Rotselaar (Brussels Morning Newspaper) -The municipality of Rotselaar cut down the hedge in an area where a fatal accident occurred one week earlier. The owners vehemently refused to allow the removal process because they wanted to protect their privacy.
A fatal car accident in Rotselaar led the municipality to finally cut down a hazardous hedge at the collision site. Private property owners had been fighting against the removal of their hedges for years because they wanted to protect their personal space. After a 73-year-old cyclist died in a crash attributed to limited visibility caused by the hedge, the municipality received authorisation to cut it down.
Mayor Jelle Wouters (ROX):
“We were indeed able to convince the residents to remove the hedge. In order not to lose any time, we had the hedge removed immediately at our expense.”
But that’s not all; there will be more safety measures. Wouters:
“We have already taken a number of safety measures in the past period, such as road markings, but there will also be traffic signs, and the mirrors will be hung better. In addition, there will be rumble strips on the cycle path, and parts of the grass pavers will be filled with gravel so that cyclists automatically brake.”
What is the background of the fatal accident in Rotselaar?
Rotselaar witnessed a fatal collision that occurred when a 73-year-old cyclist failed to see an oncoming car at Kerkhofstraat and Kerkweg because a large intrusive hedge blocked their view. Private property owners stood against municipal officials who tried to take down their hedge, which caused security concerns, while residents requested privacy protection.
In recent years, road safety statistics in Belgium show cycling accidents cause more than 60 fatalities per year. Rotselaar stands among numerous Belgian municipalities to enhance road safety, especially for cyclists and pedestrians. The municipality took previous steps through road markings yet experienced ownership challenges when trying to resolve the hedge problem.
