Number of traffic fines down half a million in 2024
Over the whole of 2024, more than half a million fewer traffic fines were issued than in 2023. The decrease was spread across all ‘traditional’ traffic offences, such as speeding, parking and running a red light. However, many more fines were issued for failure to comply with no entry signs.
The total number of offences under the Traffic Regulations (Administrative Enforcement) Act (Wet administratiefrechtelijke handhaving verkeersvoorschriften or ‘Wahv’), also referred to as ‘Mulder fines’, was 7,913,692. Nearly 8.5 million decisions under the Wahv were issued in 2023 (8,463,917).
Most of the offences were speed limit violations: nearly 6 million in 2024 (5,969,817, down from 6,546,450 in 2023). Parking violations (2024: 465,819, in 2023: 473,539), running a red light (2024: 214,962, 2023: 233,512), and handheld phone use (2024: 165,408, in 2023: 198,841) also represent large numbers. In 2025, enforcement on holding a phone will be intensified with the public prosecution department’s use of smart cameras to detect this kind of conduct.
The rise in cases involving failure to obey no entry signs was visible throughout the year. In particular, these involve violations of the C12 traffic sign, which is often used to indicate no entry to a car-free city centre or environmental zone. The number of offences rose from about 147 thousand to almost 300 thousand.
The drop in the number of offences detected overall, as police and prosecutors announced earlier, is partly due to the fact that the fixed speed cameras are being replaced so they are temporarily off. Two route control systems have also been permanently deactivated. In some locations, thousands more decisions were issued, such as in Amsterdam, for example, where the speed limit is now 30 km/h in many places. Enforcement at highway roadworks also led to a substantial influx of cases.
In addition, the number of decisions following police stops decreased. This was partly due to a shift within operations towards more serious offences in road safety enforcement (e.g. alcohol checks, fatbikes), and, for example, large-scale deployment of police officers and collective bargaining actions by police officers.
Originally published at https://www.government.nl/latest/news/2025/02/05/number-of-traffic-fines-down-half-a-million-in-2024
