at 19:12... what you call a shopping mall...That street (heuvelstraat) use to be the main road from Breda to den Bosch ('s-hertogenbosch)..can you imagine this street with cars, bikes, pedestrians etc?..
Much better without the cars, no doubt! All good for what it is and clearly quite popular, but I was at the time more in the mood for a quiet cafe, which I found quite easily and not far from the train station. Thanks so much for watching and for the comment. Cheers! John
From about 3.15 onwards there is an alternative route, all the way to the city centre with separated bike paths through a quiet residential neighbourhood that is used by most of the locals.
At 9:33 on the left you can see the AFAC (Algemene Fiets Afhandel Centrale/General Bicycle Handling Center). This is where you can collect your bike (after paying a fee) if the municipality took it away from the streets because of neglect or it being in a no-parking zone.
From 3:39, this is not a bike lane, but what is called in Dutch a "fietssuggestiestrook" (bike suggestion lane), since there are no images of bicycles painted on this part of the road. These lanes have no legal status. Cars are allowed to drive, halt and park on a fietssuggestiestrook. Although thousands and thousands of kilometers of bike (suggestion) lanes in the Netherlands have a red color, the use of this color has no legal status. Fun fact: the first bicycle lane that had a red color could be found in Tilburg, in 1980.
Ah cool! That's a new one for me: "fietssuggestiestrook" (bike suggestion lane) Thanks so much. Yeah, I did know that the first bicycle lane that had a red color was in Tilburg. Of course, I didn't prepare well enough to navigate to that location to pause for a moment of reflection and gratitude. Dang it! 🤣 Thanks for watching and for the comments. Much appreciated. Cheers! John
@@ActiveTowns The original red bicycle path ran from the western to the eastern part of Tilburg. During your bike ride in Tilburg, on which you report in this video, you rode on a part of this original bicycle part from 16:16 to 16:36. In this video, most of the streets and bike lanes you took in the center, run from the south to the north. If you have the opportunity to come to Tilburg again, you should ride the route of the original red bicycle part. It is this bicycling path that not only introduced the red color for bike paths/lanes, but also started the 'revolution' in the Netherlands of separate bike paths/lanes. When you are in Tilburg, feel free to contact me and I will be more than happy to accompany you on a bike ride on the original red cycle path, which is about 6 kilometers long right through the center of Tilburg, and tell you more about the history, philosphy, design choices, recent modifications, etc. of the original red cycle path.
Hello John, there is no point in blaming communities like Tilburg to be car dependent. They are, even if they don’t want to be. Public transport outside de Randstad is much less accessible and getting less so because buslines are taken out by every new concession. So there is no alternative. Also, you can’t compare a city like Tilburg with Delft. Tilburg is serving a large rural area, which is car dependent by default where as Delft is serving only it self, which makes it easier to prioritize the own population. You see this difference on all levels, fi the place of the sharkteeth on the roundabout. Very logical from a Tilburg perspective. I also have the feeling you didn’t take the main bike route to the centre, but followed the main arteries. You also have to recognize the need to prioritize different kinds of traffic I think. In the suburbs there will be much less pedestrians using the sidewalk then cyclists using the bikepath. So it is very logical to keep the bikepath flat instead of letting the cyclists having a rollercoaster ride over every single private access.
Thanks so much for watching and for your thoughtful comments. And yes, I didn't necessarily take the safest or preferred route. I actually find Tilburg to be a good example for North American cities as they look very similar, although it is still far ahead of most of them. Cheers! John
As I pointed out in the comments to an earlier video You nicely picked up the differece between the old medieval cities (in Noord-Brabant these are Bergen op Zoom, Breda and ‘s-Hertogenbosch) and the newer industrial cities like Roosendaal, Tilburg, Oss, Eindhoven and Helmond. The choices in the past and now regarding infrastructure are sometimes telling!
I am also a traffic expert and was born and still live in Tilburg. As a professional I do not agree with the many comments you made. If you think district collector roads and arterial roads to other residential areas with 70 km/h are wrong, you are not only frustrating the centre but the total accessibility of an entire urban area. And if all adjacent cycle lanes have to be moved for you to behind a row of trees or parked cars, even a residential area becomes unliveable and you ignore the fact that integral separation of all traffic types is not the solution. In an inner city, mixing traffic types is often the way to make travel safer and to reduce speeds.
