Challenge
'80' is the number that sticks hardest with trailers — and that is exactly why the CBR exam designer slides it under your nose inside the built-up area. But 80 belongs outside the built-up area. With a trailer or caravan three fixed maxima apply per road type: 50, 80, 90. Once you tie those three to the right road type, you see through every shifted-number trap.
Read this section on its own page: Challenge: Maximum speed with a trailer or caravan
The model
Inside the built-up area: 50. Outside the built-up area: 80. Expressway and motorway: 90 — but that 90 only if the trailer or caravan is up to 3,500 kg (Book p.229). If it weighs more, 80 also applies on expressway/motorway.
Read this section on its own page: The model: Maximum speed with a trailer or caravan
Core
With a trailer or caravan separate fixed maxima apply, regardless of what the sign allows for an ordinary car (Book p.229): - Inside the built-up area: 50 km/h. Not 80 — that is the most common mistake. - Outside the built-up area on an ordinary road: 80 km/h. - Expressway and motorway: 90 km/h, but only if the permitted maximum mass of the trailer or caravan is not more than 3,500 kg. Note the difference between 'outside the built-up area' and 'expressway': not every road outside the built-up area is an expressway. On an ordinary provincial road outside the built-up area it stays 80; the 90 applies solely on expressways and motorways. If the trailer or caravan weighs more than 3,500 kg, the 90 km/h exception lapses and 80 km/h also applies on expressway/motorway. This is not stated verbatim in the book — it follows from the law, which prescribes 80 km/h as a residual category (law-derived addition). One lane rule belongs here too: with a combination that is longer than 7 metres you may, on a motorway with three or more lanes, use only the two rightmost lanes — except when you have to move into position to turn (Book p.230).
Read this section on its own page: Core: Maximum speed with a trailer or caravan
Why it matters
A trailer or caravan makes your combination longer, heavier and more prone to snaking; that is why the maxima are lower than for an ordinary car. The sign by the road applies to the fastest permitted traffic — with a trailer you are almost always below it. In wet snow on the A28 near Drachten, with a caravan that starts to sway at higher speed, the difference between 80 and 90 is not a detail but braking distance and stability. And on a busy three-lane motorway the lane rule keeps the long, slower combination to the right, where it is least in the way and drives most safely.
Read this section on its own page: Why it matters: Maximum speed with a trailer or caravan
Source: RVV 1990 art. 22 · RVV 1990 art. 43 · checked 2026-10-22
Frequently asked questions
‘With a trailer or caravan you may drive at most 80 km/h inside the built-up area’ – is that true?
No. Inside the built-up area the maximum with a trailer or caravan is 50 km/h. The 80 km/h belongs only outside the built-up area.
‘On the motorway you may drive at most 100 km/h with a trailer or caravan’ – is that true?
No. On expressways and motorways the maximum with a trailer or caravan is 90 km/h, not 100. 100 km/h does not appear in the trailer maxima.
‘On the motorway you may always do 90 km/h with a trailer or caravan, regardless of weight’ – is that true?
No. The 90 km/h on expressway/motorway only applies if the permitted maximum mass of your trailer or caravan is not more than 3,500 kg. If it is heavier, you stay at 80 km/h.
‘Outside the built-up area you may drive 90 km/h everywhere with a trailer’ – is that true?
No. Outside the built-up area on an ordinary road it is 80 km/h; the 90 km/h only applies on expressways and motorways. Not every road outside the built-up area is an expressway.
‘With a trailer you may go as fast as an ordinary car, so simply whatever the speed sign shows’ – is that true?
No. With a trailer or caravan separate fixed maxima apply (50 inside the built-up area, 80 outside, 90 on expressway/motorway up to 3,500 kg). These can be lower than what the sign allows for an ordinary car.