A large part of the technical equipment purchased by the Ministry of the Interior to improve road safety gathers dust on the shelves in warehouses, and it is very likely that nobody will ever use it. In three years (2017–2019), one allocated 9.2 million euros from the state budget funding for the improvement of road safety, wherefrom one spent 2.4 million euros in 2019 (1.6 million euros from the state budget funding and almost 800 thousand euros from the financing of motor-vehicle liability insurance). One has purchased laser scanners, compact video cameras, hand-held video radars, various stationery for public awareness events, and even an unmanned aircraft. However, one does not use a large part of the purchased devices at all, or the devices are not in working order. At the same time, there is a lack of funding, for example, for the operation of average-speed control radars and, according to publicly available information, the operation of stationary radars is also at risk.
The Transport Development Guidelines 2014-2020 set a target of reducing the number of people killed and seriously injured in road accidents by 50% compared to 2010. In 2017, there was the Road Traffic Safety Plan 2017–2020 approved, where one assigned the responsibility for the implementation of several measures to the institutions subordinate to the Ministry of the Interior, and the State Police mainly. Institutions subordinate to the Ministry of the Interior are primarily responsible for preventive road safety measures, with the implementation of several actions in raising awareness and informing road users being entrusted to them simultaneously. They implement the measures envisaged in the plan from three sources of financing: state budget funds, dividends of the state-owned joint-stock company “Ceļu satiksmes drošības direkcija” (Road Traffic Safety Directorate), and funding from motor-vehicle liability insurance. During this audit, the State Audit Office has assessed the measures implemented from the state budget funding and the funding from motor-vehicle liability insurance for 2019.
Expensive purchases and what happens to them in reality
The State Audit Office considers that the facts established in the audit create confusion about the purchase of expensive technical equipment and the reality of their use. There are five 3D laser scanners purchased for 513,175 euros intended to improve the quality of traffic accident registration. The State Police uses them rarely daily and for documenting severe road accidents to obtain additional evidence basically. It turns out that the use of 3D scanners is complicated and may even require specialised training of police officers to work with this device.
There were only 18 compact video cameras used out of 142 video cameras purchased for 112,219 euros to be attached to the uniforms of police officers for video recording in conflict situations or at the moment of bribery at the time of the audit. Also, the State Police had never used them while performing its functions.
Until March 2020, one had tried the unmanned aircraft purchased for 5,145 euros, which one planned to use for improving the control of road transport and ensure the registration of the place of the traffic accident, in test mode only. One has never used it for fulfilling the duties of the State Police, as the laws and regulations do not allow the flying above the motor roads.
The validity of the verification certificate for 40 hand-held video radars purchased for 387,560 euros in 2018 ended on 13 December 2019. In one of the structural units of the State Police for public order, which the auditors visited during the audit, they discovered that the hand-held video radar was used only in the test mode, but was never used in the performance of the State Police functions.
Large and incomprehensible purchases of stationery
Every year, the institutions under the Ministry of the Interior spend more than 200,000 euros to purchase various goods for educational and awareness-raising events, including pens, coloured pencils, scrapbook paper, educational games, colouring books, parking clocks, light-reflecting objects, air fresheners, a part of which is gathering dust on the shelves in warehouses. One has used and plans to use additional 243,000 euros allocated from the funding of motor-vehicle liability insurance to replenish the stocks of such goods in 2019 and 2020.
In the opinion of the State Audit Office, educating and raising awareness of the population is undoubtedly an important measure to promote road safety. Nevertheless, when preparing proposals for the inclusion of various actions in the Road Safety Plan in the future, one should consider the need to purchase those goods in the current quantities thoroughly. The State Audit Office invites the Ministry of the Interior to assess whether it is necessary to channel such a large part of the funding from the motor vehicle liability insurance for public education and awareness-raising to this task in particular if there is insufficient funding for other road traffic monitoring measures. Publicly available information indicates that due to lack of funding, the operation of average-speed control radars discontinued since 1 October 2019, which one previously recognised as a successful pilot project. The management of both the State Police and the Ministry of the Interior has spread information repeatedly that the operation of stationary radars is also endangered due to the lack of funding.
“In co-operation with other institutions responsible for traffic safety, the Ministry of the Interior must review and change the principles if necessary, according to which one assesses road traffic safety measures and their priority. The Ministry should also decide whether the allocated funding for educational activities but not used for a long time is required much more for financing other, more significant activities,” admits Auditor General Elita Krūmiņa.
During the audit, the State Audit Office established that one had allocated 2.44 million euros from the funding of motor-vehicle liability insurance for the organisation of various public education and awareness-raising campaigns to other institutions (Road Traffic Safety Directorate, Latvian State Roads, Latvian Motor Insurers' Bureau, Motor Transport Directorate, Latvian Automobile Association, Ministry of Education and Science, and Ministry of Transport), which also participated in the implementation of road safety measures, between 2017 and 2020, which is twice as much funding than one had intended to allocate to those institutions for this purpose.