Tlburg was the first city in the netherlands that had a red bycicle path in the netherlands anmd also the fitst street were car traffic got limmited to favor biscles. the modern bycicle infrastucture in the netherlands started in Tilburg. the road you went into the city is called bredaseweg, 200 meters noth of that road there is a bisicles only bikepath that tunnels under the 4 lane road you were crossing. also it takes you direct into the city center.
Yes! I'm super excited about going back to do a more in-depth look at that history and explore some of the more welcoming routes in the city. Thanks so much for watching and commenting. I really appreciate it. Cheers! John
The bicycle path along Paleisring (with the white palace) is a failure in my eyes. If there just a few bikes on it then it's fine. When it gets busier it's way to narrow
At 21:26 a non legal pedestrians crossing. It could be made legal by adding white surfaces of at least 0.5mx4.00m in between the colors. The road owner (the city in this case, can get into trouble in case of a traffic accident for not obeying the design rules).
It's certainly a choice... a municipality can prioritize the speed and efficiency of motor vehicles or the safety and comfort of people outside of cars. You can't have it both ways in the same space. My professional position when it comes to areas of transportation mode mixing is that people walking, biking, and rolling on mobility devices should always be prioritized over the convenience of motor vehicle drivers.
@@ActiveTowns I’ve been a cyclist in the Netherlands for over 50 years and almost never did I think priority for cars was illogical. As a cyclist in the countryside you prepare for cars to go first so you slow down a little and then you can safely cross a road without fear a car will not yield. It’s a game of efficiency, in cities cyclists win and outside of cities cars win in return, it seems logical to most of us plus it keeps you alert…
Tilburg and Eindhoven don't have a historic city center like Breda and Den Bosch. They were a combination of small villages that grow together during the time of industrialisation. Between the villages unfortunately there was space for a more car centric city development after WW2 😟
Yeah, my last visit to Eindhoven was in 2015... I wish I could have squeezed it in as well on this trip to document any changes. Thanks so much for tuning in and for commenting. Cheers! John
That up and down on the sidewalks at the villa's are there because of lack of space. As of the sidewalk is private property and these are not easily given up. and earlier the 70 km speed 2 lane is a ramp to the highway and outside city boundary. Shark teeth are just for help. Please always read the signs! There are yield signs.
Yes,it is not so that bikes are always the ones that have priority.I dont know either why that is,it should be on any roundabout,but it isnt.. Sorry about that from me as a Dutchman.
Lol in the Uk this would be gold star cycling and walking infrastructure. But I no this ist the best the Netherlands have to offer I have been to Amsterdam and Utrecht . this year I visited Valkenburg Hilly part of the Netherlands it was a pretty town but it had lots of car parking in the centre not good for cycling and walking . if they just had out of town car parkin particularly for tourist and coaches and removed most of the car parking in the centre it would make a big difference.
Pretty much my daily commute to work by bike. It is not too bad and takes as long with the car as with the bike. My word, didn’t know it was this ugly…I do take home a different route on that dual totally separated cycling path from west to east. Too bad you missed that one. I believe that dual cycling path was a ‘world’s first concept’ (I could be exaggerating)
Thanks so much for watching and commenting. Nah, all good, and don't get me wrong, these facilities are light years ahead of 90% of what we have in North America. Yeah, I do plan to do an on-bike interview with a local the next time I visit and yeah, I would like to profile the location of that famous "first red fietspad" Cheers! John
That first roundabout is within city limits and in general slower traffic has priority over cars at roundabouts inside city limits. Pedestrians on a zebra crossing have priority over cyclists.
