Latvia | Area code 371 | Common abbreviation LV | Last updated 10-9-2008 | |||
| Road class | Syntax explanation | Administrative subordination | Sub classes | Zones | System | Remarks |
| European road | E[0-9]<2-3> | Europe | See Europe | Only E67 | ||
| Main road (autocela) | A[0-9]<1-2> | national | spider-web | Highest number A15 | ||
| First class road | P[0-9]<1-3> | national | sequential with clustering | Highest number P131 | ||
| Second class road | V[0-9]<1-4> | national | ||||
| General description:
A1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 radiate in clockwise order from Riga. The A3 branches off the A2 37 km outside Riga and is between A1 and A2 (which violates the clockwise order). The A4 is the eastern Riga bypass linking A2 and A6, and the A5 is the southern bypass linking A6 and A10.
Other A roads are further away from Riga: the A11 is the coast road from Liepaja to the Lituanian border, the A12 branches off the A6 at Jekabpils to Rezekne and continues to the Russian border where it meets the M9. The A13 links Rezeknene and Daugavpils and continues to the Lithuanian border. The A14 is the Daugavpils western bypass and the A15 is the Rezekne western bypass.
There is no clear zone system for P numbers, but numbers appear in clusters. Numbering starts with P1 near Riga, numbers increase to the east and then further south, then west. The highest number used to be P131, Tukums-Kolka (along the coast). Recently the R132 and R133 have been added. Second class road numbers rarely appear on maps. | ||||||
| Road signs: Old Soviet signs are blue with white text (no other information available). | ||||||
| History:
Latvia is one of the few countries in the world that have had four different road numbering systems (like Estonia). After Soviet occupation, the system was changed and after independence, a new national system was introduced. The Soviet system was also changed once.
The former main road to Moscow is not an A road in the new system: between Riga and Varaklani it has several P numbers. The main route to Moscow is now via the A6 to Jekabpils and further via the A12.
The years in the table below are estimated: | ||||||
| System > | Old national | Old Soviet | New Soviet | New national | ||
| Route | 1930-1940 | 1940-1980 | 1980-1995 | 1995-present | ||
| Riga-Jelgava | 1 | 21 | A216 | A8 | ||
| Riga-Cesis | 1 | unknown | A212 | A2 | ||
| Cesis-Estonia (-Pskov) | 6 | unknown | A212 | A2 | ||
| Riga-Daugavpils | 4 | 24 | A215 | A6 | ||
| Riga-Madona-Varaklani | 5 | 11 | M9 | P4/P81/P37/P84 | ||
| Riga-Ainazi (-Tallinn) | 7 | 21 | M12 | A1 | ||
| Riga-Ventspils | 8 | unknown | A220 | A10 | ||
| Riga-Bauska | 10 | unknown | M12 | A7 | ||
Sources and links: various maps and atlases
Official sites: | ||||||
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