Road and Street Design In the Netherlands

This video explores the Dutch approach to road and street design, using the city of Groningen as an example.
0:00- Introduction
2:14 - Rural & Urban Through Roads
3:08 - Rural Distributor Roads
5:34 - Rural Access Roads
6:36 - Urban Distributor Roads
11:42 - Urban Access roads
Materials used:
CROW | Road safety manual
Netherlands Institute for Transport Policy Analysis | The widespread car ownership in the Netherlands
Music by Bensound.com
License code: MPZVDPRVW1AB986F
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[@rwiersema]

One thing you forgot/ decided not to mention is that those intersections in Groningen have rain sensors on them as well, and when it rains the cyclists get a green light more often. Which I think is pretty cool :)

[@GuusJanssen]

Not just the intersections in Groningen, it's common everywhere in NL.

[@carmenl163]

@@GuusJanssen I'm sorry, not in Hoorn, where I live. We don't even have smart traffic lights for bikes.

[@GuusJanssen]

@@carmenl163I didn't write that it's everywhere, I wrote it was common everywhere.

[@carmenl163]

@@GuusJanssen Oh, I'm sorry. It's not common in Hoorn.

[@lordsleepyhead]

I use these intersections every day and I've never noticed a difference in traffic signal timing for sunny or rainy days.

[@Clumsy_Pickle]

Thankyou for not using examples of just Amsterdam but the beautiful city of Groningen

[@dannya8614]

Indeed. I work in the city of Groningen, but I live in the city of Assen. In the morning I cycle to Assen central station where I can park my bike secured and free for 24hrs. It takes me about 17 minutes to travel by train from Assen to Groningen, and then a 15 minutes stroll to the office where cars have to yield to pedestrians almost everywhere. A food market and a large grocery store is on my route for convenience. I would not like it any other way :) Great video @Streetscapes

[@Khannea]

"Groningkren" ?? what is "Gorningelen" ???? never heard off that here in Amsterdam.

[@nickkuiper32]

Groningen... can't find it on any map. Greets from Amsterdam

[@mourlyvold64]

@@Khannea These people that think that the world ends at their city ring are the real provincials.

[@sandervdbrink84]

​@@nickkuiper32Amsterdammers hebben wel vaker last van het niet weten wat we buiten hun eigen stinkstad gebeurt. 😂

[@sonnylatchstring]

I have been a traffic engineer in the Netherlands since 1980. I graduated from an institute established for this purpose in 1975. A lot has been achieved in 50 years and I think that you perfectly describe the various solutions with this report. This was a very good general description of what a livable environment should provide.

[@johnfowler4820]

We desperately need you in the UK my friend.

[@merkvandermeulen3978]

@@johnfowler4820 Jeremy hates public spending, councils go bust, quoting private Frazer: You're dóómed!

[@1957mattes]

Listen to how quiet these Dutch cities are......relaxing.

[@kailahmann1823]

until a "rolling chainsaw" (snorfietsen) comes ;)

[@GuusJanssen]

@@kailahmann1823 Doe je dat altijd? Wanneer iemand iets positiefs zegt er meteen iets negatiefs over zeggen? Kun je niet tegen complimenten? Of kreeg je die nooit van je mama en papa?

[@Krausty]

​@@GuusJanssendoe jij dat altijd? Elke comment section binnen schuifelen met je misplaatste superieuriteitscomplex? Tekst heeft geen intonatie dus verdomd knap hoe jij er toch neerbuigende toon aan weet te geven!👍🏻

[@zeikerd]

@@GuusJanssen dat is mijn taak meestal, maar verder...wat Krausty zegt

[@m00O0]

​@@GuusJanssen Je klinkt als een hele sympathieke gozert.

[@Mark-vf8op]

Just imagine that American cities were built like this, how much nature there would be and how much energy the country could save…

[@royvankan2723]

Imagine that all - unnecessary large, filled just a quarter of it - parking spaces were exchanged and replaced with trees, everywhere you could enjoy a lot of forests. 🌳

[@merkvandermeulen3978]

Groningen's walled inner city, with narrow cobbled streets I imagine, has the privilege of its age over American ones, as its first inhabitants settled here around 3900 BC. Earliest written document being a letter dating back to 1040 AD. Dividing most of downtown into four quarters got implemented 47 years ago, while fully integrating more recent suburbs like De Hunze, Lewenborg and Beijum with fast bike lanes and excellent transit connections. On urban planning America chose different, and now it's too late I'm afraid. Maybe we shouldn't have sold New Amsterdam to the Brits...

