Ronse residents seek permanent barrier after another crash near their home

Updated 24 August 2026, 16:00 CEST — RONSE — Residents of a house beside a bend on the N60 Leuzesesteenweg have renewed their request for permanent crash protection after a traffic accident last week stopped short of the building, according to Het Nieuwsblad. No impact on the house or injuries to its occupants were reported.

The residents, who were not named, told the newspaper that large bags filled with Rhine sand currently form a makeshift buffer beside the property. Previous owners installed them, the report said. The household fears that a driver leaving the bend could eventually strike the side wall and wants a structural intervention.

Ronse’s city administration previously asked the Flemish Agency for Roads and Traffic, known as AWV, to provide additional protection following earlier accidents, Het Nieuwsblad reported. AWV rejected an extra guardrail at the site. In its response, quoted by the newspaper, the agency said a guardrail is not designed to withstand a direct frontal impact. It added that an adjacent driveway would require a break in the barrier, undermining its operation and creating a false sense of security.

That leaves a clear difference between the residents’ demand and the road authority’s assessment. The household has suggested impact-resistant posts or concrete blocks. No competent authority has publicly confirmed that either option is technically safe, legally permissible or scheduled for installation.

The immediate official response centres on speed enforcement. Het Nieuwsblad reported that AWV intends to reactivate the nearby speed camera during 2026. Separately, Ronse police describes traffic safety and traffic flow as responsibilities of its traffic team, which carries out targeted speed and impaired-driving checks. Police records also show that the Leuzesesteenweg has featured in earlier speed-control programmes, although those historical figures do not establish the cause of last week’s accident.

The case illustrates the practical limits of roadside protection where a home, bend and private access meet on a regional road. A barrier must reduce danger without redirecting a vehicle, obstructing access or creating another hazard. For the residents, however, bags of sand remain an unsettling substitute for a permanent decision.

The next confirmed step is the promised return of the speed camera later this year. It remains unknown when it will operate, what caused the latest accident, how many crashes have occurred at this precise location, and whether AWV or Ronse will assess alternatives to a guardrail.