County Cavan visits the Netherlands

Day 1 – Midden-Delfland  

The study visit started in Delft, where the DCE and its experts met the delegates at the Swapfiets store, which provided electric bicycles for the introductory cycling tour. 

To tailor to the rural landscape and demographics of County Cavan, our experts for the day, Roel Lenoir and Laurens Boex from 3PM, prepared a bicycle ride through the rural area of Midden-Delfland. This ride allowed the delegation to experience urban-rural connections that allow people to travel between cities, towns and villages by cycling. Although it was a rather cold day, it remained dry throughout the ride, and we made a short stop for coffee and tea along the way to warm up our hands.  

After the scenic ride, we returned to Delft for lunch and the expert presentations. The first presentation was delivered by Emma Stubbe, project coordinator at the DCE, who discussed the development of the Netherlands’ cycling culture and infrastructure. As already observed during the ride, cycling in the Netherlands is accessible to all, regardless of gender, age, or physical ability. Emma emphasized that good infrastructure should therefore cater to different needs. The second presentation was given by the experts of 3PM, who stressed the importance of effective communication in promoting changes in mobility behavior. They argued that it is important to understand your target group and tailor your interventions accordingly. Finally, there was time for questions from the delegation before concluding our first day.  

Day 2 – Ede-Wageningen 

On the second day, we gathered at the train station Ede-Wageningen. From here, we walked to De Fietser, a bicycle store home to the largest bicycle test track in the Netherlands. Here, we started with a presentation by Ruxandra Aelenei (RA Planning), who talked about Dutch design principles and network design. She explained that identifying key points of origin and destinations can be a useful starting point for planning new bicycle routes.   

Originally, our plan was to continue with the second presentation, but due to an unfavorable weather forecast for the afternoon, we decided to adjust our schedule and set out on our e-bikes earlier than planned. The bicycle ride was prepared by Jeroen Drabbe (Abel Leisure), who specializes in leisure cycling. It was a diverse ride of 28 kilometers, taking us through the forest, grasslands, and the city center of Wageningen. When we arrived back at De Fietser, we enjoyed a lunch and then continued the programme. Jeroen Drabbe delved deeper into the topic of leisure cycling, which accounts for one-third of the annual kilometers cycled in The Netherlands. He believes that encouraging people to cycle for leisure can also inspire them to use the bicycle more often as a means of transportation.  

Day 3 – Rural areas near Amsterdam 

The final day saw the group meet at Amsterdam Central station to catch the ferry in order to make the short journey north over the River IJ. After a quick walk to the presentation venue, the expert Brett Petzer from Mobycon introduced himself. He presented the route we would later cycle, highlighting relevant rural cycling and vehicle infrastructure such as modal filters that we would find along our cycle. He focused on explaining decisions taken regarding the design of the infrastructure, such as those aiming to vary the mental load road users experience in the Netherlands. Time was then dedicated to a question-and-answer discussion. 

With e-bikes then collected, the group set off to start the 20 km bike ride. Heading off from Amsterdam Nord in the dry, the group hugged the waterfront as they made their way to Durgedam. From here it started to lightly drizzle as the group then cycled north through the rural farmland with the rain intensity increasing. By the time the group arrived in Broek-in-Waterland, we were unfortunately a bit wet and cold but the warmth, a fresh soup and a buffet lunch made it worth the journey. However, with the weather worsening the group’s day came to a premature end. We had a great time hosting the group and we hope they enjoyed their visit! Hopefully this study visit inspired them, and we are excited to see the changes happening in Cavan over the coming years.