[@henkoosterink8744]

@@royvankan2723 America is one big parking lot.....

[@royvankan2723]

@@henkoosterink8744 helemaal waar. En helaas één grote vuilstortplaats.

[@DavidvdGulik]

I planted the wisteria at 15:23 😅. I lived in that house for 5 years.

[@rijkvanwel]

16:37 So true, this really works as generally, parents will let their kids roam (“be back when the street lights turn on“) which massively boosts freedom, independence, and confidence.

[@user-xi6nk4xs4s]

Clear and understandable explanation of the what and why. The infrastructure here in the Netherlands, or specifically in Groningen isn't perfect, but at least the government is making a great effort and for now continues doing so.

[@streetscaping]

I would argue that Dutch roads are as close to perfect as any country has come :)

[@user-xi6nk4xs4s]

@@streetscaping Yes, but changes will have to be made to keep on being good. Introduction of new vehicles (electric steps, fat bikes, electric bicycles etc) sometimes has to result in changes. The climate changing might result in the need to use other materials etc. Not complaining, just hoping to keep the efforts alive :o).

[@GeoDetective]

​​@@streetscapingsiginficant work needs to be done at Europaweg and ring west.

[@Blackadder75]

@@streetscaping we are certainly the best in the world, I have traveled enough to be 100% sure about that. but nothing is perfect

[@Cool_Goose]

This is the thing that people usually don't understand. Driving a car is also great in the NL since it's predictable, and separated.

[@Blackadder75]

This! when I drive my car in my Dutch city at rush hour, it;s not a very pleasant experience, because the roads often prioritizes busses and cyclist and I get a LOT of red lights. (and it's very busy) But when I drive the same route an hour later, it's a glorious experience, everything is safe and clear, traffic lights jump to green almost everywhere, and my commute time is almost halved. I now stay at home longer and work at home for a few hours or I just take it easy , go later and stay at my work place a bit longer and I have a great experience. and that is exactly the design idea. to spread the traffic and encourage people to either use other forms of transport or other time tables

[@Freshbott2]

Been saying for a long time as a driver, you want safe, well maintained, uncongested roads, and low insurance and rego costs. You just can’t get that in an environment that forces everyone to drive and drive a lot. I really wish Australia would just adopt the Dutch street codes like for like.

[@nachtorchis]

Every video I see about this subject forgets the most important thing you have to change in America: mixed zoning. We have shops INSIDE the housing zones. Everybody lives close to shops and other facilities. This is the most important thing to change asap.

[@GaryThomann-CoGC]

Looks like the urban planners in the Netherlands actually earn their wages ... lots of interesting design

[@johanwittens7712]

TBF most urban planners and traffic engineers in the world would love to design this way. It's just that in many places, especially in the USA, they're prevented from doing so by ridiculously outdated and completely car centric laws, road design standards, urban planning regulations, minimum parking requirements, NIMBYs, short sighted politicians, etc etc. Minimum parking requirements alone have lead to the bulldozing of most traditional main streets in the USA, all to make room for asphalt parking lots. Just look at photos of most main streets or city centers in the USA from more than 100 years ago, and you'll see very typical row houses and businesses, mixed use centers and buildings, medium density everywhere, walkeable neighbourhoods, cable cars everywhere, etc etc. But it was all bulldozed to make room for the car, and turned into swathes of parking lots with isolated, completely car centric businesses in the center of them. I learnt this in architecture and urban planning classes. But "Not just bikes", "strong towns" and "oh the urbanity" have some great videos on this... Just be warned, it's a dangerous and extensive rabbit hole! And it's kind of depressing to learn just how much was lost and demolished in N-america, all in the name of the holy and almighty car.

[@MrSeine2]

Remember that the Netherlands didn't build this in 1 decade. It takes a long time and isn't finished yet, and never will be. we started in the 70's. So more or less 5 dacades ahead. Start simple and cheap. The low hanging fruit. Not the fancy stuff. That's for later. It's about money well spend. And don't forget culture. We have a bike culture. And sayings like "Your not made of sugar", You can handle it, You won't melt when cyling in the rain. Our parants cycled and our grandparents. Kids start at 6 years old. Teens cycle to school and sports.

