Speed limits in Sweden
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Sweden has speed limits ranging from 30 km/h to 120 km/h (18 to 75 mph), where 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70 km/h are used within towns and cities. Outside schools and hospitals the limit is often 30 km/h. 70, 80, 90 and 100 km/h are mainly used outside built-up areas where the speed limit depends on the standard and safety of the road.[1] 90 and 100 km/h may apply on roads without separate lanes, for example, mainly in northern Sweden 100 km/h (62 mph) is legal on roads with no separated lanes and where the standard of the road often is poor. The main reason for setting 100 km/h on these roads is because of long distances and fairly low traffic volumes and their high importance to the regions. Earlier it was permitted to drive 110 km/h (68 mph) on these roads but due to new safety standards the speed limit was lowered to 100 km/h in 2008.
110 km/h and 120 km/h are the main speed limits on motorways. 120 km/h (75 mph) is only set on the best, safest and straightest motorways, usually the newest, which mostly are present in the southern parts of Sweden on the E4 and E6, in total about 300 km out of the 1500 total motorway km. 110 km/h is still the most common speed limit on motorways in Sweden.
Local exceptions to motorway speed limits may apply, mainly near cities and on inner-city motorways. One of the lowest speed limits on a Swedish inner-city motorway is 70 km/h (43 mph). This has been set on E4 Essingeleden through Stockholm. This is an 8-lane motorway passing near central parts of the capital. It is also present through Gothenburg. However this speed limit only applies on a short section of the motorway due to risk of traffic congestion.
Private areas such as company areas and camping sites can sign a lower limit than 30, which are only company rules but still can give penalty fees.
The speed limits are signposted with signs with yellow background, and otherwise looking like those in other European countries. There are no "end of speed limit" signs, in contrast to most other countries in Europe. All speed limits are signposted with the actual speed limit value.[2]