some random sicilian driving questions

Had a lovely time in sicily, except for the driving which drove me bonkers. Some questions that made me curious for Italian dopers

  1. What do all those millions of signs (apologise for spelling) “controllo ellettronica della velocita” refer to. Speed traps, electronic speed regulators or just reminders?
  2. Why are so many major roads unfinished or closed. Many times e.g. between gela and enna we needed to do a major detour as the planned highway (117) just had a barrier up and was closed - it looked like it had been for a long time. I suspect mismanagement/corruption/mafia ?
  3. Does anyone ever get caught for speeding. Never saw a cop in seven days driving and everyone was travelling faster than the limit (though passed through many checkpoints which seemed more aimed at commercial operations)
  4. What were the checkpoints looking for?