Hundreds of farmers block border crossings with the Netherlands in Belgium: A4, A16 and A67 partly closed | Domestic

Around 6:30 am on Friday, there are still blockages on the A4 between Bergen op Zoom and Antwerp, the A16 between Breda and Antwerp and the A67 between Eindhoven and Antwerp, an ANWB spokesperson reports. Rijkswaterstaat has already closed the highways at a logical point in the Netherlands due to the blockages, so that traffic can still move freely, the spokesperson continues.

Detours can be made via Limburg via the A2 between Maastricht and Liège, the A76 between Stein and Maasmechelen and the Western Scheldt tunnel, the N62. The ANWB warns of a lot of extra travel time for road users who are affected by the closures. “But it is never busy during the Friday morning rush hour. It can be very annoying, especially for the logistics sectors.”

Locally, the blockages could also lead to extra traffic on the road, he further warns. According to the ANWB, the closures are especially common in Belgium, but hardly in the Netherlands. Only at Zundert, next to the A16, does the ANWB see a lot of cut-through traffic crossing the border from the Netherlands early on Friday morning.

Near Eersel, around 11:30 p.m., more than fifty tractors drove from a parking lot just across the border onto the E34, the Belgian part of the A67. They have lit fires along the road and in speeches call for the blockade to continue for a few days. From Bergeijk, Dutch tractors with farmers drove to the border crossing to join the Belgians. According to the initiator, there are about 30 to 35 Dutch people who sympathize with the Belgian farmers.

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The farmers who have gathered are mainly from Belgium. There are approximately three hundred Belgian tractors and an estimated three times as many people. They are supported by several dozen Brabant farmers. They had gathered around 11 p.m. in the outskirts of Zundert to drive from there to the highway with twenty tractors. The action was organized by Farmers Defense Force (FDF).

The farmers plan to keep it up all night. “At least until the morning rush hour and perhaps even longer,” said one of the Belgian farmers. Wooden pallets were set on fire in two places on and next to the highway to reinforce the action.

In Belgium, there were also massive protests during the day on Thursday against agricultural policy (such as strict environmental regulations and the abolition of subsidies). For example, according to the police, more than 1,300 tractors were present in Brussels.

There are no major actions in the Netherlands for the time being, because hopes are based on a new cabinet. “But if that doesn’t turn out well, we will take full action in the Netherlands again and we hope that our Belgian colleagues will come and support us,” said one of the Brabant farmers.