On Tuesday morning, snow and ice all over Latvia make it difficult to drive on the country's main and regional roads, with Kurzeme and Vidzeme particularly tricky. Visibility is also reduced in many places, according to Latvian State Roads (Latvijas Valsts ceļi, LVC).
Gritters and snowplows are operating nationwide, with 127 units out and about, but with snow continuing to fall in many places, relief is only temprary at the moment.
Especially difficult driving conditions on the country's main roads are:
• Tallinn highway (A1) along the entire route;
• Vidzeme highway (A2) from Riga to Līgatne;
• Valmiera highway (A3) from Murjāni to Brasla bridge;
• Riga bypass (Baltezers-Saulkalne) (A4) along the entire route;
• Riga bypass (Salaspils-Babīte) (A5) along the entire route;
• Daugavpils highway (A6) from Riga to Saulkalne;
• Bauska highway (A7) from Riga to Dimzukalns;
• Jelgava highway (A8) from Riga to Olaine;
• Liepāja highway (A9) from Riga to Kagi and from Apšupe intersection to Kalveni;
• Ventspils highway (A10) from Riga to Usma.
It is difficult to drive on regional roads throughout Latvia. Regional and local roads are particularly difficult in the vicinity of Daugavpils, Valmiera, Krāslava, Dobele, Kuldīga, Riga, Saldus, Tukum and Talsi.
LVC reminds drivers that during snowfall, the snow layer and icing can form repeatedly and journeys are likely to take considerably longer than usual. It is important to choose a driving speed appropriate to the weather conditions and leave a greater distance to the vehicles in front.
Snow clearance works are carried out in priority order, first working on main, then regional and then local roads. LVC emphasized that the purpose of the maintenance works is to improve driving conditions as much as possible, but they cannot prevent winter.
After the end of snowfall, the country's main highways must be cleared of snow within three hours, while less busy roads are given up to 24 hours for this work. You can see an interactive map of current road conditions at: https://lvceli.lv/#_brauksanas_apstakli_ziema
A weather warning for snow and blizzards applies to the whole country.
