Ghent (Eurotoday Newspaper) – Ghent’s Verenigde Straten Dampoortwijk warns of legal action, demanding renewed dialogue on the revised district mobility plan amid rising civic concerns.
Additional actions will be taken if Ghent does not reply to the request.
“Ghent erases the proven positive effects of the plan in one fell swoop.”
The city regrets the notice of default.
Together with a number of citizens from the Oud Gentbrugge neighborhood and the Cyclists’ Union, the citizen collective Verenigde Straten Dampoortwijk (VSD) has placed the city of Ghent in default.
Regarding the announced changes to the district mobility plans, they would like to speak with the city. Earlier this month, Ghent, Belgium, announced changes that would take effect following the summer.
The city stressed that a thorough assessment of the changes’ effects was conducted before making the announcement. Measurements and resident surveys preceded this assessment.
The citizen collective requests further consultation since they feel the city did not make the correct conclusions from this. There will be more actions taken if this doesn’t occur.
“The evaluation shows that through traffic in the district has decreased and the quality of life has increased. The city wants to allow heavy traffic to flow through residential areas again. The decision comes under pressure from political profiling and negative perceptions,”
Says Tom Baetens of the VSD.
The collective states that traffic will certainly become busier again in 9 streets after the adjustments.
“This will have negative consequences for the safety of cyclists, the quality of life of residents and the accessibility in the neighborhood.”
“Since the announcement of the adjustments, there has been no more contact with alderman Joris Vandenbroucke (For Ghent). At the same time, we see that there is smooth consultation with the neighboring municipality of Destelbergen. We have always been constructive, but we notice that people mainly listen when threats are made.”
With the notice of default, the collective now issues an ultimatum to the city. Within a week, Ghent must accept the proposal; if not, further action will be taken.
The first is a complaint to the Agency for Internal Affairs in Flanders. A lawsuit could come later. This would not be the first time a judge would be presented with the district transportation plan. A few processes are still in progress, including cases that opponents of the plans have started.
“It is a pity that this step is being taken before the adjustments have been implemented and we can see the effects. It remains the intention of the city council to keep the large flows of through traffic out of the neighbourhoods,”
Says alderman Vandenbroucke in a brief response.
“There are major bottlenecks: buses are losing time in traffic jams, residential streets are taking up more
Comments
3 responses to “Ghent Residents Consider Legal Action Against Mobility Plan”
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Oh, joy! Nothing says “modern city planning” like a good old-fashioned legal tussle over a mobility plan. Can’t wait for the next round of “who’s got the better traffic jam?” in Ghent! 🚦😏
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Looks like the residents of Ghent are ready to take their love for mobility to court—nothing screams “we care” quite like a lawsuit over traffic! 🚦💼 Maybe next time, the city will ask for a citizen’s opinion *before* they roll out the red carpet for chaos! 😂
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Looks like the residents of Ghent are ready to bring their best legal team to the not-so-thrilling game of “let’s see how many traffic jams we can fit into a neighbourhood.” 🚦 Maybe they should just rename it “Rush Hour: The Musical!” 🎭
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