The number of hours during which the length of traffic jams throughout Belgium exceeded 100 kilometres totalled 1,588, equivalent to 66 complete days, Touring Mobilis reports.
This total was eight days more than in 2017, according to Touring Mobilis’ barometer of queues, issued on Friday.
Congestion has been on the increase on secondary roads, particularly during off-peak hours of the day. Road use is more evenly distributed and people have been avoiding unnecessary travel during peak hours, the safe-travel association said. “People go to their offices earlier or later, just before or just after peak hours, and postpone needless trips and leisure travel,” it explained.
According to the barometer, cumulative traffic jams of more than 400 kilometres were only observed during five hours, a much lower frequency than last year. “That’s probably due to the mildness of this year’s winter and the dry months this year,” the mobility association said. “The longest traffic jams are generally caused by snow and rain.”
Oscar Schneider
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