The Dutch road freight transport sector - 2024

Dutch haulage companies tend to be heavily focused on such areas as logistics, containers and multimodal transport. This choice of specialisation allows the sector to maintain an international presence. However, this area of activity is declining, accounting for just under half of the sector’s total business, down from 55% in 2019.

Dutch companies also stand out in terms of the high productivity of their driving personnel, with drivers on Dutch contracts who are assigned to international operations working an average of about 50 hours of overtime per month. This trend remains more or less the same as in 2019, the year of the CNR's previous study of the Dutch haulage sector. 

One important development worth noting is the increase in the total driver cost by an average of 3.9% per year between 2019 and 2024; this cost stood at 81,705€ per year in 2024. The new collective bargaining agreement (CAO) 2024-2026 introduced an increase in the legal minimum rates of compensation (gross basic salary, overtime, travel allowances). For example, the gross monthly salary of a grade D6 driver is 3,254.83€ (excluding overtime), which represents an increase of 21.86% over 5 years.

It should be noted that driver costs are not the only expense to have risen sharply since 2019. Toll costs have risen by 24 % since 2019, mainly due to a general increase across Europe. This cost item is likely to increase further as a result of the Netherlands’ exit from the Eurovignette system on 1 July 2026 and the introduction of a kilometre-based charge. The cost of owning a vehicle has also increased, up 41 % compared with 2019.

All in all, the total price of a Dutch 40-tonne HGV operating internationally is 1.60€/km.