Mobility in Flanders

Staying mobile is one of the biggest challenges of contemporary society. At VAB (Flemish Automobile Association) we support responsible and safe use of all means of transport. The car offers many advantages, but we are certainly also aware of the less positive sides of its use, and in particular the irresponsible use of the car.

As with all freedoms, the freedom to use a car reaches its limit when it starts to encroach on the freedom of other road-users and of society in general. As representative of road-users’ interests it is our duty to monitor this boundary carefully.  That is why we advocate strict enforcement of regulations, but on condition that the (limited) available means are deployed where the largest traffic safety gains can be achieved: in other words, monitoring safety belt use, excessive speed on regional roads and in built-up areas, and alcohol use. We also call for a stricter policy towards repeat offenders. In addition, much needs to be done to achieve a change of mentality among road users. Traffic education is an ongoing process that starts in nursery school and does not end on the day one obtains one’s driver’s licence. Attaining a driver’s licence, on the other hand, is a very essential part of this education, which is why we strongly support approaching it professionally.

In addition to the limitations due to road safety and, increasingly, environmental issues, the continued growth in automobile traffic is gradually coming up against its own spatial limitations. The ever-increasing traffic jams around Brussels and Antwerp bear painful testimony to this fact, but unfortunately are only the tip of the iceberg.  Mobility nevertheless is of vital importance to the economy—and hence prosperity—of our region.  To guarantee the growth of our economy the Flemish government now wants to commit fully to logistics. Flanders must become the logistics region par excellence of Europe. To achieve and consolidate this ambition, however, urgent measures are necessary.  

Further optimisation of alternative modes of transport: water and rail as far as freight transport is concerned, and train, bus, tram, bicycle and various forms of shared car use as far as passenger transport is concerned, will need to relieve road usage to the maximum extent. Our road network will also need to be made more efficient: to be utilised optimally, for example by introducing variable signalling. But this also inevitably means that, in addition to the strict quality requirements for the construction and systematic maintenance of the existing road infrastructure, more needs to be done about additional roads. Decisions about the construction of specific missing links, including the completion of the Antwerp Ring, cannot be taboo and must be taken and implemented without delay. Further postponement will mean ever-increasing traffic jams and an increasingly unbearable traffic situation. And that is anything but an ideal biotope for our ambition to be a logistics region.

We should, on the other hand, also dare to question this policy choice of the Flemish government. Does the development of Flanders as a logistics region indeed offer enough added social value for our region in terms of jobs and government revenue? Will Flanders succeed in stimulating these logistics service providers to also create significant added value locally? Or will the added value remain confined mainly to the logistics companies themselves, and will the region be burdened with the disadvantages (government subsidies, infrastructural costs and pressure on the environment where we live, ...)? In other words, will the game be worth the candle?