Category A – Speed

Sign A1 – Speed limit

You may not drive faster than indicated on the sign. In this case, no faster than 50 kilometers per hour. This sign is often found in places where it’s unclear how fast you’re allowed to drive or where the situation deviates from the standard speed limits.

During roadworks within built-up areas, signs are often placed with a speed limit of 30 kilometers per hour. The speed limit on these signs then applies until the next side road.

It’s common for people to forget to remove these signs after the work is completed. However, the lower speed limit remains in effect.
Incidentally, higher fines apply if you exceed the speed limit during roadworks. Whether or not there are actual roadworks is irrelevant to the increase in the fine. The presence of sign J16 (work in progress) is sufficient for the increase.

A supplementary sign can be used for this sign for a specific category of vehicles, such as lorries over a certain weight.

As soon as the speed limit is lowered, you must reduce your speed as soon as you see the sign. Drivers often only reduce their speed after the traffic sign.

Watch out for overtaking oncoming traffic.

Keep a greater distance than usual when a lower speed limit is in effect. Drivers in front of you may suddenly slow down. This is especially true during roadworks.

At junctions with traffic lights, a speed limit of 70 kilometers per hour is indicated on autowegen with this sign.

The sign is often not placed at the entrance to a built-up area. A H1 (built-up area) sign is sufficient, as the 50 kilometers per hour speed limit already follows from the general rule of conduct regarding speed limits within built-up areas.

A speed limit reduction applies to a section of road. This means that after a side road, the speed limit reduction ends.

Sign A2 – End of speed limit

From this sign onward, this speed limit will be lifted. Standard speeds will now apply again. Pay particular attention to other traffic that is familiar with the area and may want to speed up or overtake immediately at or before this sign.

This sign is not used when changing to a different speed limit. For example, when entering a yard, passing an A1 sign with a different speed limit, or at the end of a road section where the A1 sign is no longer valid.

Sign A3 – Speed limit on an electronic sign

This sign has the same meaning as sign A1 (speed limit). Therefore, you may not drive faster than indicated on the sign. In this case, no faster than 70 kilometers per hour.
Previously, the sign indicated a recommended speed, and many older people still believe this to be the case. So keep this in mind.

The lowest speed indicated on the electronic warning sign is 50 km/h.
When a lower speed is indicated for the first time, yellow warning lights will flash in the four corners of the sign.

Sign A3 applies only to the lane above which it is indicated.
Speed limits may vary between lanes.

This sign is not intended for permanent use, but only for temporary use. It is used in traffic jams (dangerous), bridges, and tunnels.

Sign A4 – Recommended speed

This sign is placed where the government deems it wiser to drive slower. This is usually at dangerous bends and other hazardous situations.

Please note that this is a recommended speed limit; you are allowed to drive faster than the recommended speed limit, but remember that these signs are there for a reason.
Now, you might wonder why the government places these signs. If it’s not considered safe to drive faster there, they could put up a sign with a maximum speed. In the past, this was also done; the government had rules, and you had to follow them. Nowadays, they want to shift some of the responsibility to the drivers themselves.

Drivers who are well-known in the area often drive much faster than recommended.
Lorry and bus drivers often drive even slower than the recommended speed.
There can be significant differences in the speeds driven by different drivers.

Also, keep a close eye on drivers behind you. Hasty, locally known drivers are prone to overtaking. This sign is only used if the recommended speed is at least 20 kilometers per hour lower than the permitted speed limit.

It is used if, from the driver’s perspective, it is not clear that it is better to reduce speed.

If possible, the sign is combined with a sign indicating the nature of the hazard.
This is not always possible, for example, in the case of a negative road banking.

Sign A5 – End of recommended speed

After this sign, it is considered safe to increase your speed to the normal speed limit, which is the speed limit before the recommended speed sign.

This sign is not enforced after passing a hazard point indicated by sign A4 and a sign indicating the nature of the hazard.

Sign zone 30

If you enter a 30 kilometer zone, you may not drive faster than 30 kilometers per hour in the entire zone. Until you have passed the sign marking the end of the 30 kilometers zone, you may not drive faster than thirty kilometers per hour.

There are no deviating priority and parking rules in such a zone. In such a zone, speed-reducing measures are often taken, such as speed bumps, flower boxes, staggered road sections, and other obstacles. 30 km zones are usually created for these types of areas to prevent cut-through traffic. You can encounter 30 kilometer zones both inside and outside built-up areas.

In a 30 kilometer zone, you have to take into account, among other things:

• Playing kids.
• Children suddenly appearing on the roadway.
• School-age youth. They can move on foot, by bicycle, moped and light moped.
• Be extra attentive during school start and end times.
• Take into account mothers, and off course fathers also 😊, who bring and collect their children by car.
• All kinds of age categories, from young to elderly.
• Parking and moving vehicles out of the parking position.
• Suddenly opening doors. Supply vehicles and their drivers.
• Shopping public.

The basic principle is that all roads within a 30 kilometer zone are equal. Controlling the priority is only possible to a limited extent. It is allowed at intersections with:

• Solitary bus lanes.
• Solitary cycle paths and solitary cycle/moped paths.
• Main bicycle routes that are clearly recognizable and on which only limited motorized traffic is allowed.

In the decision to regulate the priority, extra attention must be paid to speed limits and/or attention increases.
For example, the construction of “zebra crossings” is also limited. These may, for example, be constructed if schools or nursing homes are nearby. Crosswalks are then often constructed on an elevation.

Sign End zone 30

After this sign, you may again drive at the locally applicable speed limit.
If you leave a zone 30, you do not always have to give way to drivers on the intersecting road.

Do you have to do this if there are traffic signs or has an entrance and exit construction been installed.

The transitions to a different speed limit are sometimes clearly recognisable due to the construction.

Often, however, no apparent difference between the road and the environment is noticeable. It is not always the case that the end of a 30 kilometer zone is equal to an junction. If this is the case, then the priority is regulated by means of traffic signs or an entrance and exit construction, unless the intersecting road is suitable to be included in the area concerned.

Sign Zone  60

On roads outside built-up areas, a speed limit of 80 kilometers per hour applies.

This speed is often still too high, because pedestrians and cyclists also use these roads. It is then decided to change these roads into 60 kilometer zones. A speed limit of 60 kilometers per hour applies in these zones. This speed limit applies until you pass the sign at the end of the 60 km/h zone.

In general, you are driving on a single carriageway in such a zone.

Thresholds are often constructed so that you can also drive over 60 kilometers per hour. The roads are made visually narrower through the construction of bicycle or suggestion lanes.
Various studies have shown that fewer accidents occur in these zones.

Sign End zone 60

This is where the 60 kilometer zone ends.

After this sign, you are allowed to drive 80 km/h again.