2 hours Ago
The Increase in Traffic Congestion due to the Border Controls
Traffic congestion on the A12 and A1 highways at the Dutch-German border was up approximately 50% in 2024 compared to 2023 and continued to increase into 2025. The primary reasons for the increased levels of traffic congestion at the border are the new border controls put in place by Germany in September 2024 to secure the country and to reduce the number of people illegally immigrating into Germany.
According to data from the automobile club (ANWB), the combined lengths of boundaries and travel time in 2025 at the borders of the Netherlands and Germany were significantly longer than in the previous year's data for 2024. On average, drivers in 2025 experienced an additional travel delay of 10 to 15 minutes compared to the previous year. The delays will increase even more during periods when people travel for holiday reasons.
Heleen de Gest from ANWB also provided additional insight and stated that the border checkpoint is checked more thoroughly before and after busy travel times, as this was done relatively easily to verify documentation from all drivers at these checkpoints.
Safety and Traffic Issues for the Local Areas
The municipalities located at the border with Germany are extremely frustrated with the current situation caused by the excessive volume of traffic congestion; drivers are avoiding driving on the highways and using smaller roads to reach their destinations, creating excessively large traffic volumes in towns and villages and creating unsafe conditions for pedestrians and cyclists, with a much higher risk of being involved in an accident.
As a result of a multi-vehicle accident near Babberich, Mayor Mark Boumans of Duetschland contacted the local German government to express his concerns regarding the immigration policy in Germany, as it has negatively impacted the local community.
Complaints of Traffic Congestion from across the entire area
In addition, many municipalities, including Montferland, Zevenaar, and Losser, have provided police reports outlining similar issues of noise pollution, air quality, and high levels of traffic related to the neighborhoods adjacent to the A1 border. They have stated that traffic jams occur frequently at the border crossings, consisting of numerous collisions with three fatalities occurring in proximity to the border.
However, not all municipalities experienced the same level of impact; Dinkelland, Tubbergen, and Berkelland municipalities located at the smaller border crossings reported little to no increase in traffic congestion.
