Local councils will be allowed to trial speed limits on cycle paths from next year under a new government plan to reduce the number of cycling accidents.

The proposal is part of a multi-year bicycle safety strategy that caretaker infrastructure minister Robert Tieman has sent to parliament. He said the aim is to reduce the differences in mass and speed between different types of bikes on increasingly crowded Dutch cycle lanes.

In addition to speed limits for electric bicycles, local authorities will be able to test whether moving electric cargo bikes used for deliveries off the cycle path and onto the main road improves safety.

Tieman said the government would not draft new legislation until the results of the trials are clear. These will then be used to assess whether national traffic rules should be updated.

Last year 675 people died in traffic accidents, over a third of them cyclists. Around 7,400 people were seriously injured on the roads in 2024, with 70% of those injuries resulting from bicycle accidents.

The plan of action also includes measures to boost the use of cycle helmets to reduce the number of head injuries, “without leading to a reduction in people cycling”.

The concrete target is to ensure 25% cyclists use helmets within 10 years. Currently only 4% do so. The approach will focus on the elderly, children and commuters, the ministry report said.

Road safety research institute Swov said in a reaction to the government’s plans that most safety benefits would come from improving the cycling infrastructure.

“That means no obstacles alongside cycle paths, good road surfaces and safe verges,” spokeswoman Wendy Weijermars told the Parool.