Clocks go back and November brings the year's worst jams

At 3:00 in the night from Saturday to Sunday the clocks go back to 2:00. The motoring organisation ANWB says the month that follows is the busiest of the year for traffic.

In the four years ANWB Verkeersinformatie examined, the month after winter time began saw on average more than 25% more accidents than the month before. Five of the ten busiest rush hours last year fell in November.

The busiest morning rush hour in 2025 was Tuesday 28 October, with 1,178 km of jams on motorways and provincial roads, partly because of many accidents. The year's jam record followed on Thursday 27 November, when 1,218 km of jams stood on Dutch roads at 17:30.

October and November 2025 together accounted for almost a quarter of the year's total jam severity, which the ANWB measures by both length and duration.

The ANWB points to several causes. Fewer people are on holiday or take a day off in autumn, so more cars are on the road, and people cycle less in bad weather. The ANWB says Tuesdays and Thursdays are the busiest days in November.

Niels Kalkman of the animal welfare society Dierenbescherming warns of wildlife on the roads: "Animals will look around in surprise this weekend. They wonder where people have suddenly gone. But we lie in bed an hour longer and so go out on the road an hour later."

Summer time returns at 2:00 in the night from Saturday 28 March to Sunday 29 March 2026. The European Commission proposed abolishing the twice-yearly clock change in 2018.