Dutch infrastructure billions behind on maintenance
Rijkswaterstaat faces a funding shortfall of around €34.5 billion for upkeep by 2039.
The Netherlands needs far more money for infrastructure maintenance than is currently available. According to figures from the Netherlands Court of Audit, Rijkswaterstaat faces an estimated shortfall of €34.5 billion between 2025 and 2039.
Rijkswaterstaat’s total maintenance requirement over that period amounts to approximately €75.3 billion. Around €40.9 billion is available for this in the Mobility Fund and Delta Fund. The difference concerns Rijkswaterstaat’s three networks: motorways, main waterways and the main water system.
The figures do not mean that all bridges, locks or roads are immediately unsafe. Rijkswaterstaat and ProRail inspect their assets regularly. When safety cannot be guaranteed, management measures can be taken, such as speed restrictions, diversions or closures.
The railways are also under financial pressure. A parliamentary document refers to a broader rail requirement of approximately €20 billion. Of this, around €3.1 billion concerns the newly calculated maintenance shortfall, including funds previously allocated and claims.
Deferred maintenance can lead to disruptions, diversions, closures and traffic jams. In 2023, the Knowledge Institute for Mobility Policy calculated that congestion on the motorway network costs society approximately €2.7 to €3.5 billion a year. No separate figure is available for all the damage caused by deferred maintenance.
The government therefore says it wants to set priorities. According to the government’s response, an additional €1.1 billion a year is planned for management, maintenance and providing access to new housing developments in the 2031–2035 period. From 2036, €500 million a year would become structurally available.
This means the political choice has not disappeared, but shifted to the order in which projects are carried out. More money for existing infrastructure may mean that new roads, rail links or access routes to housing developments are delivered later. Less maintenance, by contrast, may lead to higher costs and poorer accessibility in the longer term.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- Rijkswaterstaat has an estimated maintenance requirement of €75.3 billion for 2025–2039.
- Approximately €40.9 billion is available for that period.
- The government wants to distribute funds among urgent projects.
Left
Arguments The government should first bring existing public facilities up to standard before building new projects. Maintenance is a public responsibility and should not depend on short-term returns.
Values Equal access, public services and protection from the consequences of deferred maintenance.
Consequences More structural investment could delay new projects, but this view holds that it would reduce social costs and inequality in the longer term.
Centre
Arguments Independent prioritisation is needed, weighing safety, accessibility, housing construction and economic significance together. Not every new project needs to be scrapped, but maintenance must demonstrably be taken into account.
Values Efficiency, continuity and administrative reliability.
Consequences Multi-year planning can force difficult choices without bringing infrastructure development to a complete halt.
Right
Arguments The Netherlands must deploy available funds in a targeted way and prevent money from evaporating into additional civil servants, procedures or projects with low returns. Where possible, users and private-sector parties can contribute.
Values Financial discipline, economic growth and responsibility for taxpayers’ money.
Consequences Stricter selection may mean that some regions have to wait longer, but this view holds that it should prevent future generations from being saddled with ever-larger debts.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
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The key financial figures and the safety procedure described are consistent with publicly available parliamentary documents. The text clearly distinguishes between estimated shortfalls and actual damage.
- confirmed Rijkswaterstaat’s maintenance requirement for 2025–2039 is approximately €75.3 billion. — Mentioned in the answers to parliamentary questions. source
- confirmed Approximately €40.9 billion is available for the same period, and the estimated shortfall is €34.5 billion. — The figures appear in the publicly available parliamentary information. source
- confirmed Congestion on the motorway network costs approximately €2.7 to €3.5 billion a year. — This concerns a 2023 study by the Knowledge Institute for Mobility Policy. source
- confirmed From 2036, €500 million a year is planned on a structural basis. — This figure appears in the government’s response to the parliamentary questions. source
Editor's note
The estimated amounts and safety procedure have been confirmed in parliamentary documents. It cannot be established how much of the future backlog will actually lead to closures or economic damage.Sources
More on this in Dutch media
- NRC — „infrastructuur rijkswaterstaat”
- NU.nl — „infrastructuur rijkswaterstaat”
- De Telegraaf — „infrastructuur rijkswaterstaat”