The number of traffic accidents in the Netherlands has “significantly decreased” due to the corona crisis, the police said on Tuesday. Half of the accidents last week were less than in the same week last year.
This is evident from figures from STAR: a collaboration between the police, the Dutch Association of Insurers and the traffic agency VIA. Last week, 857 road accidents registered by the police occurred, compared to 1,735 accidents in the same period last year, a decrease of approximately 50 percent. The final figures may still change, because the number of claims submitted to insurers has not yet been processed.
The reason for the drastic decrease, according to the police, are the measures that the cabinet announced a week and a half ago to contain the coronavirus. Because many people work from home and schools and nurseries, catering establishments and sports clubs are closed, it is also much quieter on the road with a lot less accidents as a result. According to the ANWB, the number of decreased accidents is inherent in the number of traffic jams decreased. Due to the corona measures, a striker has been out of the question for a week and a half.