Recovery operators stand up to extreme workload

Monday 5 February 2018 (update 3 April 2018)
In the fourth quarter of last year, IM recovery operators carried out 22,461 recovery operations on main roads. This was 15% more than in the previous quarter and 25% more than in the fourth quarter of 2016. Despite this extreme workload, the average arrival time for all recoveries in the fourth quarter, following correction for delays as a result of congestion was just 11:44 minutes. This was just 12 seconds (2%) more than in the previous period. The gross arrival time without correction was 13:35 minutes, 24 seconds (4%) more than in the rest of the year.

Autoberging Dallinga from Delfzijl in action in Appingedam on 10 December 2017

Heavy snowfall was the cause of a large number of accidents on Sunday 10 and Monday 11 December. This led to a 65% rise in the number of recovery orders as compared with the other days in the quarter. This intense pressure weighed heavily on the 62 contract partners but they withstood the strain. The average arrival time for IM orders on both days was 13:11 minutes, one and a half minutes longer than the quarterly average.

IM recovery operators with 100% performance

In the fourth quarter, eleven recovery operators succeeded in achieving an arrival time within the contractual standard of 20 minutes during the daytime and 25 minutes at night for all orders received. On-time arrivals represented almost 3% of the work undertaken in the quarter. In the previous quarter, the total had been 24 recovery operators in 27 districts. At Van Egeraat Berging en Transport in Roosendaal, the counter remained stuck at 99%, for the third successive occasion, in the busy district NB299 (after update 100%!).

Edwin van Egeraat of Van Egeraat Berging en Transport

In 23 districts, the average arrival time remained below ten minutes. These districts together served 10% of the total length of all IM roads and carried out 20% of the recovery work undertaken. One notable newcomer to the list was Takel en Bergingsbedrijf Quartel in district ZH163A, the district that includes the A4 and A20 intersection in Schiedam. Their performance meant that the three Rotterdam-based recovery operators were responsible for 67% of the recovery work in districts with the lowest arrival times.

IM recovery operators with an average arrival time below 10 minutes

*) Barendregt districts: ZH166, ZH167, ZH168, ZH171, ZH173, ZH175 en ZH181

The tables list only districts for which a complete quarterly report was published for the quarter just ended. These are districts in which ten or more recoveries were undertaken and districts for which the quarter just ended was the last in a series of quarters in which the required minimum of ten recoveries necessary for drawing up a report was exceeded. Average arrival times are reported following correction for delays as a result of congestion. In determining the number of kilometres of roads in each district, the two carriageways are counted as separate roads on roads with split carriageways. No rights may be derived from the information on the tables.