How should you drive on rush-hour lanes ("Spitsstrook") in the Netherlands if they are open?
The Netherlands has so called rush-hour lanes, which are often emergency lanes that are opened for traffic during rush hours. They are always indicated with green arrows above the highway.
I find these confusing because to enter them you may need to cross an unbroken white line, which in normal condition is indication that you should stay in your lane. At the same time, Dutch road laws require drivers to stay on the right and only use the other lanes (middle, left, etc) to overtake.
So how should these rush-hour lanes be used? Should I only get on them where there is an intermittent dividing line, and stay on the rush-hour lane until there is another intermittent line, or should I ignore the continuous line and just change lanes as if it didn't exist?
Best Answer
Many countries, and I assume that the Netherlands is among them, has an order of priority for conflicting signs in their traffic laws.
When I learned to drive (not in the Netherlands though), we were tought about three categories, here listed in the order of increasing priority:
- Road markings and fixed signs
- Traffic lights and variable signs
- Orders from police or other officials
Applied to the usage of road shoulders as regular lanes during rush hour, it means that the traffic light inidicating that you can use the lane has a higher relevance than the road markings indicating that you should not use the lane.
Another more common situation is perhaps (at least in many European countries) the combination of yield or stop signs and traffic lights. If the traffic lights are operating, the yield or stop signs have no significance at all. If the traffic lights are out of order or not in service, the traffic must follow the signs to determine right of way or duty to yield.
Above all kinds of markings and other signs are orders from police or other officials.
Pictures about "How should you drive on rush-hour lanes ("Spitsstrook") in the Netherlands if they are open?"
How do you drive in rush hour?
How To Drive Safely During Rush HourWhat is rush hour in Netherlands?
Avoid the rush hoursThe morning rush hour in the Netherlands starts at roughly 7:00 and lasts till 9:00 in the morning. The evening peak lasts from mid-five to six thirty. Because these peaks are so predictable, they are also easy to avoid.Is driving in the Netherlands easy?
Driving in the Netherlands is incredibly orderly We think the Netherlands is one of the easiest countries in Europe to drive. And if it's your first time driving on the \u201cwrong\u201d side of the road, the Dutch roads offer a perfect introduction.What do I need to know about driving in the Netherlands?
General road rules- Drive on the right-hand side of the road and overtake on the left side.
- Give way to vehicles coming from the right, unless otherwise stated.
- Priority roads are indicated with yellow diamond signed roads.
- Drivers on a roundabout have the right of way.
EXTRA VIDEO: Rush-hour lane A27 closed❌
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Images: Taras Makarenko, Nicolas Postiglioni, Josh Sorenson, Tim Samuel