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
License code: MPZVDPRVW1AB986F

[Clumsy_Pickle]

Thankyou for not using examples of just Amsterdam but the beautiful city of Groningen <3

[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 :)

[mattes]

Listen to how quiet these Dutch cities

[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.

[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.

[Arjay]

I like the "no street is ever complete".

Because that is probably the best mentality that the Dutch have. They are constantly looking at roads and seeing if they can be improved, if there is a problem spot, they will study it to figure out how to fix it, they might not get the right solution the first time, but they also aren't unwilling to change and admit when they made a mistake, instead they just try to fix the mistake.

Way too many countries and cities go with the mentality of "This is how it's always been, we can't change it!".

[folwr]

I love that you mentioned the relationship between neighbourhood and wellbeing of children. The important of this cannot be underestimated.

[KeesBoons]

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.

[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.

[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.

[tomfredrikblenning]

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.

[DavidvdGulik]

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

[Mark-vfop]

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

[markuserikssen]

It's so nice to see a YouTuber checking out other cities than Amsterdam. As someone who lives near Groningen, I never noticed a lot of things you've showed in this video. Sometimes, we take things for granted. This makes me look at things differently and appreciate it more. On the other hand, I think there is still a lot of room for improvement in Groningen as well. The bike infrastructure is good, but not fantastic. There are too many traffic lights, some bike lanes are too narrow or overcrowded, and the area around the station is not optimal (but will be improved soon). The bridge near the Groninger Museum is not great for biking either. All in all, still a very good city with a high living standard. I'm sure the city continues to improve the infrastructure.

[Freshbott]

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.

[HolisticHealthEducation]

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

[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.

[Lunaviia]

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

[jel]

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.

[marcelmoulin]

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.