A MUST MUST WATCH FOR TRANSPORTATION LOVERS!
Witness the transformation of Ghent, Belgium, who instituted the Traffic Circulation Plan in April 2017, which completely changed the way nearly every resident gets around the city and has inspired unheard of mode shifts. It encourages less car use, more bicycling and more transit use by splitting the city into seven distinct zones: a mostly car-free city center core surrounded by six zones which have been cordoned off with concrete or controlled by cameras. The only way to reach them is to travel to the ring road on the city outskirts, thus making it not impossible to use a car but motivates those shorter trips to be done via human power or mass transit. Bike mode share in 2012 was 22%, now it is 35% and growing!
This swift, creative strategy of turning Ghent in to a place for people is such a phenomenal story it’s a mystery as to why it has not gotten more attention worldwide. It is a city of 262,000 residents, so not a large metropolis, but not a small city either. The metamorphosis was achieved thru a sort of tactical urbanism approach by throwing concrete barriers and planters here and there (some backed by enforcement cameras) and altering the gateways into public spaces and safer places to walk and bike. (There are now 40% fewer cars on bicycle priority streets than before the plan!)
Their main inspirations were the cities of Groningen and Utrecht, both in The Netherlands. And as Vice Mayor, Filip Watteeuw explains they did not have the funds or the time to spend 10, 20 or 30 years to catch up to where they were. So they improvised with interesting tactics and treatments and The Traffic Circulation Plan. And as I have said before what happened was stunning: almost never has their been such a rapid metamorphosis occurred in such a short time. And Ghent isn’t stopping there.
Ghent was a fabulous city for many reasons. I highly recommend a visit. It is quiet and lovely and nearly everywhere is attainable by multiple modes of transportation. You can even use a car if you like – but just remember it is a little more complicated.
25 Comments
not only a pleasant city you get. A healthy city and healthy inhabitants as well. Belgium/flanders is one of the worldwide most air polluted country, from which motorised trafic is one of the most important ones. In Belgium still nowadays most people use cars for everything, from daily groceries to work to leisure. Not because it1s efficient but because the politics (except for Gent) still believes cars are IT. We still live in de dark ages. Also politicians dont have the nerve to look at the Netherlands enough and take example. We have the same geographical features, both flat countries, both small distances and yet Dutch urban planning is superb and Belgium squanders its scarce place. Thereby, giving space to bikers and pedestrians and public transport makes people having to work much less (because they dont have to work a day in the week to pay for their car)….count your blessings I m a Belgium and lived 11 years in the Netherlands now I came back to Antwerp. Everybody in my social environment always whined that I should get a drivers license. Now I have trouble breathing because of all the car pollution.
I get the impr4ssion from this example people in Belgium crave for progressive action but are afraid for it, because Belgians are, I experienced, real traditionalists. So new thing are always bad until proven otherwise……you need a lot of stomach to change the peoples minds over here I think, also I have the feeling the government is very slow and more traditionalist/hierarchic/elitist then the Belgians themselves…..so what the people want is not always reflected in the policy
Where I live, we cut holes in the bottoms of our vehicles and use our feet to move those vehicles as frantic bongo drums are heard playing. Though I wish my neighbor would quit banging on the door and yelling for his wife every night.
This is actually a dream. The fewer cars, the better. Ideally zero.
It's not all good like this video wants to show…many shops/cafes/restaurants are dying because the cars were customers and they move on to other shops that are better located.
Those "cuts" also make that cars have to travel 2x as much distance (and pollution) then before
Greetings, from a local.
It will never happen in the USA. We need cars, etc, it is the only means to transport goods and services. It is not just about "hey I can ride my bike to work or the store."
Think you've all been brainwashed.
Many people have mobility issues and not able to walk or cycle. This is control by government and discriminating against people who want a choice to drive.
This has probably been commissioned by cyclist lobbies in hands with governments. The city still lives?
Bet it looks like a graveyard in truth
Whoever mixed this made the music way too loud.
love it
According to the MAGA crowd, Belgium is now a dystopian hellscape because they can't drive any coal rollers in the middle of a town where people are trying to get their groceries. Because having eight lanes of congested traffic and zero walkability for two hours is TOTALLY a better option.
The MAGA-magots can all go huff a tail pipe.
"Motivates" lol. As in "leaves virtually no choice but to" – enforced with concrete barriers and security cameras. Human power sounds so nice, doesn't it? Lets see ho wmuch he enjoys that when he's 70 or older, has arthrits and it's a freezing winter's day pissing down with rain.
I am very grateful to the people of Ghent. Due to your initiative my city of Oxford is finally trying to make the city more liveable. What Oxford has faced is a very aggressive undemocratic backlash. A large percentage of the population believe that they can use intimidation and vandalism against measures to reduce traffic.
Vous ne parlez pas français à Ghent?
Afrekenen van uw bestelling!
https://t.ly/4j88I
Maginfique, ça donne de l'espoir pour des villes plus qualitatives 🙂
get in the center in a safe manner…. really ? with car is not safe ? is safe by the bike when there is a storm an heavy rain… :)))
Yup, I made a wrong turn and about three months later I got a ticket in the mail.
F*** cars. Get an electric bicycle.
Keep telling the Americans!
very good docu. but music is a little bit to loud, speach is more important than the music 😉
Walkability porn 😄
05:15 … so you say that if you remove cars and mobility from a city, is still living… ok…. of course is still living… you, as a human geeing, you can live without limbs, or without a kidney or without gallbladder but it doesn't mean is ok for you. those people are missing the mobility… if they want to go somewhere to stay in the wild, how can they do it without a car ?
Streetfilms, thank you for this amazing video! I lived in Gent for 4 years and I did not know what I had. I found it amazing but I assumed Gent was always like this. I hope you open a lot of eyes!
Looks lovely, is this so nice when it's raining and temperature drop? My workplace is over 25 km away from where I live, how many of you would do 50 km cycling every day to work? People don't use cars for fun, they use it when they need it, and this city take that freedom of choice away from them. That could town is nice for tourists, but I would not move there.
Belgium car ownership 590 per 1000 person, Singapore 149, Hong Kong 109…. tell me which country successfully reduce car dependency.