The motorway (autobahn) infrastructure in central North Rhine Westphalia (NRW) is extremely dense and use of the complete road system is heavy. Autobahns weave their way past Neuss south towards Cologne, north and west to the Netherlands and east in and around the Ruhr region. Others weave all across the state.

Rainy days especially cause chaos at rush hours, Mondays and trade fair days create tailbacks that can be many kilometres long. German drivers tend to drive very close, fast and tend not to look so far ahead as some other nationalities. Yet the roads are fairly safe, some may hoop their horn but there is very, very little road rage.

Thanks to the state authorities, it is possible to check the motorway system for snarl-ups before setting off. Besides showing current traffic jams, the transport ministry has an excellent system to predict ahead of time. Available in English, it is easy to use.