[@DenUitvreter]

Also remember that if the Dutch had stopped cycling until they got proper infrastructure, they wouldn't have gotten it. It's more a case of cycle and they will build it rather than build it and they will come.

[@ronaldvanderhorst4936]

⁠​⁠​⁠@@DenUitvreteri don’t know if that’s entirely true, but it has worked both ways, I suppose. Luckily, cycling was alway’s possible in small villages and the rural areas were car volumes were low. The car was more problematic inside the city’s.( seen from a cyclist perspective) Action groups and protests made the difference in how to move forward. I hope that videos like these will help, give an perspective on alternatives. So that no one will have to risk his life on a bike or by walking, just to prove there is a need for safe infrastructure for them. I hope municipalities will experience, “ if you build it they will come! “ So, don’t risk your life! Get yourselves heard!

[@autohmae]

Most of the time, improvements are made when maintenance on a road/street has to be be done anyway. It's a lot less wasted money that way.

[@DenUitvreter]

@@ronaldvanderhorst4936 Yes, but it's usually people concentrating on the physical infrastructure, while in the Netherlands it startes with the rules and a few traffic signs. Another huge step was also the change in liability law in the early nineties, when infrastructure was not really that great yet. I know legal stuff makes is not begging for video like physical infrastructure is, but still. Another thing that got us this cycling is the competence to negotiate far from great infrastructure. It's all very convenient now, outside roadworks, but cycling in traffic is always about taking care of safety yourself. That's what the Dutch often had to do until the 2000's, and that's what the Parisians have to do since a few years.

[@ttopero]

@@DenUitvreterthe legal stuff is important, especially in litigious societies like America! What do you remember as key changes that improved conditions outside of a car?

[@mdhazeldine]

Awesome video! You packed so much into this, I learnt a ton, even though I've watched basically every NJB video and tons of Bicycle Dutch videos. Not sure if you can sustain this level of quality, but if you can then you'll grow the channel very fast.

[@tomfredrikblenning9054]

Loved this video. I'm in the Norwegian Cycling Federation and while I have seen everything you have presented before, this was presented in a relatively terse and comprehensive way. I will distribute this to others as an introduction to how the Netherlands are doing things that we should learn from.

[@quovadis5172]

Well, clearly the Dutch have done a exemplary job, and have provided the world with a template to follow.

[@wewillrockyou1986]

Groningen my beloved... Honestly one of the best cities in the country in terms of correctly implementing bike infrastructure.

[@christianhildalgo]

Those last few words are unnecessary. Just one of the best cities, full stop

[@ypey1]

Pff thats a bit much😅

[@maidenekker]

So nice to watch footage of Groningen in a video like this, I live here and I was so used to all this that it took video's on YT to show me it is not so common in the world to have bikelanes or effective public transportation. When I went to my secundary school I had to ride 17 kilometers, and that was quite normal. Only in december and january I was allowed to take the bus. Some of my classmates had to travel even further. I didn't hurt me, I still have strong legs and I think it also builts some character to ride to school in wind and rain. There is no bad weather, there is bad clothing, that sort of thinking.

[@Lunaviia]

Amazing Video, Very clear and also nice that instead of talking about Amsterdam you went to Groningen

[@wasneeplus]

I miss Groningen. Living in that city was truly something special, even compared to the other Dutch cities I've lived in.

[@marcelmoulin3335]

Impeccably executed. Brilliant analysis. Thank you for creating such an informative, visually superb video. How fortunate I am to live in glorious, compact, pedestrian/cycle friendly Middelburg.

[@snoopyloopy]

Perhaps the best thing about the Dutch is that they've shown the way, so all we have to do is copy where they are now instead of trying to "discover" everything. Unfortunately, most agencies feel that they're "different" and can't possibly do that.

[@frafraplanner9277]

Lots of detail and great visuals

[@bpdbhp1632]

Dutch roads are like the ones they always use in textbooks and childrens books as illustrations

[@remcohoman1011]

18:45 Stad is veranderd mien jong! Ik werk er, woon er al 15 jaar niet meer, maar blijft een geweldige Stad.. Grunn

[@1970jel]

Nice to see my daily biking roads and bus and trainstops in this video. A single way on the bike to work is 18km, so on rainy days I take the train and the bus. Both take about 45 minutes, so it is easy to take the bike and take a shower at work.

