Today at 07:40 • Updated today at 08:12
“This could have been prevented!” It is Wim Florack’s first reaction when he hears that another cyclist has died on the Tuinbouwweg in Made. From his living room he has a view of the place where things went terribly wrong on Tuesday afternoon for the second time in less than two months. A cyclist was hit by a car while crossing the road. Just like in April. Then a 62-year-old woman died. Now he is a 25-year-old resident of Made.
From a meeting room at BerryWorld, directly opposite the bicycle crossing, they saw things go horribly wrong on April 16 of this year. “A colleague of ours was hit when she wanted to cross the road,” says an employee. It made a big impression on the staff of the wholesaler of, among other things, blueberries. “She wanted to earn some extra money here for her son’s wedding.”
Trailer camp
The meeting room offers a perfect view of the bicycle crossing at Tuinbouwweg. Another cyclist died while crossing on Tuesday afternoon. “Yes, this road is dangerous,” says the employee. Wim Florack also thinks so. He lives just down the road at the trailer park. “I was born and raised here and have seen so many accidents happen here. And now it has happened again. It is sad.”
Other residents of the camp also find it a dangerous road. “It’s just terrible there, really dangerous,” says Danielle Florack, who drives the road to Oosterhout every day. From Oosterhout you first have to cross the bridge over the A59. “A quite confusing situation, especially if you are driving too fast. If you get over that bump and you see that cyclist too late, then you already have it.”
Municipality measures
People regularly drive too fast on the 80 km road, local residents say. Louisa van Rijthoven does not always feel safe when she cycles along the Tuinbouwweg. And she does that regularly when she goes to Oosterhout. “I think it is a dangerous road. They all drive quite fast. The municipality can do something about that. For example, by placing signs stating that cyclists cross the road.”
Wim Florack has already written to the municipality to do something about the dangerous traffic situation. He also thinks that the cycle path is too close behind ‘the bump’ on the highway. “Remove that bicycle crossing there and make the bicycle paths two-way paths, then you will get rid of the problem. This could have been prevented.”
He never had a response. So he took measures himself. “I teach my children: cycle against traffic, then you don’t have to cross.”
The municipality of Drimmelen was asked for a response to this story on Tuesday, but it has not yet come.
