At first glance, the Lodewijkstraat in Groningen is a cute street full of old terraced houses. It is also the fastest route from the station to work for many people. Residents of the narrow street are tired of the busy traffic. The municipality is issuing warnings about the maximum speed, but the reactions are not entirely positive.
The track is hardly noticeable when you walk through the sunny Lodewijkstraat. The old cobblestones lie close to the railway lines, but the trains are hidden behind tall trees and ivy-lined fences. Yet the hectic pace seems to win out here over the conviviality.
Residents have been campaigning for years to curb the traffic that rages by. Many of the front doors open directly onto the street, where e-bikes, scooters and speed cameras dart past every hour. The residents’ association has finally persuaded the municipality to take extra measures, in the form of yellow warnings on the ground.
Citizens have been trying for some time to design the streetscape in such a way that traffic has to put on the brakes. Posts, outdoor benches and bicycle racks form barriers behind which you can hide. Speed limit stickers already stick to every lamppost. So far with little effect.
Mixed reactions
“I don’t think it helps, people don’t pay attention to those kinds of calls at all. It remains just as difficult for people with children,” says Mr Spijker. He has lived in a side alley off Lodewijkstraat for years. “It remains a residential area, but a commuter is of course in a hurry. You can’t solve that with a drawing on the floor.”
Other residents are slightly more positive, although it remains moderate. “It was done professionally, you can’t just get that away. I think it helps somewhat, because it stands out. It still doesn’t feel like a residential area, but we are slowly making progress,” says a walker.
During the conversation, he is almost hit by a Jumbo van. Yet a neighbor agrees: “It helps with conversations with speed demons. You often immediately get a big mouth when you play with your children on the street, for example. Now you have something to point to and explain to people.”
The residents of Lodewijkstraat hope for more measures. In 2020, the PVDA still asked council questions about the problem; Since then, the municipality has been focusing on an alternative bicycle route on the other side of the track. When that will come is still a mystery to the residents.