Follow The Red Brick Road

We made it to the Netherlands- just barely. I am kidding, it was a very pleasant 9 hour drive through Germany. I didn’t take Dramamine this time, which was a good idea–saving that shit for the plane ride home.

Anyways, on our way into the Netherlands we encountered a road blockade due to farmers protesting the nitrogen regulations issued by the government. Essentially, the government has a very comprehensive climate change plan (for people at home, climate change is when.. I am just kidding), and in this the government said they would greatly reduce emissions from farming, but they have not outlined how they would do so yet. I write this because I think it will be important to watch and follow what the Netherlands do in response–will they subsidize sustainable technology options to farmers, will the government take away land, and/or will farmers lose their jobs?

Back to bikes! While in Nijmegen, we were introduced the Cycling Highway. The Cycling highway is a comprehensive bike trail network that connects rural neighborhoods together. Different cities were involved in developing cycling infrastructure to run through multiple municipalities that all connect and lead into the city of Nijmegen and beyond. A continuous path was constructed with no pieces left hanging. Trail networks are like pieces to a jigsaw puzzle, and if you lose one then you leave a cyclist in the middle of nowhere. Planners took a small amount of money from highway and other road funds (small in comparison of how big road infrastructure budgets are) and built roads centered for bikes. These roads are red in order to signal users that bikes are the primary honored mode of transportation on this system. Cars can go on these systems, but very few. The red road continues all the way into Nijmegen where then the bicycle lanes are red for continuity.

Creating dedicated and separate paths for cyclists only increases how safe and welcome bikers feel within a space; while also allowing other users to understand a system and honor the rules.

With Love,

McCall