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Number of IM reports drops by 50%
Wednesday 18 March 2020
On Monday and Tuesday 16 and 17 March the number of incident reports on IM roads was 50% lower than two weeks before. In total, 471 reports were handled, compared with 919 on 2 and 3 March. The government measures taken to tackle the coronavirus have led to a sharp fall in the traffic volume and, as a consequence, in the number of accidents and breakdowns. The number of reports of accidents fell by almost 70%. The number of breakdown removals on 16 and 17 March was more than 40% down on the figure two weeks earlier.
Number of IM reports in weeks 10 and 12
| Time of day | Mon 2 Mar | Tue 3 Mar | Mon 16 Mar | Tue 17 Mar | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 00-02 am | 5 | 9 | 5 | 5 | |
| 02-04 am | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | |
| 04-06 am | 6 | 9 | 13 | 6 | |
| 06-08 am | 62 | 70 | 24 | 28 | |
| 08-10 am | 91 | 91 | 24 | 24 | |
| 10-12 am | 40 | 35 | 19 | 19 | |
| 12-14 pm | 34 | 29 | 35 | 28 | |
| 14-16 pm | 56 | 49 | 32 | 42 | |
| 16-18 pm | 84 | 88 | 34 | 43 | |
| 18-20 pm | 42 | 51 | 21 | 19 | |
| 20-22 pm | 26 | 20 | 17 | 10 | |
| 22-24 pm | 10 | 9 | 15 | 2 | |
| Total | 457 | 462 | 240 | 231 |
That means that recovery operators in the Netherlands find themselves at the start of a challenging period. All operators will have to deal with an abrupt fall in revenue. Moreover, some have to tackle the problem of substantial absence due to ill health. In order to protect recovery operators from possible infection, a decision was made on 16 March that motorists can remain in their own vehicles when being towed away by operators until further notice. This can only happen on condition that the vehicle being recovered is transported on the recovery vehicle's flatbed. On 17 March, Rijkswaterstaat announce that recovery companies would be given the status of "key sector" on the list maintained by the government. That is a list of companies that "are needed to keep society working during the COVID-19 outbreak".