Can a mirror be installed to improve visibility?

The municipality is very reluctant to install traffic mirrors. In most cases, a mirror is not a solution to the (vision) problem. It requires a special skill "to drive on such a mirror. A skill that the average road user does not possess.

In general, traffic mirrors create a distorted view of the traffic situation. Road users do not really know what to see in a mirror and are instead distracted from traffic. This applies to a greater extent to road users who are not well known locally. In addition, cyclists and pedestrians are hardly visible in a mirror since, due to the distortion, they become very small. This is detrimental to road safety. In addition, it is also difficult to estimate the speed of an approaching vehicle through the mirror.

Therefore, it is usually better not to install a mirror in the first place, so that motorists themselves approach an intersection at an appropriate speed and look carefully at the crossing traffic.

Only in extreme situations where visibility is completely lacking do mirrors add something to road safety. This situation hardly ever occurs in the municipality. Therefore, there is usually insufficient reason to place a mirror.