New ice road opens between Vormsi and mainland Estonia
A 10-kilometer ice road connecting the island of Vormsi and mainland Estonia will open on Sunday, taking the total number opened this year to three, the Transport Administration said.
The road over the frozen Baltic Sea to Vormsi will open at noon and has a weight limit of 2.5 metric tons for vehicles. When driving on the ice road, seatbelts must be unfastened.
From now on, the route will operate during daylight hours from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
This is the third ice road opened this winter by the Transport Administration.
On Saturday, a 12-kilometer road connecting Kihnu Island in the Gulf of Riga to the mainland was also opened.
The first track, between Estonia's biggest islands Hiiumaa–Saaremaa, was launched last weekend with queues of cars forming at each end to drive over the ice. It was closed again due to cracks on Sunday afternoon.
The 17-kilometer road has undergone several repairs during that time and was reopened at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday. Several small bridges were installed over the cracks.
The ice roads depend on the weather and emergency closures may occur
The Transport Administration is asking people not to drive on unofficial ice roads, as doing so is life-threatening.
The ice roads are maintained by Verston Eesti OÜ.
The last time the conditions were cold enough to open ice roads was eight years ago.
Ice road traffic rules:
The ice road is open for traffic only during daylight hours; traffic will be closed if visibility drops below 300 meters.
The recommended driving speed is up to 25 km/h or 40–70 km/h (at speeds of 25–40 km/h a vehicle may create a resonance wave that can promote ice breakage).
Vehicles may enter the ice road only from designated access points, at intervals of at least two minutes.
A minimum distance of 250 meters must be maintained from the vehicle in front.
Overtaking the vehicle in front and two-way traffic in the same lane are prohibited.
Driving off the marked ice road is not permitted.
Seat belts must be kept unfastened, and drivers must ensure that vehicle doors can be opened easily.
Uneven sections must be crossed at the lowest possible speed.
Stopping on the ice road, speeding, or driving during blowing snow, fog or darkness is prohibited.
You can check the conditions of the ice roads on the Tark Tee website.
The Kihnu-Pärnu ice road
The Saaremaa-Hiiumaa ice road
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Editor: Karin Koppel, Helen Wright
