Following too closely causes about 230 crashes a year in Wallonia, worst on the motorways
Failing to keep a safe following distance causes roughly 230 crashes every year in Wallonia and is a significant, largely preventable cause of accidents on the region's roads — especially its high-speed motorways, according to figures relayed on 11 August 2026…
In 30 seconds
- Failing to keep a safe following distance causes about 230 crashes a year in Wallonia, per figures relayed by 7sur7 and DHnet on 11 August 2026.
- The reports say the problem is worst on Wallonia's high-speed motorways.
- Belgian law requires drivers to keep enough distance to stop safely; a two-second gap is the common rule of thumb.
- Distance offences are harder to enforce than speeding, requiring cameras or an officer's judgement.
"Safety distance" (distance de sécurité) is the gap a driver must leave to the vehicle ahead to brake without collision. The reported figure — about 230 crashes a year in Wallonia — concerns accidents attributed to that gap being too small, a problem the reports say is concentrated on motorways. Key entities: the Walloon Region and its road network operator SOFICO, regional road-safety bodies, and federal traffic law that mandates an adequate following distance.
Background
Belgium has pursued steady reductions in road deaths for two decades, with the federal government and the regions aligning behind the EU's "Vision Zero" ambition of eliminating road fatalities. Since the 2010s regional road-safety agencies have run repeated awareness campaigns on speed, alcohol, phone use and following distance, while automated speed and red-light cameras expanded sharply. Distance enforcement has lagged, because it is technically harder to measure and prosecute than speed.
What to do
Drivers can cut their own risk by keeping at least a two-second gap, extending it in poor weather or at motorway speeds, and easing off when traffic ahead slows — the single behaviour the reports identify as decisive.
Impact
Regional — The reported crashes fall on Wallonia's own road network, above all its motorways, affecting residents, cross-border commuters and hauliers who use corridors such as the E19, E42, E411 and E40.
EvidenceDeveloping · 1 primary source + 1 independent reporting source · some details remain unconfirmedExplore evidence →Hide evidence ↑
- Published:
- 11 Aug 2026, 02:00
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 11 Aug 2026
- Published:
- 11 Aug 2026, 02:00
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 11 Aug 2026
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This story was assembled from verified evidence, with its sources and reasoning recorded as it was written.