Belgium Steps Up Speed Controls in 25th Police Marathon

Drivers taking to Belgian roads this weekend are facing intensified speed enforcement as the Federal Police and nearly 100 local police zones conduct their 25th “speed marathon” — a 24-hour operation running from Saturday 8 August at 06:00 to Sunday 9 August at 06:00. Fixed and mobile radars have been deployed across the entire territory, from zone 30 areas to highways, with 581 control posts set up nationwide, according to RTL Info.

The operation extends well beyond Belgium’s borders. The marathon is part of a coordinated European campaign organized by ROADPOL, the European Roads Policing Network, with more than 20 countries intensifying speed checks from 3 to 9 August, as reported by RTBF.

A Persistent Problem

The speed marathon, organized twice a year in spring and autumn, aims to encourage drivers to respect speed limits and raise awareness about the dangers of excessive speed. “Many people still underestimate the risks of excessive speed, which remains one of the main causes of accidents,” the police stated, according to La Libre.

Despite repeated enforcement campaigns, speeding remains widespread. During the previous edition in April, more than 1.36 million drivers were checked, with 3.28% found to be exceeding the limit. The scale of the problem was highlighted again this week when the Vias road safety institute published a study of nearly two million vehicles showing that the average speed in zone 30 areas is 41 km/h — and that 65% of drivers would have been fined if a radar had been present, as reported by La Libre. A record speed of 119 km/h was even recorded in a zone 30 area.

There is some encouraging news on highways, however: only 23% of drivers exceeded 120 km/h in 2026, down from 44% in 2021, a trend attributed to the proliferation of section radars and the rise of electric vehicles.

Higher Stakes for Drivers

This weekend’s operation is the first speed marathon since Belgian traffic fines increased on 1 July 2026. In built-up areas, exceeding the limit by 1-10 km/h now costs 58 euros, with an additional 12 euros per extra km/h. In 2025, traffic fines generated nearly 650 million euros for the Belgian state, according to RTL Info.

The enforcement effort is substantial: approximately 340 federal police officers are mobilized for the operation, in addition to local police zones. Early results from the field suggest the problem persists. “Today, I think it’s already the fourth person whose license is being immediately revoked,” said Dominique Neefs, a first police officer in the Montgomery police zone in Brussels, speaking to RTL Info. “That means they’re more than 31 km/h above the speed limit. It’s enormous.”

The Stakes: 140 Lives a Year

Speed remains the leading cause of accidents in Belgium, responsible for one in three fatal collisions. According to Benoît Godard, spokesperson for the Vias road safety institute, the potential gains from better compliance are significant. “If everyone, tomorrow, respected the speed limits, we would save about 140 lives on Belgian roads,” he told RTL Info. “So it’s a big issue.”

Godard acknowledged that the immediate impact of these operations is measurable — speed reductions of 3-7% have been recorded on marathon days — but cautioned that long-term behavioral change is harder to achieve. “In any case, it has an impact on the day itself, that we’ve measured. But in the longer term, it’s harder to say.”

What to Watch For

The results of this 25th speed marathon — including the number of drivers checked and the percentage found speeding — will be published in the coming days. With fines now higher than ever, authorities will be watching closely to see whether the increased financial deterrent translates into a lasting change in driver behavior, or whether the persistent culture of speeding on Belgian roads continues to defy enforcement efforts.

As the summer holiday season reaches its peak and millions of drivers take to the roads across Europe, the coordinated ROADPOL campaign serves as a reminder that speed enforcement is no longer a purely national matter — it is a continent-wide priority.