Skip to main content

Crumbling roads will boost Belgium’s congestion

A lack of sufficient road maintenance poses future problems for Belgium’s road network. Unless investment is made, the Belgian road network will become overcrowded and dilapidated by 2020. Belgium's Planning Office says that this could result in travel speeds falling 29% from 2008 to 2030 due to congestion and with a corresponding rise in journey times.
September 25, 2012 Read time: 1 min
A lack of sufficient road maintenance poses future problems for Belgium’s road network. Unless investment is made, the Belgian road network will become overcrowded and dilapidated by 2020. Belgium's Planning Office says that this could result in travel speeds falling 29% from 2008 to 2030 due to congestion and with a corresponding rise in journey times. Belgium's roads are amongst those with the heaviest traffic volumes in Europe. The Planning Office believes that a journey that took one hour and 18 minute journey in 2008 will take one hour and 51 minutes in 2030. Meanwhile, traffic at off-peak times could have speeds cut by 16%. The report produced by the Planning Office claims that cars will still be the most used form of transport in 2030, accounting for 80% of passenger km travelled. Goods transport by road will also increase, accounting for 71% of km-tonnes in 2030. But if transport policy remains unaltered then greenhouse gas emissions will increase by 12% between 2008 and 2030, despite energy efficiency improvements in vehicles.

Related Content

  • Let’s go party
    October 3, 2018
    Some friends in the US decided to turn a toy Barbie Mustang car into something rather more entertaining. The men fitted a Honda motorcycle engine and new driveline components, including go-kart tyres. This allowed a top speed of 115km/h, which it could reach in just six seconds, making it rather lively and spirited and also difficult to control. The vehicle is definitely not likely to be made road legal any time soon and nor is a model with a similar performance ever likely to be available from the original
  • Road safety challenge for Europe
    December 3, 2012
    Europe’s road safety drive is highlighting key issues - Mike Woof reports In Europe there is a growing understanding that alcohol use amongst drivers still has to be tackled effectively. Accident data reveals that safety standards are improving across most European countries, with steady reductions in numbers of serious injuries and fatalities. But there remains a problem with alcohol use amongst many drivers and it is amongst this group that accident levels have not fallen. In Spain in particular, there ha
  • Europe’s road safety picture slanted wrong way?
    May 24, 2016
    The European Commission’s latest figures for road safety reveal some cause for concern across the EU. While the EU has the world’s safest roads overall, the road fatality rate has slipped during 2015. And this is for the second consecutive year also as EU road deaths in 2014 also showed an increase over 2013. By comparison, there were decreases in the European road death rate of 8% in 2012 and 2013.
  • Mixing recycled and fresh asphalt reduces costs
    February 14, 2012
    An innovative asphalt plant is allowing the use of recycled materials and achieving major cost benefits - Mike Woof reports. UK construction firm FM Conway is seeing the benefit of the €11.5 million (£10 million) it has invested in its asphalt production facilities at Erith in Kent, close to UK capital London, since buying the site in 2005. The biggest single investment in the facility has been a new Benninghoven asphalt plant, which was commissioned in June 2010 and is now the core of the Erith operation.