[@cefnonn]

Such a clear description of how the Dutch have got transport so right for their citizens and for the Planet. Thanks for a great video.

[@Blackadder75]

TBH, we are still one of the most polluting nations on earth (per capita) obviously not as bad as north americans, but we can't be proud with our score in that regard

[@jUQMtDmf]

Lol. What a joke. It's unaffordable and our far right gov will only break down public transport more.

[@kevinpiip3427]

I would love to see a video of all the bad things with the dutch street designs as i think we can learn a lot about whats not working so well as well as whats working great!

[@streetscaping]

One of the biggest issues is with pedestrians. In a lot of projects, they seem to be an afterthought

[@erikthehalfabee6234]

​@@streetscapingis that really so? I'd like to more one-way streets. The routes for cars are sometimes to cumbersome. Do pedestrians deserve more thought, or is it fine like this?

[@jUQMtDmf]

​@@streetscaping I haven't really noticed that?

[@klaesregis7487]

@@erikthehalfabee6234 they might be cumbersome for visiting traffic (people that don't know the exact route), if you life in the neighborhood you often use a bike. One way traffic decreases the traffic that tries to sneak through which is a good thing in my opinion. I do sometimes feel the pain when I visit friends and I end up on the wrong side of such a road.

[@erikthehalfabee6234]

@@klaesregis7487 one way streets on most streets and only the main arteries two way traffic creates much safer and faster intersections. Dutch intersections can be slow and chaotic

[@DerOllie]

very very cool that you used the city of Groningen!

[@JeanAlb]

Groningen the happiest of the Netherlands and 3rd of Europe of best quality of life. My city ❤❤❤

[@maxhavelarius7695]

Wow, a great contribution!

[@kirathal]

thank you for your positive approach

[@sancheeez]

Thank you, this video is very helpful and concise.

[@captainchaos3667]

Fascinating and very comprehensive.

[@BenJamin-lf3do]

Commenting to support the channel. Can’t believe this is your first video, it’s great

[@lbergen001]

Very very good video packed with many clear examples.👍👍

[@lordsleepyhead]

I'm so glad I found this video. 90% of your footage is from my own neighbourhood!

[@Wuzzy-qp9kn]

Wow you showed many places in Groningen where I rode my bike, it's nice to see 😊

[@lolololol7573]

Great video. Your introduction was solid and you really reeled me in out of curiosity even though I know the answer. Edit: What a solid video! This is insanely well covered, fantastic work.

[@Nomenius1]

I will be watching your channel with great interest, you seem to be capable of describing without moralizing like so many other good and not so good urbanist channels fail to do. While also describing more than just a single particular thing at a time, which greatly increases my sense of all of this belonging to a coherent system rather than an example in vacuum from the rest of reality.

[@RFGfotografie]

Great video.

[@Stephen_Lafferty]

Your video was suggested to me from @NotJustBikes - I look forward to watching more of your content!

[@eduardveres3501]

Very informative. Whell done

[@Ymanyyyy]

Me who has been living in The Netherlands for years now: That is really interesting 👍

[@philsarkol6443]

Great video, good examples being shown here. I guess we in the Netherlands are so used to all of this great streetdesign and it's positive consequences for our well being, we may think it is the same in the rest of the world, wich of course it isn't. But as we are people who can complain very well, we also tend to keep looking for improvements, where ever possible! Thank you for reminding me, we live in a well structured, well organised society, with indeed the happiest children in the world, gettin their independence by riding a bike on their own as young as 8 or 9 years old!!!

[@Blackadder75]

6 or 7 in the countryside . and I was allowed AS A 5 YEAR old to ride my bike around the block in downtown Utrecht (just no street crossings at that age) and this was around 1980 when the city was a lot more dangerous than nowadays

[@markmeyer-delvendahl9766]

Great video, you got a new subscriber :)

[@tamar597]

Very well captured! Much to improve elsewhere, also here in Czechia

[@david-reason]

Subscribed - I used to drive to work from the UK, through The Netherlands to get to my office in Germany in the mid 1980's. I now live in Thailand where driving is very different, due to so many motorbikes on the road. Locally, I have noticed that some traffic lights have been removed at a 3 way junction, this naturally slows the traffic down, so everyone makes an effort to give way or make safe progress through the junction. It's like walking across a pedestrian crossing in Ho Chi Minh City, walk across slowly, allowing bikes to avoid you as you traverse the crossing. It takes time to adjust to new traffic patterns. Best wishes from Bangkok.