I have a strong suspicion that the city didnt raise the sidewalk at these ramps because they lead up to obviously very expensive detached houses. From my experience, these homeowners are often the people that suffer a bit from the nimby syndrome. So, they will probably hire legal council if the city would plan something like that, because their own driveway on their private land would no longer align with the public sidewalk. So, they will probaly cliam damages because now they, of course *ahem*, hire builders themselfs to raise their driveway... So, its all going to be a long and expensive process to get it all done to a point where the city decides the money is just spend way better elsewhere. Its a tactic often used, because these wealthy individuals cant prevent the city doing what they want with the sidewalks obviously, but they can make it as cumbersome as possible. This is actually a big problem, to a point that some rich homeowners are just blocking city plans, like a new highrise for example, just for the sake of it in the hope of getting something out of it. This causes many projects to be much more expensive than needed. And yeah, on the one hand its good that the state cant just mess up peoples private land without them, as a citizen, having a say in the matter. But on the other hand abusing the law just for your own financial gain is a tricky one. Because how are you going to prove that? A minor inconvenience might actually be big deal to someone, who knows? And actually following that through all the way to a judge is a long and expensive process. I mean, if you have to put a whole construction project on hold for months, its often a lot cheaper to just pay these people whatever they are asking for or just not bother, like what probably happened here.
@@ActiveTowns And thank you for respecting and highlighting the historic connection The Netherlands and the US share, all the way from the founding of New Amsterdam on Manhattan, through the American Revolution, of course WWII when the US saved our independance all the way to 2024 and the challenges of today. Over here in The Netherlands people generally have a pretty negative bias towards the US and the unforgiving nature of its society, but its easy to forget that we enjoy our freedom over here thanks to you guys!
To give some context as to why tilburg is sutch a car centric hell hole. Tilburg used to be a textile manufacturing city which colapsed in the 1960s. The then Major Cees Becht, better known as Cees de Sloper (Cees the Wrecker). Decided to knock down half of the city center. And seeing that it was the 60s it became very car-centric. A mess they are still cleaning up to this day 60 years later. Now it has been improving slowly. But not with some begrudgement from the Boomer generation who don't like that their removing space for cars. Also agree that for the Renovation of the: Stadhuisplein (City hall square. With the white palice). A for effort C for execution. The bikepath is bumpy and hard to distinquish from the pedestrian pavement, which leads to them suddenly walking into your path without looking.
Well, that was a trip down Memory Lane. I was born in Tilburg. Been living in Cyprus and Germany for over 20 years now, but I remember Tilburg like yesterday. Tilburg was deemed the most middle-of-the-road city in NL, and as such frequently the testing ground for new things, like separate traffic lights for bicycles, and separate red-asphalt bike paths. Or pre-internet online banking (never saw a chequebook since 1986). A pleasant provincial city, nr 5 or nr 6 depending on when you look, and pretty safe and comfortable for cycling, also to neighbouring towns. Never used a car when I lived there! Although I like driving a car, I distinctly DO NOT like being pushed into one, when it clearly isn't necessary, or even decreasing the quality of living. City centers shoud continue to accommodate for cars (I drove my seriously ill mother to city centers for YEARS) but should be de-prioritized. Tilburg and Breda do a decent job I must say! Comparing to many other countries I've seen, and comparing to what I remember when I left The Netherlands.... Multi-lane Car sewer? Don't forget that modern cities, and population concentrations are only possible because of the modern car. If you really don't like cars so badly, you should advocate for smaller, even more provincial towns. Which is where I live in now. They have less facilties, but are slower tempo, and nicerderst... :-) If you take cars away from modern concentrated cities, you end up with prisons. 15 minute prisons. And smart money is already leaving the prisons for the low-classes. I don't think in those terms, but governments do.... watch out with what you'd wish for, ActiveTows! Other than that... Good job, ActiveTowns! 🙂
I've always had the impression that cycling infrastructure in the south of the country is worse than in the rest of the country. They seem to be stuck in a more car-brained past.
Yep. Somewhat. There are some good things happening there for sure, but overall, there is a lot of work yet to do... which is fine. Every place needs to work its own situations. Cheers! John
As someone living near Tilburg and having a job in Tilburg i can say it is the worst city in the province of North-Brabant. The centre of town is the worst and most depressing of city centers i know. There are a lotta ppl living there that are a-holes It has some of the most a-hole fines written per capita in the country. Last i heard only Amsterdam had more of these fines written (75 vs 70 fines written per 1000 residents according to research by RTL news in 2021). The only thing it got going for it in my oppinion is the concert hall that have some big names coming through.
