Holland Nuclear Summit Case Study

When the world watches, mobility and security must perform.

Creating secure, dedicated travel lanes with moveable barrier technology.

In March 2014, the Netherlands hosted the Nuclear Security Summit (NSS)—a global event bringing together leaders from 53 countries, including U.S. President Barack Obama and China’s President Xi Jinping. The mission: strengthen international nuclear security and prevent the proliferation of nuclear materials.

With over 5,000 delegates and 3,000 journalists arriving at Schiphol Airport and traveling to The Hague, Dutch authorities faced an unprecedented challenge: ensure fast, secure, and crashworthy transportation for world leaders along one of the busiest motorways in the country.

Their solution: the Road Zipper® System.

Project Snapshot

Event: 2014 Nuclear Security Summit
Location: A4 Highway (Schiphol Airport to The Hague)
Need: Crashworthy, temporary dedicated lanes for delegate travel
Technology: Road Zipper Moveable Barrier + 2 Barrier Transfer Machines (BTMs)
Scope: 3.3 km of dedicated lane opened and closed in under one hour

The Challenge

To transport dignitaries quickly and securely:

A section of the A4 highway near Hoofddorp needed to be closed to public traffic at scheduled intervals
The closure had to be crashworthy to meet security requirements
The barrier needed to be flexible enough to reopen lanes within an hour for public use

The Solution: Road Zipper Moveable Barrier

Two BTMs were deployed to laterally shift barriers up to 42 ft (13 m)
The system created a “freeway within a freeway”—a dedicated two-lane corridor for VIP convoys
Transfers were completed at speeds of 7 mph (11 km/h)
Entire operation repeated across multiple days for delegate arrivals and departures

This global coordination included:

Equipment shipped from Belgium, Russia, and the UK
Operators flown in from the United States
System coverage featured nationally on Dutch news each night during the Summit

Crashworthy, high-speed delegate transport.

Lane closures and reopenings completed in under one hour.

No disruption to general traffic flow outside scheduled security windows.

High public and media visibility of an innovative mobility solution.

Proven in the world’s highest-security scenarios.

The Holland Nuclear Security Summit proved that moveable barrier technology is not limited to construction or managed lanes. With the Road Zipper System, organizers successfully created a secure, flexible, and highly visible solution for event-based lane management—setting a precedent for future large-scale summits and global gatherings.

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Road Zipper Case Study | Holland Nuclear Security Summit

When the world watches, mobility and security must perform.

Project Snapshot

The Challenge

The Solution: Road Zipper Moveable Barrier

This global coordination included:

Proven in the world’s highest-security scenarios.

Need a flexible and secure solution for your next high-profile event or emergency operations plan?

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