[@nachtorchis]

Did I see Groningen? Love it! Groningen is totall bliss!

[@annebraun581]

Awesome video 😎

[@JAKempelly]

Great video!

[@GeoDetective]

Nicely done! I regnize more than half the locations, and the closest to my house is less than a kilometer.

[@robinverbeek3514]

This should be an example for some countries in Europe and the rest of the world. Like Belgium, they almost do the same, but they can do better. Especially the bicycle paths. Some of these are in such a horrendous state right now so you can't call it a bicycle path anymore.

[@anrmlumlwundlistr7620]

Dutch traffic calming: speedbump Belgian traffic calming: pothole 😁

[@Blackadder75]

I see Belgium as the leading country in competitive road cycling, before the French, Italians, Spanish or Dutch so I am always a bit confused why they don;t have the best cycling infrastructure. (sorry Tour the France and Anquetil , the klassiekers and Merckx have you beaten.

[@ukrytykrytyk8477]

Very nice video! It's good to see some own recorded clips rather than just ripped of from the internet.

[@Jalmaan]

There's three places in the city i really wish the municipality to tackle: - Visual markings on Pop Dijkemaweg, so people will permanently drive in the middle, meaning people will actually go 30 rather than 60 - Europaweg (shown in this video with the dedicated buslanes in the middle) is a 50 road, but looks like a 80 road, so people speed continuously. Should be less wide with better markings (and no speed trap please, punish people for your bad design) - Pedestrian crossing on Hereweg with a traffic light. This is a big nono, because there's no intersection there drivers don't notice the traffic lights and people already speed there. Great video btw! Thx for sharing

[@maartenvanr9478]

This video is top notch 👌

[@daltonmooring2573]

beautiful

[@busshock]

Love to see my home town getting some attention, Groningen is an amazing place to live. You had some nice weather too, judging by the flags I guess you were here in early May?

[@streetscaping]

The footage was shot at random times of the year including early May

[@melle4390]

I was 28 when I bought my first car. I simply didn't have the need for one before that because I would either cycle or take public transport.

[@Tonstie]

It was funny seeing one shot and thinking "Hey I know that street" and then doing that for most of the video. You're right about the car park in the back of the vismarkt at 17:36 . The municipality has the same opinion and they've bought it to remove car parking. Now they are looking for options on what to do with the space. One of them is making part of it a protected bicycle parking garage. Bikes have become a clutter issue in the city centre and the municipality is trying to remove them from the streets with free bicycle parking garages

[@bert2526]

My hometown!

[@SerwerW]

very nice video

[@GreggFellows]

very similar in my neck of the woods in Twente

[@hvputten]

Not mentioned is the fact that the main purpose of a lot of the dutch road infrastructure is to increase safety for all users. The slowing of mechanical traffic added to the safety. The safety made the alternative of using bikes possible. More bikes is less cars which leads to more safety. If you want to follow this dutch example concentrate on the safety. Look at giving people a choice: car, public transport, bike and going on foot.

[@streetscaping]

Bicycle Dutch has made a great video on sustainable safety, which is the foundation of designing road infrastructure in the Netherlands.

[@JeanAlb]

Groningen my city 😍

[@rgfrank1668]

This video is incredible dishonest.... I mean only sunshine and good weather? Not including, fog, rainfall or an actual downpour? Tsss ;) (just in case anyone stil wondering that was 100% sarcasm). I like the tone and flow of your vid, u talk calmly and seemingly effortlessly flow through your arguments it is very pleasant to listen to, thank you. And of course putting the Netherlands in a good light is always +1 :D

[@h50herman]

this is not a weather forecast, but how the traffic is running

[@ttopero]

Impressive inaugural video! I’m curious if you have a focus or niche topic or interest area for your channel? I have a suggestion if you’re interested in urban design issues in general. I have a hunch you have produced other videos before, though not available here😉

[@streetscaping]

Thanks! I have got several ideas for future videos already, but if you have any suggestions, I'm happy to hear

[@ttopero]

@@streetscaping I look forward to what you create. My suggestion is to keep in mind the EXPERIENCE of the USER, besides the technical. We have lots of higher level technical channels but few that show how it feels to complete a journey end to end.

