A Gentleman Driver
The rush on Dutch roads is off all time. Indications of the first blockages find their origin in the twenties from the 20th century. They are the heralds of the well-known frustrations in the morning and evening: traffic jams.
Over the years, the demand for motor vehicles grew, resulting in headaches for many civil servants. This led in 1938 to the establishment of the “Legion of Benevolent Road Users”. An initiative of the Royal Dutch Automobile Club to bring the politeness back in traffic, so that the safety on the street could be guaranteed. Members of the Legion ‘operated’ under the slogan “prepared for politeness on the street.”
Traffic can not just trust in the benevolence of the road users, so in 1965 a number of new traffic regulations got introduced where safety was of paramount importance. Pedestrians in the built-up area should not be hindered during their cross-over by inattentive motorists and mopeds as swift as an arrow. The Polygoon Dutch News shows in a report that the changes of the traffic regulations also restrict the various functions of emergency lanes.
Nearly 30 years after the establishment of the Legion of Benevolent Road Users, the situation on the roads are often still an awful affair. The undesirable behavior of many road users was not yet nipped in the bud. Especially in the busy capitol city of Amsterdam, motorists are a major problem, their pride possessions are anyway. Cars are double-parked at the strangest spots. However, it is not only the citizens where the finger should be pointed to. There is not enough parking space available in the city. The picturesque bridges that connect the canals do briefly serve as parking lots in 1967. It soon becomes apparent that this solution is unnerving to other road users, so the Amsterdam city council sets foot on the street armed with yellow paint.
In addition to addressing anti-social driving and parking, a car-free city centre of Amsterdam is becoming a more prominent issue. In reply to this, the industrial designer Luud Schimmelpennink in the early 70s came with an innovative concept for environmentally friendly transport: the Witkar. A three-wheel electric vehicle for two persons that could go up to 30 kilometers per hour. This electric tricycle is designed for the collective: subscribers don’t have to worry about a parking lot because the Witkar could be ‘hovered’ in a charger at five locations in Amsterdam.