Maintenance of the roads of national significance in winter

In winter, all road users must pay attention to changing weather conditions and precipitation, which directly affect driving conditions. At the same time, most drivers probably notice that some roads are cleaned and sanded or salted more often, while other roads are cleaned and sanded or salted less often. And there are roads that are not sprinkled with any anti-slip agents, and only excessive snow is cleared of them.

The roads of national importance are maintained in accordance with the normative requirements. Since it is not possible to clear the snow from all maintained roads at the same time, and to sprinkle them with anti-slip agents, winter maintenance work is divided into 5 different levels of maintenance by traffic intensity and the importance of the roads. The busiest roads, which connect the largest cities or settlements, are the first to be cleared of snow and be sprinkled with anti-slip agents. Then, the roads are maintained as a matter of priority in descending order of the traffic intensity on them.

Maintenance level 1. On these roads, road maintenance services are on duty around the clock. They clean the roads when it is snowing, and when there is a black ice or freezing rain, road maintenance services sprinkle the roads with anti-slip agents. The road must be cleared of snow and sprinkled with anti-slip agents not later than 2 hours after cessation of snowfall and/or snow storm. When the weather conditions are normal, there must be no snow on the road surface. During the snowfall and/or snow storm, the thickness of snow on the carriageway cannot exceed 4 cm.

The following roads are subject to the maintenance level 1: A1 Vilnius–Kaunas–Klaipėda, Via Baltica, A19 Vilnius Southern Bypass, A2 Vilnius–Panevėžys, and the section between Vilnius and Trakai of the road A16 Vilnius–Prienai–Marijampolė.

Maintenance level 2. This maintenance level applies to most of the highways and to the busiest national roads. On these roads, road maintenance services are on duty, clear the roads of snow and sprinkle them with anti-slip agents from 4:00 AM to 10:00 PM. These roads must be cleared of snow and sprinkled with anti-slip agents not later than 3 working hours after cessation of snowfall. When the weather conditions are normal, there can be only random snow ruts on the road surface. During the snowfall and/or snow storm, the thickness of snow on the carriageway cannot exceed 7 cm. In the morning, when the road surface is slippery, these roads must be sprinkled for the first time with anti-slip agents until 7:00 AM. When the meteorological conditions are particularly complicated, traffic on these roads can be interrupted for a maximum of 4 hours.

Some national roads and the busiest district roads are maintained under the maintenance level 3. On these roads, road maintenance services are on duty, clear the roads of snow and sprinkle them with anti-slip agents from 4:00 AM to 7:00 PM. These roads must be cleared of snow and sprinkled with anti-slip agents not later than 4 working hours after cessation of snowfall. When the weather conditions are normal, there can be snow ruts with a depth of no more than 2 cm on the surface of the roads. During the snowfall and/or snow storm, the thickness of snow on the carriageway cannot exceed 10 cm. In the morning, when the road surface is slippery, these roads must be sprinkled for the first time with anti-slip agents until 8:00 AM. When the meteorological conditions are particularly complicated, traffic on these roads can be interrupted for a maximum of 8 hours.

The national and district roads, with a traffic intensity of less than 1,000 vehicles per day (24 hours), are maintained under the maintenance level 4. On these roads, road maintenance services are on duty, clear the roads of snow and sprinkle them with anti-slip agents from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM. These roads must be cleared of snow and sprinkled with anti-slip agents not later than 6 working hours after cessation of snowfall. When the weather conditions are normal, there can be up to 3 cm of snow on the surface of the roads. During the snowfall and/or snow storm, the thickness of snow on the carriageway cannot exceed 10 cm. In the morning, when the road surface is slippery, these roads must be sprinkled for the first time with anti-slip agents until 12:00 PM. When the meteorological conditions are particularly complicated, traffic on these roads can be interrupted for a maximum of 10 hours.

The maintenance level 5 must ensure a minimum level of traffic quality and the road suitability for the use. This maintenance level applies to most of the district roads of national significance. Work is being done on them from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM. The road sections, that are subject to the maintenance level 5, are sprinkled with anti-slip agents or compressed snow and/or ice roughening measures are applied only when the road surface becomes extremely slippery, that is, in the event of freezing rain and/or when a wet layer of ice forms on the road. When the weather conditions are normal, the permissible thickness of loose snow shall not exceed 10 cm. During the snowfall and/or snow storm, the thickness of snow on the carriageway cannot exceed 15 cm. When the meteorological conditions are particularly complicated, traffic on these roads can be interrupted for a maximum of 24 hours.

The established quality requirements for the maintenance levels do not apply only when the weather conditions are particularly complicated, which means that, under particularly complicated conditions, the roads may not meet the compulsory requirements for the maintenance levels. That is, for example, during the snowfall and/or snow storm, the thickness of snow on the carriageway on roads, that are subject to the maintenance level 1, cannot exceed 4 cm, and when the weather conditions are particularly complicated, the established requirements for the maintenance levels do not apply. In other words, there can be a larger layer of snow on the roads.

The roads shall not be sprinkled with anti-slip agents when their effect worsens the condition of the road surface (for example, during a heavy snow storm and/or snow fall, when the snow is getting sticky, etc.).
Information on the road maintenance levels is also available on the interactive map and on the website www.eismoinfo.lt. Information about the state of the roads and traffic conditions on the roads of national importance is also publicly available on the said website. Drivers can also receive and transfer information about traffic conditions after contacting the Information Division by calling the short telephone number 1871 or free number +370 5 232 9600 (operates every day around the clock).

AB Kelių priežiūra is responsible for the maintenance of the roads of national importance in winter (clearing of snow, sprinkling, etc.). The municipalities are responsible for the maintenance of local road and streets. The Road Administration is responsible for the restoration, maintenance and development of the roads of national importance. There are 21 thousand kilometres of the roads of national importance in Lithuania.