The cycle bridge that will connect the North and the East will cost around 300 million euros. Image Municipality of Amsterdam
The cycle bridge that will connect the North and the East will cost around 300 million euros. Amsterdam contributes 100 million euros and the Amsterdam Transport Region (VRA) has committed to allocating 75 million. Traffic councilor Melanie van der Horst is therefore still looking for 125 million euros.
For this he turns to the VRA. The €75 million investment by VRA still builds on the previously planned Java Bridge of €200 million. This bridge was eventually canceled because the province and national government believed that ship traffic should pass here. The municipality hopes that the VRA will still contribute almost half of the costs of the Oostbrug.
There is little chance that it will fill the entire hole. Van der Horst will therefore also have to argue with the government: he will argue that Amsterdam needs this money, because a bridge also has a positive influence on connections with the municipalities above Amsterdam and on the large housing plans in the North. If that doesn’t work, Amsterdam will look at its own infrastructure projects to save millions.
No bridges before 2032
The timing of the letter is surprising: this week it became clear that the North is extremely dependent on public transport when the metro and ferries between CS and Buiksloterweg failed. Writer Bas Kok, who has been campaigning for better accessibility to the North for years, said the bridge should be built more quickly. He would prefer to see the bridge completed within five years.
But Van der Horst is not very confident and says it is unrealistic to speed up the process. Plans need to be developed, which takes time: if all goes well, the city council can make an “implementation decision” in 2026, after which construction can start in 2029. The cycle bridge will therefore be completed no earlier than 2032.
Increase in construction costs
The project team began preparations in September. This team will also announce later this year which roads in the north and east will need to be built for cyclists to make the bridge accessible. Then the costs of these interventions will also be known.
The municipality also takes into account the increase in construction prices: according to indexation the bridge already costs 10.5 million euros more. The municipality wants to allocate funds for this and expects the VRA to play its part, but ultimately it will have to be decided in the 2026 implementation decision whether the construction cost increases are still “justified”.
More NDSM ferries in 2025
In the meantime, the Municipality will work on other sources. The pontoon landing at the NDSM Pier will be renovated next year. In 2014, a temporary dock consisting of two boats was built here. After ten years the end of life is in sight. The new dock will be mounted elsewhere and will be installed in early 2025.
The new dock will also allow more ferries to sail to and from the NDSM dock in the future. The plan was also to use more ferries between CS and IJplein, but they will be limited to two. “The shortage of skippers is an important cause of this,” writes Van der Horst.
About the author: David Hielkema writes about Amsterdam politics and also specializes in investigative stories. Advice or comments? [email protected]
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2024-01-11 15:55:21
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