Motorways without lights much busier than suggested

Some of the motorways where street lighting has now been switched off to save money are much busier than the transport ministry claims, the Volkskrant said on Thursday.

This means the chances of an accident are higher than suggested, the Volkskrant says.

The lights on a large part of the Dutch motorway network have been switched off at 21.00 hours since September. The transport ministry said at the time there will be no impact on road safety because the motorways are not busy. The measure is aimed at saving €35m.

But on some roads, such as the A6 near Almere and the A1 at Naarden, traffic is still considered ‘intensive’, the paper says.

For example, switching off the lights near Naarden, where 800 cars an hour are still using the motorway, could lead to an extra two deaths and 12 serious injuries, the paper says.

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