We began our tour by meeting Cornelia Dinca at the Beursplein Fietsenstalling, the underground bicycle storage facility where we kept our bikes overnight. She then introduced herself to us while we biked towards Java Island, which was fifteen minutes or so away. On the way there, we learned of her numerous accreditations and accolades—founder of a sustainable city advocacy group, fluent speaker of five languages, and writer of a prominent Dutch transportation book, just to name a few—and by the time we arrived at the bridge to Java Island we had established a good familiarity with Dinca’s qualifications. At this bridge, the Jan Schaeferbrug, Dinca directed our attention to the building in which the bridge went under. This building is the Pakhuis de Zwijger, a place that serves the greater Amsterdam community by hosting transportation, equity, and sustainability discussion forums. Cornelia Dinca then told us the history of the Pakhuis and of how it’s a synecdoche for the Dutch belief in compromise: Originally the Pakhuis was going to be demolished to make way for a bridge to Java, but after public pushback and protests the city of Amsterdam compromised to cut out the bottom of the building for the bridge but keep the rest of it erect. While expensive, this kind of compromise is within means for the Dutch, and reflects the sobriety in which the Dutch view compromise with the public in order to implement transportation solutions.  

We biked around the rest of Java Island, observing all the little things that architects and engineers implemented to make this a safe and joyful place for the community to gather; we learned that, unlike in the United States, everything is considered during a construction project, even the paving on the ground (Dinca explained to us the reason why the paving stones near intersections were rough. It was to subconsciously slow commuters to prevent a hightened risk for an accident).  

Then, we biked over to Funenpark, a neighborhood designed specifically with the environment and sustainability in mind. It was enlightening to see a megaproject neighborhood designed so differently and with such a careful emphasis on anthropological wellbeing. When contrasted with the mega-neighborhoods of the United States, such as the Nexton Park community in Summerville, South Carolina, the difference in foci is more than apparent: American developments typically prioritize familial independence and privacy (such as the infamously terrible cul-de-sac) whereas in the Netherlands residential areas are designed around the collective wellbeing of all inhabitants. Granted, this method sacrifices independence, yet it does so for a very meritorious purpose.  

After Funenpark, we said our goodbyes to Cornelia Dinca and independently investigated other parts of the city, such as the Vondelpark area.

During our stay in Delft, we took a train over to Houten: the cycling city of the future. Houten was developed as a community that excludes cars as much as possible. The city center is only accessible by biking or walking and vehicles can only get as far as one block into the residential outskirts of the town. 

When we got off the train, the first thing we saw was bike storage/rental that we had to walk through to even get out of the train station. As soon as we got out, the Fietsersbond for Houten was right across the street, which is where we met our tour guides: André Botermans and JanPeter Westein. We introduced ourselves, grabbed some bikes, and then rode all around Houten. 

We saw people of all ages while on our tour; from toddlers to the elderly, everyone was enjoying Houten’s beautiful weather and scenery. According to Mr. Botermans, Houten had achieved what American cul-de-sacs had failed to: cultivating a sense of community. After being there, I have to agree wholeheartedly. It felt very homely and like a living thing as opposed to just a place where people lived. 

Houten has bicycle highways riddled throughout to replace roads and they are noted by red pavement. They allow you to get essentially anywhere in 10 minutes with relative ease.

There are also walking paths near most cycling paths to make both pedestrians and cyclists safer. Overall, traversing Houten is an absolute breeze. 

The success of Houten shows that cycling-friendly towns aren’t some impossible dreams. Since the ease of cyclists and pedestrians was the main focus for Houten, it can be easy to overlook the small but impactful things that were implemented. If we study just how Houten flows so nicely, then implementation is the only thing we have holding us back.

