Driving with a trailer

Can you use the left lane with a trailer on the motorway?

It depends on the number of lanes and the length of your combination. Are car and trailer together, including the load, longer than 7 m? Then on a motorway with three or more lanes you only use the two right-hand lanes. The far-left lane is not for you, not even to overtake.

Is your combination 8 m long and does the motorway have three lanes? Then overtake using the middle lane, if it is safe.

Does the motorway have two lanes? Then you may use both, also to overtake. Do you need to get in the left lane for an exit or a split? That is allowed too. Follow the signs above the road.

On a motorway and an autoweg the limit with a trailer is 90 km/h. Read more under speed with a trailer.

Driving with a trailer: mirrors and blind spots

Is your caravan or trailer wider than your car? Then your normal mirrors only show its side. Fit extended mirrors, also called towing mirrors or caravan mirrors. You clip them onto your normal mirrors. That way you can look back along the combination.

Even with extra mirrors there are blind spots. You cannot see the far area beside you or the area just behind the trailer. So look extra carefully when turning, merging and changing lanes. Adjust your mirrors before you set off.

Tips for driving with a trailer: distance, wind and bends

With a trailer you are heavier and longer. That makes your stopping distance longer. So keep more distance than the 2 seconds for good weather. In rain or on slippery roads, keep even more distance.

• Bends: take them wide. The trailer wheels follow the inside of the bend.
• Wind: watch out for crosswinds, for example on bridges and open stretches. A tall or empty trailer catches a lot of wind.
• Swaying: does the trailer start to sway? Gently release the accelerator and keep the steering wheel as straight as possible.
• Load: put heavy weight above the axle. Too much weight at the back can cause swaying. More under loading a trailer.

Which trailer you may tow with a B licence is explained under licence and trailer weight.

How do you reverse with a trailer?

When you reverse with a trailer, the trailer turns the opposite way to your steering wheel. A handy trick: hold the wheel at the bottom. Move your hand towards the side where the trailer needs to go.

• Drive slowly and make small steering movements.
• Look in both mirrors and turn around too.
• Can’t see well? Get out and look, or ask someone to help you.
• Is the trailer at too sharp an angle? Drive forward a little and start again.

Want to reverse round a corner? First steer a little the other way, so the trailer turns into the corner. Then follow with your car.

Reversing is a special manoeuvre. You let all other traffic go first, pedestrians too. More under special manoeuvres.

Where can you park with a trailer or caravan in the Netherlands?

With a trailer or caravan you may park wherever a normal car may park. The same parking rules and parking bans apply. Your car and trailer must not block the road. Many municipalities also have their own rules for trailers and caravans on the street.

• Parking spaces: park inside the lines of a space. You may not stand across several spaces with your car and trailer.
• Not in the way: does your trailer stick out into the road or stand on the pavement? Then you hinder other traffic. That is not allowed.
• Unhitched trailer: if you unhitch the trailer, it may stand in its own space, as long as it does not block the road.

How long can a trailer or caravan be parked on the street?

Your municipality decides this, in its local bylaws (the APV, Algemene Plaatselijke Verordening). In many municipalities a caravan, camper or trailer may not stand on a public road for more than three days in a row, often inside the built-up area. Some municipalities also ban parking long vehicles (over 6 metres) in the evening, at night and at weekends on certain roads. One example is the rule of the municipality of Meierijstad. The rules differ per municipality. Look up your municipality’s APV at lokaleregelgeving.overheid.nl.

Read more about parking bans under parking rules.