A2 Deil-Vught ranks 1st and 2nd on Gelderland’s top ten traffic jam list
The A2 northbound between the Empel Interchange and Kerkdriel is the worst traffic bottleneck in the province of Gelderland. In second place is the same A2, but southbound (from Culemborg to the Deil Interchange and on to Zaltbommel). This is according to the ANWB’s top ten list of traffic congestion in Gelderland. Nationally, the A2 ranks third; a new addition is the inclusion of the A15 near Tiel.
“The figures underscore what we see every day: accessibility to the Rivierenland Region, the Northeast Brabant Region, and the metropolitan regions of Utrecht, ’s-Hertogenbosch, and Brainport Eindhoven is visibly declining. This has major consequences for the economic development of the central and southern Netherlands, as well as for the quality of life in the region.”
That is according to Antoine Walraven (mayor of Maasdriel and the administrative lead on mobility for the Rivierenland Regional Authority) and Jacoline Hartman (Alderman Betuwe and a member of the A2 Steering Committee on behalf of the Rivierenland Region).
The A2 is of strategic importance to the Netherlands
The previous government decided to put 17 road projects—including the widening of the A2 between Deil and Vught—on hold due to a lack of nitrogen allowance, funding, and manpower. To date, it remains unclear when these suspended projects will be resumed. “We agreed on a number of mitigating measures with the national government at the end of 2024, but ultimately the A2 between Deil and Vught must be widened. Due to the rivers, it is the only fixed river crossing through Rivierenland and is of national and international importance,” said Walraven and Hartman. “The consequences of the suspension are significant: the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management calculated that the economic impact is greatest in our region—here, economic vitality is declining by 7%; other research shows that the traffic consequences of the suspension are noticeable within a 20- to 50-kilometer radius.”
Alderman Geers (’s-Hertogenbosch) adds: “As early as 2018, it was predicted that this section of the A2 would become the worst traffic bottleneck in the Netherlands. This new top 10 list of traffic jams serves as both a harbinger and confirmation of that forecast. The widening is not only desperately needed to prevent traffic congestion, but also to prevent rat-running through residential streets, to keep the region accessible, and to keep the two most important economic regions (Brainport and Randstad) of our country connected.”
A15 is new to the top ten list of traffic-prone roads
New to the top ten traffic jam list—at number 8—is the A15 near Tiel. “That doesn’t surprise us either,” say Walraven and Hartman. “The A15 is one of the most important national freight corridors, but it has a number of bottlenecks that cause daily traffic jams, such as narrowings that slow traffic down and its east-west orientation (which creates dangerous situations during morning and/or evening rush hour due to the sometimes low position of the sun, making it difficult to see slowing traffic in time).”
“The problems will intensify in the coming years, because freight traffic is growing and the A15 will be extended to the A12 near Zevenaar, causing even more freight traffic to choose this route,” say both officials.
Call for
On April 2, 2025, the House of Representatives will hold a debate with Minister Madlener on strategic decisions regarding the accessibility of the Netherlands. “We call on the House of Representatives to pay close attention to the A2, the Netherlands’ most important north-south connection and one of great strategic importance for the connectivity and accessibility of the Randstad, Utrecht, ’s-Hertogenbosch, and Brainport Eindhoven,” said the administrators from Rivierenland. “We call on the House and Minister Madlener to engage with us in discussions on how we can get the A2 back on track as quickly as possible, for example by phasing the project.”