Other traffic signs

Signs with a yellow background and an arrow, information, a letter, or a number are detours, or diversion routes.
Roadworks may be underway and the road may be closed, but this isn’t necessarily the case.

You are NOT REQUIRED to follow this detour or diversion route.

The best way to translate this sign is a route to a main road.
This is a sign that doesn’t appear in the RVV. Therefore, it’s certainly not mandatory to follow this direction.

You’ll often encounter these signs in villages, and sometimes in towns, to help you get out of the village and find the connection to a main road. But if you want to get lost in the village, you can certainly follow the indicated directions.

You’ve already encountered the orange sign with the arrow in the signage section. It indicates a route for vehicles transporting certain hazardous materials. Hopefully, you won’t be carrying any hazardous materials during your theory or practical exam at the CBR, and you are, of course, NOT required to follow this direction. You are welcome to do so, however.

The square orange sign with the black dot indicates to drivers who are required to follow the hazardous materials route that they are still on the correct route.

Both signs indicate an exit. The sign on the left, with the arrow, indicates an exit from a motorway.

The sign on the right, with the white outline indicating an arrow, is located on an autoweg.
In summary, both signs indicate an exit. The only difference is their appearance. This allows you to tell whether it’s an exit from a motorway or an autoweg.

The green and white sign indicates a fork in the road. It’s often thought that this sign only appears on motorways. However, you can also encounter this sign at other roads, as shown in the photo below.

On motorways, this sign is placed at a fork. Whether you drive past the sign on the left or right makes no difference. You remain on a motorway.

In various places in the Netherlands, the sign is also used on autowegen, or even regular roads outside built-up areas, as you can see in the photo above.

The black and white sign indicates the end or narrowing of the hard shoulder. This sign is often placed because there’s an overpass over the road, leaving no room for the hard shoulder, as shown in the photo below.

The two signs indicate a tapered merge. This is where two motorways converge.
The first sign shows that after the bend, the motorway continues with three lanes.
The second sign shows that after the bend, the motorway continues with four lanes.
The sign indicates that two motorways merge into one. After the bend, there will be no merge lane available for safe merging. The space available to merge from the left lane to the right lane is limited. You should assess your options well in advance. If there is heavy traffic in the left lane, it is safer to choose the right lane.

The photo below shows a tapered merge. The driver of the white car must now decide whether to stay in the left lane or move to the right lane.

The sign indicates a diversion route. If a road is closed due to roadworks or a prolonged traffic jam, it’s recommended to take a diversion route. Following a diversion route will also get you to your destination, but you’ll have to take a detour. By following the signs indicating the diversion route, you’ll return to the road you left.

Hectometer posts with hectometer signs are generally placed every hundred meters along the motorway, as shown in the first two images above. The first image shows the following information:

• The speed limit on this road is 100 kilometers per hour, 24 hours a day.
• The number of this road is the A10.
• The sign is placed along the right carriageway.
• The sign is at kilometer 11.1.

When contacting an emergency service in the event of a breakdown or accident, you must provide the information shown on the hectometer sign.

On the second sign, you will see the following information:

• The speed limit on this road is 130 kilometers per hour.
• On almost every motorway, the speed limit is 100 kilometers per hour between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m.
• The number of this road is the A10.
• The sign is at kilometer 23.8.
• The number on this sign is b. The meaning of these numbers is shown below.

The last sign with the black background indicates the speed limit on this motorway, which applies from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Hectometer signs aren’t just found along the carriageway of a motorway. They’re also placed on other roads. The image shows a hectometer sign placed along the right-hand lane of the N11, where a speed limit of 100 kilometers per hour applies.

The image below shows a hectometer sign placed along the carriageway of a regular road outside a built-up area.
An “N” road doesn’t indicate an autoweg, as is often thought. The term “N” stands for “Nationale weg” (national road). This can be an autoweg, but also a regular road, both within and outside built-up areas. Reflectors are often attached to the posts on which the hectometer signs are mounted. If you see a red reflector, the posts are located on the right-hand side of the carriageway. If you see a white reflector, the posts are located on the left-hand side of the carriageway.

On the sign, you read “korte invoegstrook”. In English it means “short acceleration lane”.
Especially on motorways, the acceleration lanes are generally long enough to merge safely. However, short acceleration lanes also occur on motorways. If a merge lane is shorter than 200 meters and does not transition into an emergency lane, road users are notified by this sign. 

In this situation, maintain a greater distance from the vehicles ahead and pay attention to whether these vehicles can and will merge. Make sure you can also assess the traffic situation on the main carriageway early on and whether you can spot an opportunity to merge safely.

If there’s no emergency lane along a road, it’s still nice to be able to pull over safely if you have a breakdown. Refuge areas have been created for this purpose. Refuge areas are always indicated by a small blue sign showing a car with its hood open, under which someone is working. (By the way, the CBR uses the word bonnet instead of hood.) You are not permitted to use the refuge area if your car isn’t broken down. Parking in refuge areas is prohibited. However, you may stop here if you need to contact emergency services. For example, to report a serious accident, or in case of serious illness of the driver or passengers.

An emergency crossing, in Dutch abbreviated as CADO (calamiteitendoorsteek), is a structure that allows a section of the guardrail in the central reservation to be opened. The emergency crossing is used to enable emergency services to pass through, allowing them to take a faster route. Opening an emergency crossing is controlled remotely from a traffic control center.

Another red sign you might encounter is the red sign with white letters “UGS.” UGS stands for “meeting point.” A meeting point is a meeting place for emergency services in the event of a major emergency. You’ll mainly encounter these signs on the roads around Schiphol Airport. As far as we know, the CBR has any questions about these signs. It’s still helpful to understand what they mean.

The signs above indicate that cyclists, snorfietsen, and mopeds must change position on the road. Sometimes this means onto the carriageway, sometimes onto a cycle path or a cycle/moped path. The arrow itself doesn’t tell you what’s intended, as a cycle path or cycle/moped path can be either to the right or to the left of the carriageway.

Any driver is allowed to use a bicycle street, including cars and lorries. By painting the road surface red, drivers are expected to be more understanding of cyclists. Overtaking cyclists is also permitted on a bicycle street.