Beringen (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Police in Beringen, Tessenderlo-Ham and Heusden-Zolder carried out additional traffic checks around schools as the new school year began, with five drivers reportedly losing their driving licences.
In Police Region West-Limburg, more police visibility around schools was implemented in the mornings and afternoons due to heavy traffic in the area, with many cars, bikes, pedestrians, school buses, and electric scooters on the road. The purpose of the mission was to protect children and other vulnerable road users as well as pinpoint dangerous drivers. Unfortunately, no details have yet been provided on the five suspended drivers and their offences.
Why were extra checks conducted near schools?
The checks took place since there is a sudden surge in traffic around school premises and on surrounding roads during the beginning of the school year. There are cases where the children usually move across the road in groups, and the vehicles tend to stop, turn, and even park themselves within restricted spaces during the busiest hours. The police patrols were carried out within Beringen, Tessenderlo-Ham, and Heusden-Zolder in order to ensure safety and prevent the violation of rules. It was also noted that the officers, including those on bicycles, could be seen within the vicinity of the schools, especially when the pupils are departing from the institutions.
What offences are commonly found around schools?
Prior operations in the area have revealed that there were frequent occurrences of breaches regarding mobile phone usage, lack of seat belt and child restraint, defective vehicle, and excessive speed by drivers. The school zone check in Heusden-Zolder carried out in March 2026 has yielded a total of 22 violations. Among these, 18 involved breaches of drivers and passengers not wearing the seat belts properly, even children. There were also three violations related to mobile phone use while driving and one violation that the vehicle did not meet the required standards.
These revealed that there are problems regarding how children travel to school unprotected. The other revelation made through the operations is that school traffic enforcement is not just speeding. During an operation in Beringen, Ham, Tessenderlo, and Heusden-Zolder, 10 driving licenses have been withdrawn and 21 fines have been issued.
The same operation recorded eight additional mobile-phone offences, two seat-belt violations, three vehicles without valid technical inspections and two cases in which drivers failed to maintain control of their vehicles.
What happened in earlier traffic operations?
These school control measures have come after several other law enforcement actions in the region. In January 2025, the police in Beringen and Tessenderlo-Ham withdrew some driving licences in a focused effort. Three drivers were stopped for using mobile phones, and their licences were withdrawn. There were also two other motorists who tried to evade arrest after they were caught on their phones. Severe cases of speeding were registered. One driver was stopped for speeding at 135 km/h in a zone where the speed limit was 70 km/h.
Some individuals were arrested for having narcotics, and there was one car that did not have registration, insurance or any technical inspection carried out. Its driver apparently had no driving licence and the car was impounded. In another January effort, even more serious figures of speeding were recorded. One driver was registered to be moving at 210 km/h in Beringen.
