Icy roads trigger code orange in seven provinces; 413 Schiphol cancellations
The winter weather continues to wreak havoc with all forms of traffic in the Netherlands on Monday. The KNMI issued a code orange warning for icy roads in seven provinces. The rest of the country is covered by a code yellow warning. Schiphol already lists 413 canceled flights for Monday. Slippery conditions on the roads caused multiple accidents, despite the Rijkswaterstaat spreading some 4 million kilograms of salt overnight to combat ice.
The code orange warning in Utrecht, Noord-Holland, Zuid-Holland, Felvoland, Friesland, Drenthe, and Groningen will remain in place until at least noon. After that, these provinces will be covered by a code yellow warning, like the rest of the country. That warning will remain in place until at least Wednesday.
The Dutch public works department, Rijkswaterstaat, expects a difficult morning rush hour due to the combination of heavy commuter traffic, icy roads, and snowfall. Rijkswaterstaat warned road users in the Utrecht region to avoid the roads. "We're seeing the highways around Utrecht becoming congested," the department said around 7:45 a.m. on Monday. "Snow showers are now moving through, making the roads impassable and increasing traffic jams."
Monday is the first day after the Christmas holidays, and many people are returning to work. Rijkswaterstaat urged road users to adjust their driving behavior - maintain a safe following distance and avoid unnecessary lane changes.
The icy roads have already caused multiple accidents. The A27 near Nieuwegein was closed early this morning due to an accident involving a truck, the ANWB reported.
The website 112Hardewijk reported that a truck driver lost control of his vehicle at around 00:40 a.m. on the Flevoweg near Ermelo. The truck skidded and hit a car.
In Arnemuiden, a car ended up in the water, likely due to the slippery conditions. Emergency services responded to the scene, but the driver had already escaped the car.
The winter weather is also affecting air and rail traffic. Over 400 flights were canceled at Schiphol Airport on Sunday due to the weather conditions, and Monday will likely be worse. At 7:30 a.m. on Monday, Schiphol’s website already listed 173 canceled and 14 delayed departures, as well as 240 canceled and 84 delayed arrivals. These include over 100 flights canceled by the Dutch airline KLM, mostly return flights within Europe.
NS listed 17 train traffic disruptions on its website. Switch failures have fewer or no trains running on many routes, including between Almere and Zwolle, Gouda and The Hague, Alkmaar and Den Helder, Amersfoort and Barnesveld, Zwolle and Emmen, Amsterdam and Enkhuizen, Apeldoorn and Enschede, and Amersfoort and Deventer.
“Due to the winter weather, train service is expected to be disrupted today,” NS warned. “Plan your journey well in advance and be aware of delays and cancellations.”