[@drakewalters2618]

How much would it take to implement this across the US? A fraction of what we spend on the military, that’s for sure. I want my town to implement this within 5-10 years. How do I get involved? How do I push for change? How do I push for rapid, explosive movement??? I don’t want to wait for a child to die for this to happen.

[@zivkovicable]

Urban bike infrastructure pays for itself many times over, so the US could expand the military even further.

[@remcohoman1011]

Born and raised in Groningen, moved out in 2001, because of a job in printstore, Bronsema in Leek, now 2024 I work in Groningen again since a few years, at a printstore and doing deliveries, they can be a challenge in downtown, the time schedule is not realistic, so, when I must deliver, I deliver, also after 12.00 .. and it is what they want, the igns are already up, but legally they are out of function

[@jockske83]

If the car is limited to 30km/h then there is no separation . If the car goes 50 then there will be a speedbump, if a car goes 60 or more , there will be trees or a row of parked cars. @notjustbikes

[@RenghisKhan]

I've biked in every spot that is visible in this video. There's a point I'd like to make, recently someone had the idea that bikes and pedestrians can share roads in the centre of town. This is however not a brilliant idea because pedestrians are more aware of their phones, shops, the conversation they are in or whatever is on their mind than that they are participating in traffic. Most people on bikes are used to pedestrians walking anywhere they want, on the sidewalks but also in the middle of the street. This is probably due to the fact that the roads as well as the sidewalks are constructed of the same yellow tiles. Especially people who haven't lived in the city seem to think they are therefore allowed to walk everywhere. This does already create dangerous situations, but now we are getting ever more spaces that totally lack designated areas for bikes and pedestrians. This would not be a problem if pedestrians would be aware that they are participants in a traffic situation. Well, they are not. Pedestrians do not see themselves as taking part in traffic and their actions on these streets are completely unpredictable for people on bikes. Even if you use your bell (or as I do now, a 118db horn) on a bike, people hardly ever react or, at best, cuss at you for having the nerve to warn people of your presence often stating (falsely) that you are not allowed to ride your bike there. Which already shows traffic signs are wasted on pedestrians. I find myself in multiple collisions per month with pedestrians who suddenly decide to go to the other side of the street, who suddenly decide the should cross a road or who feel the need to walk with four or five people in a row taking up the whole width of the street. This gets especially scary when you approach parents with two or more children. It is easier to predict where lightning will strike than it is predicting the moves of kids. Combine this with the yellow tiles that are notoriously slippery when wet (even though the municipal government claims they are not, everybody who rides a bike knows this is a lie) and you have created quite a dangerous situation. I would urge every city to make an effort to keep pedestrians and bikes strictly separated for the safety of both parties.

[@therealdutchidiot]

I remember this thing they did in Haren, called the "voetspad" which flopped for the exact reason you're citing.

[@kailahmann1823]

also pedestrians can change directions "on the spot". Sharing space with cars can be dangerous, but at least they are somewhat predictable.

[@brosaus]

I disagree with your opinion on these shared spaces. Having shared spaces between pedestrians and cyclists is another form of traffic calming. Clearly the area is highly productive where people roam around so it's not a favourable place to traverse. Low speeds are demanded for the use of the area. If the place is not your destination, what would deter you from choosing a slightly longer alternative route where you have the right of way? And if the shared place is your destination, why would you be wanting to speed through there anyway?

[@RenghisKhan]

​@@brosausFirst of all, speeding cyclists is not the issue. I am not talking about cycling at 20kph or higher speeds. The situation I describe is true for cyclists doing 10kph and even less. I can assure you doing more than 10kph in those areas is nearly impossible, the centre of Groningen is a busy place. The only relatively safe speed there would be the same speed as pedestrians, 5kph max. Nobody rides their bike at those low speeds, and it would render the use of a bike utterly useless. Second, you seem to forget that the centre is densely populated, it is not only a destination or part of a path from a to b, it is for many the starting point of every commute and the majority of those commutes takes place on bicycles. Very few people that live there have cars. Third is the sheer number of bikes, there are few cities on the planet that equal the centre of Groningen in that aspect. Of all kms travelled, most by far are done riding bikes, at more or less reasonable speeds, but faster than pedestrians. This situation is not a problem whatsoever until both groups are forced to occupy the same space. You may disagree but I've been living here as a pedestrian and a cyclist for over thirty years, I have seen which changes cause trouble and forcing pedestrians and cyclists to share space causes trouble for both groups.

