10% extra traffic in Liefkenshoek tunnel: 'Victim of our success'

8.5 million vehicles passed through the Liefkenshoek tunnel in Antwerp in the first three quarters of this year, recent figures from NV Tunnel Liefkenshoek show. Compared to the same period last year, that already means another 10% increase in traffic. This makes the toll tunnel less and less of a miracle solution to the traffic jams around Antwerp. Days with 45,000 vehicles per day are no exception, operational director Marc Persoon knows, while the theoretical capacity of the tunnel is 40,000 vehicles per day. Consequence: even those driving around Antwerp via the Liefkenshoek tunnel have to bump more and more often. Up to 900 congestion hours in the first months of this year, according to figures that De Tijd was able to see.