Under the current driving licence system in Sweden, repeated traffic offences may result in a warning or in withdrawal of the licence. However, many licence holders are unclear about how the system works in practice and the criteria that apply in the event of repeated traffic offences. A withdrawal of a licence can also be experienced as unexpected and involving long periods of administration. The drawbacks of the present system could be eliminated by a complementary penalty points system that is simple, clear and fast. Many drivers also feel that it is more serious to get their drivers license suspended than merely to be given a fine. There is reason to believe that it is good for road safety if a penalty points system is introduced which give drivers clear feedback on the risk of getting the license suspended in the event of repeated offences. The Road Traffic Inspectorate has initiated this explorative study, whose purpose is to carry out an analysis of potential problems and possibilities with a Swedish penalty points system. The study is divided into three parts: 1. An overview of the current state of knowledge based on previous Governmental official reports and scientific studies of the effects of penalty points systems. 2. An examination of existing penalty points systems through visits to six selected countries in Europe. 3. A separate R&D project in the form of an analysis of the introduction of a penalty points system from a behavioural science perspective. The Road Traffic Inspectorate notes that no previous Governmental official reports in Sweden have seen any legal obstacles to the introduction of a penalty points system in Sweden. A number of evaluations of existing penalty points systems indicate positive effects for road safety. However, most often the effects seem to weakening after six months to one year, although there are examples where the effects have been more persisted, particularly if the penalty points system has been coordinated with increased enforcement and media efforts. This explorative study shows that there is a potential to achieve increased and enduring traffic safety effects with a penalty points system if it is simple and clear and also combined with enforcement to reach a high perceived risk of detection. There are also good opportunities of cherry picking from other countries' systems and optimising them to achieve an effective Swedish system. International experience also support that a holistic view on a penalty points system, with several interacting measures, can lead to long-lasting effects. From this perspective, traffic enforcement is a very important factor of success in combination with other regular activities that influence drivers, e.g. through information and education as well as technical solutions. The Road Traffic Inspectorate considers that the question of a Swedish penalty points system is worth analysing more deeply and without preconceptions in a new Governmental official enquiry. It is stated that there are good opportunities of developing a Swedish penalty points system, and in this explorative study an embryo to a Swedish model is described. (Author/publisher)
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