The presence of moving vehicles, including cars and vans, on the course of Thursday's time trial for the first stage of the Broiaison Fleece Run Tour has sparked concerns about the safety of riders during the three-day race held in the Netherlands from March 3 to 5.

The opening time trial took place over a technical 14.4 km route, which organizers told Cycling News was a "completely closed course" in Sulfisterphen, and the stage was won by world champion Ellen van Dijk (Trek-Segafredo) won the stage.

The organizers of the Broiaison Fleece Run Tour confirmed to Cycling News that the roads were closed during the time trial, that safety was ensured by traffic controllers, and that vehicles on the course were entering and exiting from houses and driveways along the course.

"The time trial took place on a completely closed course. All roads were secured by 89 traffic controllers. Cars and cyclists came from homes and driveways on the course," organizers wrote in an email to Cycling News.

However, video footage of the race showed van drivers entering the time trial course in front of Van Dijk's teammate Letizia Paternoster as she was attempting the time trial. It appears that the van driver was blocking the roadway in an attempt to get back onto the roadway.

Organizers stated that the driver ignored one of the traffic control officers stationed along the course and was subsequently contacted by local authorities.

"The bus driver was contacted by police. Ignoring the instructions of a traffic controller is a criminal offense in the Netherlands," organizers told Cycling News.

Video footage also showed the driver of a car traveling in the opposite direction of Paternoster at another point during the time trial.

Sporza (open in new tab) reported further incidents, including a group of reversing drivers and urban cyclists on the course during the race. It also showed Christine Majerus (SD Worx) and Ahke Soe (Jumbo-Visma) negotiating with a group of bicycle commuters who were riding backwards on the circuit.

Images during the race also showed vehicles parked in the narrow roadway between roadside barriers.

No injuries were reported.

The Bloeizone Fryslan Tour told Cyclingnews that after further evaluation, they may consider removing the time trial from the event in the future.

"The thing about time trials is that the course has to be completely closed for five hours. As a solution, we will not include time trials in stage races in the future," the organizer said.

"Despite the complete closure of the course, this is unavoidable. It is a bitter experience that the time trial has become almost impossible to organize. We will include this in our assessment and henceforth will not include time trials in our stage schedule."