Hmmm… fascinating. Well I will say pretty much everyone I met or came in contact with were delightful. We do know there is a correlation between unattractive or dreadful urban environments and unsocial behaviors, not that I’d describe all of the area in this way. Thanks for watching and commenting.
I don't appreciate your use of profanity. It doesn't come across very professional, as you've claimed to be. Cyclists and pedestrian traffic is not given priority outside of the built up area due to the low number of said cyclists and pedestrians and higher speeds of traffic.
Thanks so much for watching and commenting. I apologize. I certainly did not mean to offend. I do stand by my position, however, as it is my professional position that the safety and comfort of people walking, biking, using wheelchairs, or other mobility devices should not be sacrificed for the convenience of people driving cars.
Thank you for your clearly stated opinion, your engagement in the comments and lack of helpful suggestions for improvement regarding the content. While I agree this channel sometimes is a bit off regarding local knowledge, regarding active mobility John usually is on the dot. But as most of us, John is not a local in most places around the world.
at 19:12... what you call a shopping mall...That street (heuvelstraat) use to be the main road from Breda to den Bosch ('s-hertogenbosch)..can you imagine this street with cars, bikes, pedestrians etc?..
Much better without the cars, no doubt! All good for what it is and clearly quite popular, but I was at the time more in the mood for a quiet cafe, which I found quite easily and not far from the train station. Thanks so much for watching and for the comment. Cheers! John
From about 3.15 onwards there is an alternative route, all the way to the city centre with separated bike paths through a quiet residential neighbourhood that is used by most of the locals.
Oh, cool! Thanks so much for watching and for pointing out the alternate route. The power of local knowledge. Cheers! John
At 9:33 on the left you can see the AFAC (Algemene Fiets Afhandel Centrale/General Bicycle Handling Center). This is where you can collect your bike (after paying a fee) if the municipality took it away from the streets because of neglect or it being in a no-parking zone.
Oh, cool! Thanks so much for watching and for pointing that out. Cheers! John
From 3:39, this is not a bike lane, but what is called in Dutch a "fietssuggestiestrook" (bike suggestion lane), since there are no images of bicycles painted on this part of the road. These lanes have no legal status. Cars are allowed to drive, halt and park on a fietssuggestiestrook.
Although thousands and thousands of kilometers of bike (suggestion) lanes in the Netherlands have a red color, the use of this color has no legal status.
Fun fact: the first bicycle lane that had a red color could be found in Tilburg, in 1980.
Ah cool! That's a new one for me: "fietssuggestiestrook" (bike suggestion lane) Thanks so much.
Yeah, I did know that the first bicycle lane that had a red color was in Tilburg.
Of course, I didn't prepare well enough to navigate to that location to pause for a moment of reflection and gratitude. Dang it! 🤣
Thanks for watching and for the comments. Much appreciated.
Cheers!
John
@@ActiveTowns The original red bicycle path ran from the western to the eastern part of Tilburg. During your bike ride in Tilburg, on which you report in this video, you rode on a part of this original bicycle part from 16:16 to 16:36.
In this video, most of the streets and bike lanes you took in the center, run from the south to the north. If you have the opportunity to come to Tilburg again, you should ride the route of the original red bicycle part. It is this bicycling path that not only introduced the red color for bike paths/lanes, but also started the 'revolution' in the Netherlands of separate bike paths/lanes.
When you are in Tilburg, feel free to contact me and I will be more than happy to accompany you on a bike ride on the original red cycle path, which is about 6 kilometers long right through the center of Tilburg, and tell you more about the history, philosphy, design choices, recent modifications, etc. of the original red cycle path.
Cool! Thanks will do. Feel free to send me an email at info@activetowns.org and we’ll stay in touch for my next visit.
Hello John, there is no point in blaming communities like Tilburg to be car dependent. They are, even if they don’t want to be. Public transport outside de Randstad is much less accessible and getting less so because buslines are taken out by every new concession. So there is no alternative. Also, you can’t compare a city like Tilburg with Delft. Tilburg is serving a large rural area, which is car dependent by default where as Delft is serving only it self, which makes it easier to prioritize the own population. You see this difference on all levels, fi the place of the sharkteeth on the roundabout. Very logical from a Tilburg perspective. I also have the feeling you didn’t take the main bike route to the centre, but followed the main arteries.