Our sacrifice to rise early in the AM to catch the train from Delft to Den Haag to then navigate our way to the office of the Fietsersbond Haagse Regio all became worth it after our morning spent with Rina Adriani. A traffic project officer for the city of Den Haag and an active volunteer at the local cyclist union, Adriani first took us on a short walk so that we could rent bikes from the local shop. As we analyzed the scenery vastly different from that of Amsterdam or Delft (will we hear how it’s different at some point?), she began the conversation by informing us of the Fietserbond’s activities in the community as activists and changemakers. Their primary role is to offer a shop where people can access bike repair, an outlet for cyclers to bring to the attention of activists problems that they observe throughout the city, while working in tandem with policy makers to implement adjustments that improve the quality of infrastructure. Rina plays a unique role by acting as a bridge of communication between city workers and Fietserbond volunteers. Our bike trip started after we acquired our bicycles and began the route to the first stop, the bustling main street of Den Haag known as the Grote Marktstraat. We all parked our bikes so that we could listen to Adriani recount the history of their downtown, which had undergone a makeover considered unique for the 21st century. Having been labeled as the Dutch city with the worst air quality for many years in a row, those working to plan the future of the Netherland’s political capital decided to make a change. In 2009 they launched their plan to free the city’s downtown of cars, first by banning all cars from the city center and constructing mobile (retractable) bollards that protected the Grote Markstraat from receiving any unwanted traffic from connecting roads. This progressive system prevents any unauthorized vehicles from entering the no-car zone with the exception of government and police cars, ambulances, and retailers on certain mornings there to restock stores. Including the money spent to repave the length of road and successfully reroute traffic, the city spent 45 million euros making the changes and have since seen great returns on investment. New local investment has totaled over 450 million dollars and socially Den Haag’s center has turned away from its polluted past and is now considered the most emission- and car-free downtown in Europe. It was like nothing I had ever seen, so many people walking and cycling together without noise or pollution. With the success of their car-free downtown, many other sections of the city became inspired to prevent cars from cluttering the already narrow roads. With this in mind, Adriani then escorted us to the neighborhood containing the palaces, embassies, and governmental offices. Here we were not only able to see beautiful buildings and hear more about the culture of the city, but also to observe the calm atmosphere that surrounded these beautiful buildings. Seeing the narrow roads that lined the perimeter I questioned what it must have been like for pedestrians and cyclists before vehicles were banned from driving through. We biked past groups of tourists and school led field trips that were able to freely walk in the street and observe parts of the nation’s history without disturbance. Although many areas are opting to remove cars, it is not possible to get rid of roads with automobile access altogether due to the fact that they are still used for the majority of trips exceeding 2 km. In an effort to better the experience of cyclists and pedestrians while still catering to the needs of drivers, many major roads in Den Haag are opting to decrease their speed limits from 50 km/h to 20-30 km/h. To showcase the positive effects of this change, Rina brought us to the North Wall so that we could observe how it is possible for cyclers, walkers, and drivers to coexist through the method they implemented: the street is one-way for cars, with a bike lane alongside car traffic for bikes traveling in the same direction as cars and a separated, protected bike path for cyclists moving in the opposite direction. While here, she brought us to the famous underground parking garage that sits across from The Hague Central Station, one of the largest underground parking facilities in the world, capable of holding up to 8,500 bikes with 600 available to rent. We descended into the garage via an treadmill ramp which we learned has the unique ability to shift its direction going up or down depending on the time of day and the foot traffic associated with it. Once inside, Adriani went into depth explaining the process of construction and the plan surrounding its use. When looking around one first observes the walls displaying bright glass-covered images which bring a more modern and inviting atmosphere to the facility. It is the city’s hope that people will opt to utilize this asset in contrast to parking their bikes along the street for any stay longer than 30 minutes. Considering the number of visitors that the establishment encounters everyday, coming from within the city and outside its limits, the planning team decided to implement screens throughout the garage showcasing different attractions in The Hague with details provided so that interested persons can easily visit. The garage is working to fix the issues related to bike parking in the Hague while also garnering international attention due to its size and helping to facilitate tourism. While cycling to the next location I took note of the varying bicycle infrastructure we encountered in different parts of the city with regard to its buildings, traffic, and location. Although in some parts of town it was easier than others, biking throughout the city was everywhere a pleasure as it was obvious that the paths had been made with bikers as a priority rather than an afterthought to cars. The ability to easily and efficiently navigate throughout the city via bike paired with available amenities like the new underground parking facility makes biking as a primary form of transportation more attractive to the population. Before Adriani escorted us back to the bike rental shop, she first led us to a ramp which emerged from under a building near the Fietsersbond’s office. Descending the slope revealed to us another underground parking garage much different than the one we had just seen. This one was small, fully concrete, and painted a dull orange, only capable of holding about 800 bicycles. Rina explained to us that this garage acted as more of a neighborhood asset so that people passing through could have their bikes held there for free throughout the day or those living in the nearby buildings could park for just 50 cents a night. We realized Adriani brought us here for more than just a comparison as she began to explain to us how this seemingly ordinary facility was running a very innovative project. With 20 such locations in the Den Haag municipal area, Biesieklette is an organization that places bike repair shops in local garages, employing disadvantaged persons to work in the storefront for two years fixing bikes. Both parties benefit as members of the community have easy access to bike repair while those working there are able to gain experience so that they can be reintroduced into the labor force. The work done comes free of charge unless customers need a part ordered, for which they will have to pay. Biesieklette functions as a perfect summary of what I learned while visiting Den Haag and speaking with Rina Adriani as it resembles an efficient collaborative solution to a problem often ignored in the United States. Those working for the city and volunteering with the Fietsersbond have a vision for change in their city and by observing the inspiring progress that they have made thus far, I do not doubt that they can achieve their goals for the future.