“We will be the first corps in the country to deploy combi with Battenburg marking,” Antwerp police district spokesman Wouter Bruyns told our colleagues at the Nieuwsblad. This yellow and blue striping is also reminiscent of the emergency vehicles of several countries, including the United Kingdom.
The purpose of these new colors? Better visibility, day or night. “The reflectivity goes from class 1 to class 2. The film used for the new surfaces is class 3,” said Bruyns.
On the side of the police union SLFP, we deplore the abandonment of the initial orange. “The orange was chosen and there was no longer any debate on this subject”, assures its president Vincent Gilles to our colleagues from the Last Hour. He also disputes the legality of the new colours, normally set by royal decree. “On what legal basis will a citizen have to respond to an injunction from people in a Battenburg vehicle that is not a legal stripping? “, he adds.
The mayor of Antwerp Bart De Wever (N-VA) is delighted with this new look. “Maximum visibility is extremely important. Especially at night,” he told the Nieuwsblad.