“It’s really a very bad design. It’s waiting for accidents,” said Guus van Dee, resident of Heemsteden and member of the local branch of the Cyclists’ Union. He is referring to the redesign of the northern part of Valkenburgerlaan in his village. There is now a separate cycle path there. Yet. Because if it were up to the municipality, that path would no longer return after the redevelopment.
“This means that cyclists will soon be driving on the same road as cars. And there are dozens of cars parked at right angles along the road. If a motorist drives away backwards, he or she will not be able to see at all whether cyclists are approaching or not!” , says Van Dee.
The redevelopment of Valkenburgerlaan is part of a much larger redevelopment plan. Surrounding streets, such as Van Merlenlaan, also need to be overhauled. Cars will soon be allowed to drive no faster than thirty kilometers per hour on Valkenburgerlaan instead of fifty. “They use cyclists to slow down cars, which doesn’t seem like the right method to me,” said Van Dee.
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‘Fewer accidents’
There is also a weekly market on this part of Valkenburgerlaan. The redesign must improve accessibility to the market. Councilor Stam states that traffic safety on the road will therefore improve considerably. “Because there is much less chance of an accident at thirty kilometers per hour than at fifty kilometers per hour,” she recently said during a council committee.
‘Scare strip’ should prevent accidents
In addition, the councilor explains, there will be a so-called ‘scare strip’ between the new cycle path and behind the perpendicularly parked cars. This should prevent cars from immediately entering the cycle path and cyclists then have time to avoid cars that are parking out.
Van Dee finds this line of thinking truly incomprehensible. He can’t get his head around it. “Then all those fast bicycles have to move towards the road where cars are also driving! Cargo bicycles with toddlers, for example. I confronted the council members with the question of who would dare to raise their hand if something goes wrong.”
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Because there is also a small bend in the cycle path at the end of Valkenburgerlaan, cyclists now regularly enter the road there if they are speeding. According to Alderman Stam, this often only ends well. In the new design, that twist is gone and everyone should see each other better.
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The Valkenburgerlaan will soon receive the label ‘Farm access road’ (officially ETW30, ed.) and according to national guidelines, this does not include separate cycle paths, according to the municipality. Van Dee believes that this is possible and allowed.
Creating the perpendicular parking spaces in a different corner is not an option: that costs too many parking spaces and subsequently increases the parking pressure in the surrounding neighborhoods, councilor Stam indicates. However, a municipal spokesperson says that ‘other parking types’ are currently being investigated. Perhaps a small victory for the Cyclists’ Union.
Petition
Guus van Dee tried to change the council members’ minds. With the exception of a few parties, they do not seem very sensitive to this. He instinctively runs into a wall or in this case a car that is leaving a parking space. The municipal spokesperson says that the design is still safe and in accordance with the guidelines.
“I can’t get through it. But I think it’s very simple: just leave the current separate cycle path where it is. That also saves a lot of costs.” De Heemstedenaar has therefore started a petition. It has been signed more than eighty times. The council will make a final decision later.