Rijkswaterstaat handed out a record number of fines in 2021. Exactly 5824 of those were for ignoring a red cross above the road. The number of collisions with arrow trucks and so-called crash absorbers also rose sharply.
Why do Dutch motorists ignore red crosses above the road? Partly it’s not paying attention, partly it’s cowardice. “We see it every day,” a spokesperson for Rijkswaterstaat told NOS. “And we see in the driving behavior that people think they can pass it for a while. But in the meantime there are probably people working to deal with an incident, for example. There may also be something on the road. These are potentially dangerous situations .”
By ignoring the red cross, also collisions with arrow cars
In 2021, Rijkswaterstaat issued 5824 fines for ignoring a red cross (minimum 240 euros). A year earlier, there were slightly more than 4,900. It is also noticeable that there were many more collisions with arrow trucks and crash absorbers last year: almost 40, compared to 22 in 2020. “That is partly due to the fact that we had more road works”. according to Rijkswaterstaat. “But you can also see here: the driver’s attention is not always on the road.”