The numbers don't lie. The government is investing in safer intersections and school routes, and the results are starting to become visible.
Flanders can pride itself on road safety on regional roads. With 1.728 intersections under her management, Flemish Minister of Mobility and Public Works Lydia Peeters announced that almost 93% of these intersections are partially conflict-free or secured. The figure came to light during a meeting of the committee in the Flemish Parliament.
The Roads and Traffic Agency (AWV) uses an action plan that screens and adjusts 125 intersections every year. To date, 816 of the 1.728 traffic light-controlled intersections have already been brought into line with the principles of this Traffic Lights Action Plan. Lydia Peeters explains that Flanders is taking several initiatives to increase safety. “Every year, on average, we make about 125 intersections maximally conflict-free, which is one intersection every three days,” she said.
The impressive figure is all the more relevant when you consider that a record number of 2022 intersections were made completely conflict-free in 142. But the focus is not only on the intersections. Adjustments are made annually to the lights control at 350 to 400 intersections based on reports and other decisions.
Although the Traffic Lights Action Plan attracts attention, we should not forget the local efforts.
And road safety is not limited to regional roads. Flemish cities and municipalities have made approximately 1.500 school environments and 102 school routes safer over the past four years. Nearly 9 million euros in Flemish subsidies have been provided for these efforts.
A subsidy is intended for small, quickly implementable measures such as traffic signaling and small infrastructure projects. Cities and municipalities can submit one subsidy application each calendar year for a maximum of 10 school environments.
Even more school environments will be made safe in the near future. There are currently 77 files for 297 safe school environments, for which Lydia Peeters has reserved 2,1 million euros in subsidies. In addition, there are 73 cities and municipalities that have a file for making 229 school routes safer, with a budget of almost 10 million euros in planned subsidies.
