Commuting to work without traffic jams via the F50: cycling smoothly and safely
Cycling is healthy, inexpensive, and clean. "A highway costs roughly one million euros per meter; for the same amount, you could build a kilometer of bike path," says Jeroen Smink, project manager at Cleantech Region. There are plenty of reasons, therefore, to invest in fast bike routes and encourage cleaner mobility. Between Apeldoorn and Epe, the 'F50' is being developed: a Smooth and Safe cycling route. During the design phase, over 400 responses were received from users via the PraatMee platform. The second survey has just closed, yielding many useful responses once again.
The use of fast bike routes is increasing, notes Ed Oldegarm, representative of the Cyclists' Union. "If the infrastructure is better, people will naturally follow." And the route between Apeldoorn and Epe is popular. "It's a relatively direct cycling route and the distance is manageable, especially with an e-bike. But the bike path is very narrow and outdated," says Jeroen Smink. It's time for a renovation with fewer obstacles and smoother bends.
Two MapTalk Surveys
Cleantech Region has been using the MapTalk tool since 2019 to gather information about the bike route. And who better to consult than the users: walkers, cyclists, residents, dog walkers, and people who use the route for commuting. This led to a draft of the new, refurbished bike path in 2020. "Many residents and users took the opportunity to share their knowledge about the route. From people alerting us to dangerous crossings to spots where weasels nest," Jeroen explains.
“Using the map we gather useful information. People pinpoint where opportunities or painpoints lie regarding the bike route from the comfort of their own home on their phone or PC.”
Creative ideas from residents
And residents often come up with very good ideas that we haven't thought of yet," says Ed. "For example, someone mentioned about this route: 'Do you know that this section is used as a bridle path?' We had a suspicion, as there is a stable nearby, but we hadn't noticed it that way. These comments and tips are incredibly valuable because having horses and cyclists together is not practical."
TouchTable
To properly test the map, a TouchTable was also used at a residents' meeting in 2019: a large computer screen with a touchscreen that several people can gather around easily. Ed explains, "You can discuss a comment from someone on the spot. Is it about safety? Or nature? What is the location? And then enter the comment on the map."
"Information is better recorded with PraatMee," Jeroen agrees. "The respective comments are immediately geo-located on the map. So, we know exactly where each comment was made afterwards. We also receive all the information as an Excel sheet."
Anonymous & unique responses
An additional advantage, according to the men, is the anonymity provided by the PraatMee app. Jeroen explains, "Responses from other residents are not visible to anyone, except as a dot on the map. Everyone thinks for themselves. So, you don't get copied responses. This also prevents 'spam': when a few people keep submitting something until the map is covered in blue dots... I've experienced that with other tools. It's then difficult for us to gauge how many people actually experience an issue, like noise pollution. But with PraatMee, different people express in their own words what is happening. This gives us a better understanding of the situation."
Ed adds, "And if a strong opinion dominates your neighborhood, as a resident, you can confidently express a different viewpoint. You simply add your differing opinion to the map, but it's not visible to your neighbors."
Take time for a comprehensible map
"The emphasis is on creating a comprehensible map. People should be able to open the website at home and work with it themselves," emphasizes Ed. Jeroen agrees, "Next time, I want to allocate more time and money to bridge the gap between the technical software and the map that ultimately appears on the website. Because if people don't quickly understand how the map works, you risk losing them. That's also why, I suspect, we still received responses via email. Because people prefer to give their opinions that way if they don't figure it out."
Residents' meeting vs. MapTalk
"Hundreds of responses came in, and bundling and providing feedback on those took more time than expected," says Ed. "But on the other hand, organizing an information session beforehand actually requires more preparation time," adds Jeroen. "It requires more personnel to manage it. From finding a venue to creating and plotting the maps, and of course, the event itself..."
"The investment in terms of time and effort is quite comparable. There's clearly still a need for interaction, but that's how it is now. Ideally, we would use MapTalk in addition to a residents' meeting."