In Gällivare, young people playing loud music from their A-tractors have become a big problem over the past year.
Late evenings and nights, they gather in parking lots near the center – something that angers the residents.
– It’s as if I had speakers in the bedroom, you wake up to terribly loud music. The children must not sleep undisturbed at night, says an anonymous person to TV4 Nyheterna.
Since three years ago, the police have been able to hand out fines of SEK 1,000 for annoying behavior through noise in a public place. Figures from the police also show that more and more people are being fined, above all in the Nord and Bergslagen police regions.
In the North police region this year, 211 fines for loud music have been handed out in the first eight months of the year, which is almost as many as in the whole of last year. In the Bergslagen police region, the number of fines this year, 391, has already exceeded the number handed out last year.
But despite fines and the fact that the police also have the option of confiscating audio equipment, the problems are increasing in Gällivare, among others.
– The lack of sleep is noticeable. We avoid being home on the weekends because it’s so hard and during the holidays we tried to stay away as much as possible to avoid hearing. If I could move, I would have done it at once, but it is difficult with the housing shortage in Gällivare, says an anonymous person to TV4 Nyheterna.
Difficult to access
The police in Gällivare are aware of the problem that disturbs both private individuals and hotel operations in the city, but at the same time have difficulty accessing those who gamble.
– You have to know who is playing too loud. You can’t single out one in the crowd. Often there are several players, you have to be absolutely sure who played. It is about legal certainty. You can’t take chances. Then they seem to warn each other, because often they stop playing just before we get there, says police officer Björn Westerberg.
Instead, the police in Gällivare want to work with the municipality to introduce traffic bans in certain public car parks during evenings and weekends. This would mean that the police can fine any vehicle that is on the scene, regardless of whether they are playing or not. At the same time, increased parental responsibility is called for.
– If the parents heard how they sound, I don’t think they would be as kind to their children. I think the parents take too little responsibility in this, says Björn Westerberg.