those with fat wallets will find this rather uncomfortable.


Links:
  Finnish Road Administration
  Finnish speed limits (Wikipedia)
  Finnish police - speed surveillance
  Finnish Meteorological Institute - 5-day Helsinki forecast