You also have to recognize the need to prioritize different kinds of traffic I think. In the suburbs there will be much less pedestrians using the sidewalk then cyclists using the bikepath. So it is very logical to keep the bikepath flat instead of letting the cyclists having a rollercoaster ride over every single private access.
Thanks so much for watching and for your thoughtful comments. And yes, I didn't necessarily take the safest or preferred route. I actually find Tilburg to be a good example for North American cities as they look very similar, although it is still far ahead of most of them. Cheers! John
As I pointed out in the comments to an earlier video You nicely picked up the differece between the old medieval cities (in Noord-Brabant these are Bergen op Zoom, Breda and ‘s-Hertogenbosch) and the newer industrial cities like Roosendaal, Tilburg, Oss, Eindhoven and Helmond. The choices in the past and now regarding infrastructure are sometimes telling!
Indeed! Well said. 🙌
I am also a traffic expert and was born and still live in Tilburg. As a professional I do not agree with the many comments you made. If you think district collector roads and arterial roads to other residential areas with 70 km/h are wrong, you are not only frustrating the centre but the total accessibility of an entire urban area. And if all adjacent cycle lanes have to be moved for you to behind a row of trees or parked cars, even a residential area becomes unliveable and you ignore the fact that integral separation of all traffic types is not the solution. In an inner city, mixing traffic types is often the way to make travel safer and to reduce speeds.
Thanks for watching and commenting.
Dankjewel mede 013 bewoner tsss breng al die ideeën naar je geboorteland dan pfff
John heeft altijd gelijk vooral als hij stilburg af loop te zeiken 😄😄
De groeten uit een wel mooie stad Breda😉
Tlburg was the first city in the netherlands that had a red bycicle path in the netherlands anmd also the fitst street were car traffic got limmited to favor biscles.
the modern bycicle infrastucture in the netherlands started in Tilburg.
the road you went into the city is called bredaseweg,
200 meters noth of that road there is a bisicles only bikepath that tunnels under the 4 lane road you were crossing.
also it takes you direct into the city center.
Yes! I'm super excited about going back to do a more in-depth look at that history and explore some of the more welcoming routes in the city.
Thanks so much for watching and commenting.
I really appreciate it.
Cheers!
John
The bicycle path along Paleisring (with the white palace) is a failure in my eyes. If there just a few bikes on it then it's fine. When it gets busier it's way to narrow
I agree.💯 Tanks so much for watching and commenting. It's much appreciated. Cheers! John
At 21:26 a non legal pedestrians crossing. It could be made legal by adding white surfaces of at least 0.5mx4.00m in between the colors. The road owner (the city in this case, can get into trouble in case of a traffic accident for not obeying the design rules).
Thanks 🙏
Traffic outside city centers tends to go faster so it’s deemed more efficient and thus safer to prioritise motor vehicles…
It's certainly a choice... a municipality can prioritize the speed and efficiency of motor vehicles or the safety and comfort of people outside of cars. You can't have it both ways in the same space. My professional position when it comes to areas of transportation mode mixing is that people walking, biking, and rolling on mobility devices should always be prioritized over the convenience of motor vehicle drivers.
I don't agree, outside city's cars have to be able to go faster then 30 or 50 kmh, so have priority over slow moving traffic.
@@bertoverweel6588Why should they have to go faster?
@nikhilsrl Because you can't expect drivers to drive 50 kmh on N roads on a distance of 40km in the Netherlands.
@@ActiveTowns I’ve been a cyclist in the Netherlands for over 50 years and almost never did I think priority for cars was illogical. As a cyclist in the countryside you prepare for cars to go first so you slow down a little and then you can safely cross a road without fear a car will not yield. It’s a game of efficiency, in cities cyclists win and outside of cities cars win in return, it seems logical to most of us plus it keeps you alert…
Tilburg and Eindhoven don't have a historic city center like Breda and Den Bosch. They were a combination of small villages that grow together during the time of industrialisation. Between the villages unfortunately there was space for a more car centric city development after WW2 😟
Yeah, my last visit to Eindhoven was in 2015... I wish I could have squeezed it in as well on this trip to document any changes.
Thanks so much for tuning in and for commenting.
Cheers!