[@miepmaster25]

12:45 as a delivery driver, I would like to disprove that claim 🤓 Especially around Nieuwstad!!

[@streetscaping]

I used to make deliveries around Helpman and Oosterpoortbuurt and never saw anyone honk or yell :)

[@Gxttz]

You should really visit Amersfoort! in the newer neighborhoods like Vathorst

[@omervandenbelt]

A bicycle path that is set back, timestamp 4:03, has the advantage that drivers turning right don't block the road behind them, when waiting for a cyclist that goes straight ahead. Loading or unloading goods or persons is not considered parking.

[@Khannea]

My city 💓

[@jitseknoop3408]

Groningen ❤❤❤

[@weerwolfproductions]

Grunn!

[@raphaelnikolaus0486]

Just a (side) thought: Wouldn't it be an idea to have/design signs indicating "no entry" into a street for cars only? Such as the combined parking and speed restrictions signs shown (11:53). Thereby non-car users would immediately recognise, that this restriction isn't pertaining to them, instead of having to check, whether they are exempt by looking at/for a visibly separate sign (13:43).

[@manuellangius2896]

Groningen blijft toch echt een mooie stad!

[@Trebseig]

I don't understand what is so special about all this. Oh wait; I live in the Netherlands! Kan ook gewoon in het Netherlands schrijven dus :-) Het is echt wel bijzonder hier qua fietspaden en zo, vergelijken met de meeste andere landen. Mogen we trots op zijn. Verkeersdrempels vind ik wel irritant, als we rustig rijden zijn ze niet nodig, maar we rijden niet allemaal rustig, dus vandaar; verkeerdrempels.

[@Chamassa1210]

Great video, but one thing you said bugs me. Predictable road network is not to make driving safer, it's to make everyone safer. The dutch roadnetwork in very many places does not place cars in the nr 1 spot

[@scruf153]

I feel like I am the only one who bicycle commutes in America seems everybody wants be fat and lazy and poor cars makes you poor

[@kailahmann1823]

but the TV commercials say fast food and cars make happy!

[@brosaus]

How would you otherwise get your food from the drive through? You'd starve!

[@GaryThomann-CoGC]

4:52 the give way sign with the little 'bike' signs underneath, what is the purpose? And why the differing symbols and directions? One looks like an ebike?

[@LZ-zi3ll]

It means that you have to yield (top sign) and can expect bicycles and mopeds from both directions (bottom sign).

[@bert2526]

Also, the blue round sign showing a bicycle and a motorized (either gas or electric) bicycle, means that they are allowed to go both directions.

[@jannetteberends8730]

A woonerf is also great when you don’t have children. You can experience the childhood of the children of your neighbors. It’s a kind of street family.

[@bombersander]

Very informative and fun to watch. Too bad most of our bikelanes have become useless here in the netherlands because of a rising amount of E-Bikers.

[@Schokland2007]

Ridiculous exaggeration.😊

[@bombersander]

@@Schokland2007 not in the bigger cities!

[@Schokland2007]

@@bombersander The speedlimit of fatbikes should be regulated, there are some cowboys driving around in our cities, but on the whole it is still fine. At least these bikes don't pollute the air.

[@bombersander]

@@Schokland2007 they should slap license plates on those things, make it mandatory to wear helmets on them, and if it goes faster than 25kmh it needs to get the same regulations as a 50cc moped. I am for sure not against E-Bikes themselves, but E-Bikers. Countless amounts of times every day to and from work, they are the majority that drive irresponsibly. take turns without looking first, no indicating, very suddenly stopping for no reason, constantly overtaking and then lagging in front of you. If they were never able to pedal that fast they won't know how to drive safely at those speeds. with licensing people can be taught how to at the driving school.

[@Schokland2007]

@@bombersander I guess you cycle every day on a very busy route and extrapolate your experience to the whole of the Netherlands. I cycle everyday in Amsterdam and find it always remarkable how quiet it is outside the busy roads.

[@GaryThomann-CoGC]

1:25 lol 'yank tank' was a surprise ... I bet this beast was part of the kindermoord ... maybe it only has just been released from prison!

[@Sh0werGel_]

So on what day was this all filmed? I have never seen so many flags when not on a special day...

