Since December 2023, a maximum speed of 30 km/h applies on many roads in Amsterdam. After a year, we evaluated this measure. And what turns out: the number of traffic accidents on the 30-kilometer roads has decreased significantly, emergency services have not become slower, and public transport runs almost as fast as before. Air quality remained the same.
The number of accidents involving motor vehicles decreased by 11 percent on roads where 30 km/h was introduced: from 926 in 2023 to 823 in 2024. Accidents between motor vehicles and (electric) cyclists and pedestrians even decreased by 15 percent. 63 percent of drivers adhered fully or almost to the new speed limit. Traffic noise on new 30 roads has decreased by an average of 1.5 decibels.
60 percent of Amsterdammers positive
After six months, research showed that 60 percent of Amsterdammers are positive or very positive about the new speed limit.
No delay for emergency services
An analysis of thousands of trips by the fire department and ambulances shows that the introduction of the 30 km/h rule did not result in noticeable delays. The effects on public transport are also smaller than expected. Bus trips take on average 40 seconds longer from start to end stop, tram trips 10 seconds. The number of accidents involving a bus or tram decreased by 24 percent.
Enforcement with speed cameras
The Public Prosecution Service tested enforcement with speed cameras in the second half of 2024. This proved to be a success: speed decreased by over 20 percent. Speed did increase again after the cameras were removed. Speed cameras are therefore certainly useful in the city. The municipality is working with the Public Prosecution Service to identify the most effective locations for speed cameras.
A promising start
Councilor Melanie van der Horst (Traffic and Transport): “Driving at 30 is for more traffic safety and we now see that it works. It often takes time for all road users to get used to it: in Brussels, for example, you saw the speed decrease steadily over the first 3 years. So I find it encouraging that after a year on the new 30 roads we already have 11 percent fewer accidents with motor vehicles, while we only started enforcing after six months. I hope this trend continues: it would be truly fantastic if we see a further decline in speed and accidents in the coming years.”