John
Well, Tilburg isn't known to be particularly interesting, beautiful or well-designed. So, now you know that too😂
😎
John had a bit of a grumble day that day.
Hehe 😂 I suppose it’s all relative. Being based in Utrecht for three weeks spoiled me and when I’m on my own, I’m probably a little less diplomatic. 😎
@@ActiveTowns I love it!
Was thinking the same!
He is becoming Dutch 😂😂
Grumbly and hungry. I love it !!
If you are in sTilburg you get grumble hheheh
That up and down on the sidewalks at the villa's are there because of lack of space. As of the sidewalk is private property and these are not easily given up. and earlier the 70 km speed 2 lane is a ramp to the highway and outside city boundary. Shark teeth are just for help. Please always read the signs! There are yield signs.
Thanks for watching and for the comment. Cheers! John
Yes,it is not so that bikes are always the ones that have priority.I dont know either why that is,it should be on any roundabout,but it isnt.. Sorry about that from me as a Dutchman.
Thanks! 🙏
Lol in the Uk this would be gold star cycling and walking infrastructure. But I no this ist the best the Netherlands have to offer I have been to Amsterdam and Utrecht . this year I visited Valkenburg Hilly part of the Netherlands it was a pretty town but it had lots of car parking in the centre not good for cycling and walking . if they just had out of town car parkin particularly for tourist and coaches and removed most of the car parking in the centre it would make a big difference.
Yeah, same here in most of North America.
Thanks so much for watching and commenting.
Cheers!
John
Pretty much my daily commute to work by bike. It is not too bad and takes as long with the car as with the bike. My word, didn’t know it was this ugly…I do take home a different route on that dual totally separated cycling path from west to east. Too bad you missed that one. I believe that dual cycling path was a ‘world’s first concept’ (I could be exaggerating)
Thanks so much for watching and commenting. Nah, all good, and don't get me wrong, these facilities are light years ahead of 90% of what we have in North America. Yeah, I do plan to do an on-bike interview with a local the next time I visit and yeah, I would like to profile the location of that famous "first red fietspad"
Cheers!
John
@@ActiveTowns us locals call it ‘het rooie fietspad’, which is indeed different from all the other red cycling paths..
That first roundabout is within city limits and in general slower traffic has priority over cars at roundabouts inside city limits.
Pedestrians on a zebra crossing have priority over cyclists.
Cool!
Thanks 🙏
I have a strong suspicion that the city didnt raise the sidewalk at these ramps because they lead up to obviously very expensive detached houses. From my experience, these homeowners are often the people that suffer a bit from the nimby syndrome. So, they will probably hire legal council if the city would plan something like that, because their own driveway on their private land would no longer align with the public sidewalk. So, they will probaly cliam damages because now they, of course *ahem*, hire builders themselfs to raise their driveway...
So, its all going to be a long and expensive process to get it all done to a point where the city decides the money is just spend way better elsewhere. Its a tactic often used, because these wealthy individuals cant prevent the city doing what they want with the sidewalks obviously, but they can make it as cumbersome as possible.
This is actually a big problem, to a point that some rich homeowners are just blocking city plans, like a new highrise for example, just for the sake of it in the hope of getting something out of it. This causes many projects to be much more expensive than needed. And yeah, on the one hand its good that the state cant just mess up peoples private land without them, as a citizen, having a say in the matter.
But on the other hand abusing the law just for your own financial gain is a tricky one. Because how are you going to prove that? A minor inconvenience might actually be big deal to someone, who knows? And actually following that through all the way to a judge is a long and expensive process. I mean, if you have to put a whole construction project on hold for months, its often a lot cheaper to just pay these people whatever they are asking for or just not bother, like what probably happened here.
Yeah, these are very familiar challenges. Thanks for watching and for contributing to the conversation. Cheers! John
@@ActiveTowns And thank you for respecting and highlighting the historic connection The Netherlands and the US share, all the way from the founding of New Amsterdam on Manhattan, through the American Revolution, of course WWII when the US saved our independance all the way to 2024 and the challenges of today. Over here in The Netherlands people generally have a pretty negative bias towards the US and the unforgiving nature of its society, but its easy to forget that we enjoy our freedom over here thanks to you guys!
