Siirry sisältöön

Street management and maintenance

Streets and traffic lanes

The total area of roads to be maintained is about 56 km, of which about 70 km is dedicated to vehicles and light traffic.
Winter maintenance is carried out on the road areas by the city’s own equipment and by contractors’ equipment in 4 plowing areas. The level of winter maintenance on the different traffic routes is determined by the importance and volume of traffic and the needs of the different modes of transport, such as motorized traffic, pedestrians and cyclists, as well as health, road safety and accessibility. For this reason, more heavily trafficked main streets are plowed much more frequently than collector and plot streets. In the city of Laitila, winter maintenance has been organised in a different way from the general practice, for example, with no limit on the thickness of the snow layer for snow plowing. Snow plowing is carried out as and when required and is initiated on the basis of an assessment by the city’s winter maintenance officer. This on-call policy ensures, among other things, appropriate de-icing.

Responsibility for the maintenance and cleaning of streets is shared between the landowner and the municipality

The law on the maintenance and cleaning of streets and public areas lays down obligations to keep streets, squares, squares, parks, plantations and other similar public areas in the area covered by a zoning plan in good repair and cleanliness. These obligations are divided between the municipality and the owner of the plot or other area.
Law on the maintenance and cleaning of streets and certain public areas: https://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/ajantasa/1978/19780669(siirryt toiseen palveluun)

The law imposes the following obligations on municipalities:

  • Street maintenance
  • Repair of damaged pavement
  • Maintenance of public areas within their control in accordance with their intended use
  • Obligation to keep clean street planting, street furniture, railings, guard rails, traffic signs and other similar equipment

The municipality may, by law, assume all or part of the obligations imposed on the owner of a plot of land. The City of Laitila has partially assumed the obligations imposed on the landowner and is fulfilling these obligations as an appropriate territorial whole, which can be carried out by means of mechanical maintenance.

The law imposes the following obligations on the owner/holder of a plot of land:

  • Keep the pavement on the plot usable by removing snow and ice that hinders pedestrian access
     –   The City of Laitila has taken over this obligation in the form of mechanical maintenance.
  • Take care of slip control on the pavement and the removal of slip control aggregate from the pavement.
    –   The City of Laitila has partially taken over this obligation. The city is responsible for the prevention of slippage on the pavement in connection with the prevention of slippage in the rest of the street. However, the owner of the land is responsible for the prevention of slipperiness for access to the property and for localized prevention of slipperiness, such as the sliding of water from the gully, etc. The City of Laitila shall ensure the removal of used gravel by means of mechanical maintenance.
  • If necessary, remove snow banks accumulated on or next to the pavement
    –  The City of Laitila shall remove snow banks from the entire street area for the purpose of maintaining it in a usable condition, otherwise the property owner shall remove snow banks as necessary.
  • Keep the gutter and downspout adjacent to the sidewalk free of snow and ice.
  • Responsible for the maintenance of the access road to the property.
  • Obligation to inform the municipality of any deficiencies in the part of the street under his responsibility which he finds to be a traffic hazard.
  • Obligation to keep the street clean from the boundary of the plot to the center line of the street, up to a maximum width of 15 meters.

In the diagram prepared by the Ministry of the Environment and the Association of Local Authorities, the division of responsibilities has been clarified:

Reference: brochure of the Ministry of the Environment and the Association of Municipalities November 2005 ISBN 951-731-349-7

Further information: