Cyclists allowed to jump the red light when turning right

The federal Chamber of Representatives has approved the bill which allows cyclists to continue on a red on certain conditions, for example when turning right and without hampering other traffic. The parliament also passed a bill which creates a new kind of terminology in traffic: "a cycle street".

For the moment, it is against the law in Belgium to jump the red light as a cyclist, no matter what the exact circumstances are. This is contrary to legislation in countries like the Netherlands and France.

In future, cyclists in Belgium will be allowed to continue on a red when turning right at a crossing. However, they will still have to give way to possible other traffic. In certain cases, they will even be allowed to jump the red light when continuing straight on, but this is on the strict condition that they don't have to mix with other traffic.

Special road signs will be introduced to inform cyclists and other motorists of this new situation. The Federal Parliament also passed a bill which creates a new term in the Highway Code: a "cycle street". This type of street is being described as a place "where the position of the car is subject to the position of a cyclist." This implies that car drivers will automatically have to give way to cyclists in this kind of street.

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