🙏
To give some context as to why tilburg is sutch a car centric hell hole. Tilburg used to be a textile manufacturing city which colapsed in the 1960s. The then Major Cees Becht, better known as Cees de Sloper (Cees the Wrecker). Decided to knock down half of the city center. And seeing that it was the 60s it became very car-centric. A mess they are still cleaning up to this day 60 years later. Now it has been improving slowly.
But not with some begrudgement from the Boomer generation who don't like that their removing space for cars.
Also agree that for the Renovation of the: Stadhuisplein (City hall square. With the white palice). A for effort C for execution. The bikepath is bumpy and hard to distinquish from the pedestrian pavement, which leads to them suddenly walking into your path without looking.
Thanks for watching and commenting. Cheers! John
Well, that was a trip down Memory Lane. I was born in Tilburg. Been living in Cyprus and Germany for over 20 years now, but I remember Tilburg like yesterday.
Tilburg was deemed the most middle-of-the-road city in NL, and as such frequently the testing ground for new things, like separate traffic lights for bicycles, and separate red-asphalt bike paths. Or pre-internet online banking (never saw a chequebook since 1986).
A pleasant provincial city, nr 5 or nr 6 depending on when you look, and pretty safe and comfortable for cycling, also to neighbouring towns. Never used a car when I lived there!
Although I like driving a car, I distinctly DO NOT like being pushed into one, when it clearly isn't necessary, or even decreasing the quality of living. City centers shoud continue to accommodate for cars (I drove my seriously ill mother to city centers for YEARS) but should be de-prioritized. Tilburg and Breda do a decent job I must say!
Comparing to many other countries I've seen, and comparing to what I remember when I left The Netherlands....
Multi-lane Car sewer? Don't forget that modern cities, and population concentrations are only possible because of the modern car. If you really don't like cars so badly, you should advocate for smaller, even more provincial towns. Which is where I live in now. They have less facilties, but are slower tempo, and nicerderst... :-) If you take cars away from modern concentrated cities, you end up with prisons. 15 minute prisons. And smart money is already leaving the prisons for the low-classes. I don't think in those terms, but governments do.... watch out with what you'd wish for, ActiveTows! Other than that... Good job, ActiveTowns! 🙂
Yay! Thanks so much for tuning in. Cheers! John
I've always had the impression that cycling infrastructure in the south of the country is worse than in the rest of the country. They seem to be stuck in a more car-brained past.
Yep. Somewhat. There are some good things happening there for sure, but overall, there is a lot of work yet to do... which is fine. Every place needs to work its own situations. Cheers! John
You have to be in the South first 😂
Rotterdam seems the the worst they say but even Rotterdam is better than Amsterdam
As someone living near Tilburg and having a job in Tilburg i can say it is the worst city in the province of North-Brabant. The centre of town is the worst and most depressing of city centers i know. There are a lotta ppl living there that are a-holes It has some of the most a-hole fines written per capita in the country. Last i heard only Amsterdam had more of these fines written (75 vs 70 fines written per 1000 residents according to research by RTL news in 2021). The only thing it got going for it in my oppinion is the concert hall that have some big names coming through.
Hmmm… fascinating. Well I will say pretty much everyone I met or came in contact with were delightful. We do know there is a correlation between unattractive or dreadful urban environments and unsocial behaviors, not that I’d describe all of the area in this way. Thanks for watching and commenting.
I don't appreciate your use of profanity. It doesn't come across very professional, as you've claimed to be. Cyclists and pedestrian traffic is not given priority outside of the built up area due to the low number of said cyclists and pedestrians and higher speeds of traffic.
Thanks so much for watching and commenting. I apologize. I certainly did not mean to offend. I do stand by my position, however, as it is my professional position that the safety and comfort of people walking, biking, using wheelchairs, or other mobility devices should not be sacrificed for the convenience of people driving cars.
You talk a lot of nonsense You have no idea what you are talking about
lol 🤣
Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Your assertion doesn't meet that standard. By a long way
Thank you for your clearly stated opinion, your engagement in the comments and lack of helpful suggestions for improvement regarding the content. While I agree this channel sometimes is a bit off regarding local knowledge, regarding active mobility John usually is on the dot. But as most of us, John is not a local in most places around the world.