[@streetscaping]

The footage used was shot at various times of the year

[@Drakenvlieg]

Sowieso 5 Mei

[@jooch_exe]

Looking at the footage, this must have been quite a lengthy project. Respect for pulling trough. Lately i have found quite a few cases of deteriorating traffic logic in Groningen. For example the bicycle lane running parallel to Bauhaus. The situation here was changed so that cyclists on an ongoing road now have to yield to cars making a turn. And this was only the start, more and more situations are now being favored towards faster traffic. In my opinion this is a bad trend of quick fixes.

[@streetscaping]

Yes, I noticed this as well. I believe there were several accidents there, and the easiest fix was to remove bicycle priority as bicyclists would then pay more attention. This, of course, is not great practice. They should have put speed bumps on the bicycle path as it's done near the Meerstad P+R

[@autohmae]

9:22 interesting didn't know the Hacker One company from the US has an office in Groningen since 2017. Ahh, I should have known the company is Dutch in origin.

[@bjdamn]

Lot's of software design compagnies in Groningen

[@PieterPatrick]

I hope Americans find this video and not only Dutch.

[@ErvinKortsLaur]

@17:57 those scooters are the worst experience in the Netherlands. Multiple examples are in this video.

[@__Andrew_]

F E E D B A C K - Please include more of a bio - From what experience are you making this video? Thanks. Nice video. Just curious... Are you paying yt to promote this? or cleverly optimised it for the YT Algorithm? YT have pushed it to me .. I subscribe to 2 similar channels. But on other subjects that im obviously interested in i seem to get pushed only very established channels with 100k+ followers.

[@drakewalters2618]

“Here, pedestrians have the right of way” me, an American who knows pedestrians also have the right of way here but people don’t care: “interesting..”

[@zivkovicable]

Is that true? The USA is one of the few places on the planet with "jaywalking" laws. Europeans can cross anywhere where the road appears to be clear except for highways, and have priority once they have stepped on the road. That's a true right of way.. In some countries, if a motorist hits a pedestrian or cyclist they will be held automatically liable for injury and damages,, while in the US the victim must prove the driver is responsible beyond doubt, and often the driver has a better lawyer than the victim.

[@carstarsarstenstesenn]

👍

[@gklerk4170]

12:46 Sorry but Dutch people also get itchy if unloading takes more time than just delivering a DHL-package to the frontdoor.

[@streetscaping]

I'm sure if it's more than a minute or two that is definitely the case

[@ROSALIEIK]

ha we are epic!

[@lucasvanderheijden]

One thing the stopping for a car who is bringing a package is seen as annoying but people know that being angry doesn’t help. But because of this there is a general hate culture around these types of van’s since they always speed and don’t look out for other people

[@DoomDutch]

Must've filmed plenty of footage on the 5th of May lol

[@deinemudda1049]

The title should be:"How to build roads and streets". It's a shame that the roads like in the Netherlands are not the norm... When I went to the Netherlands, I was amazed by all the things told by the other urbanist KZbinr, but I was a bit disappointed to find out that the infrastructure prefers safety and capacity over sheer speed (didn't like the fact that I can't just cycle with 20 mph through the city's...). But that's just me, the place is a cycling utopia.

[@autohmae]

well, when going longer distances, you aren't meant to go through the city, but around it. 🙂

[@ttopero]

@@autohmaegoing around even on bike? It’s difficult to have frequent “cycling highways” for recreational cyclists in the city, but they shouldn’t be relegated to the ring road or beyond either, right?

[@QnA22]

Speed probably also has its limits on efficiency. Time wise, environmentally, safety, cost, space consumption and likely lots more arguments of why not to incorporate stopped priority within a city. Around, makes more sense, but even there limits on speed efficiency apply. Dunno, seems odd to want speed.

[@deinemudda1049]

Well, my need for speed is somewhat different to what most people understand. If I see idiots cruising around with 15 mph on their electric bikes with zero effort and zero awareness, that only makes me mad. If I have a chance to speed up as much as I want, I'll do, it's very thrilling (I'm just entering my 20s, of course I don't appreciate relaxed cycling). It's even more thrilling to overtake the normal Electric bikes, with my unpowered Kickbike, and still keeping up with them, it just feels so good to make them look in awe to see them just being overtaken by a overglorified scooter

[@autohmae]

@@ttopero well, if you like going fast or like cycling as a sport, who cares if it's a bit longer ? That's how I've always seen it.

[@khbvdl1]

2:17 actually has a 70km/hr limit.

[@streetscaping]

Yes, within built-up areas, the speed limit is lowered