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It is well known that large cities have not been car-friendly for a long time. Cities such as Amsterdam and Utrecht are increasingly reducing the number of parking spaces. And paid parking is being introduced everywhere within municipal boundaries, even in streets where there is no high parking pressure.

More playgrounds, more green? No!

Local councillors and academics argue that cities need to be more child-friendly and greener, and that where cars once stood, there is now space for playgrounds. But that is not happening. Reducing the number of cars has not led to more playgrounds, either within the ring road of Utrecht or in the canal belt of Amsterdam. More greenery? No. The average number of trees per inhabitant in Amsterdam is actually decreasing.

Cars have been replaced by bicycles

Cars have been replaced by a flood of bicycles, with all the problems that entails. Car parking spaces were supposed to be converted into bicycle parking facilities, but in practice they have become dumping grounds for abandoned bicycles. In addition, the number of bicycle accidents is skyrocketing. Eighty percent of serious bicycle accidents are now ‘single issue’, meaning that no other road users are involved. In addition, fat bikes can no longer be insured because they are stolen too often. And the pressure on the roads is now so high that there are bicycle traffic jams during rush hour.

Where the bicycle was once the green solution for everything and anything, it is now the problem. All this does not mean that car-baiting will come to an end. At the beginning of this year, the municipality of Utrecht announced that from 2030, the environmental zone will apply to the entire municipality and all cars that do not meet the Euro 6 standard (regardless of their drive type) will be banned. As a result, cars built before 2016 will no longer be allowed in the city.

Source: KNAC