Study: Police checks make traffic far worse

Police checks often lead to unnecessary traffic problems which could create a dangerous situation on the road.

This is according to a study done by by traffic information service VID. The figures show that 15 large traffic jams were caused by police checkpoints since November last year. In the past few weeks, a reconstructed check point on the A6 has caused a traffic jam of 8 kilometer at least three times. The VID finds this shocking.

Agreements between the road authority and the police state that checks must be shut down as soon as they threaten to cause a delay. According to the VID, this often does not happen. Offers themselves often do not notice the delay, and even after requests from Rijkswaterstaat, the checks stay in place.

The VID believes that checks should be arranged so that there is limited risk of it creating a traffic jam. Officers should be more aware of the situation around them. If a traffic jam is created, the check should be shut down immediately.