New issues in an old debate

[By Wim Pijbes] – The Rijksmuseum Passage has not been used for almost ten years. As a result, many people have trouble visualizing the new situation. The Rijksmuseum frequently receives questions from Amsterdammers who were familiar with the old passage and cannot yet form an idea of the future Passage. The Zuid District Administration has approved the decision to reserve the Passage for pedestrians (and street musicians) and to direct cyclists around the building. This choice is supported by various institutions and persons, including the ANWB. Five reasons explain why:

1. New entrances

Receipts from Nieuw-West

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The Nieuw-West district has published the accounts of the council’s expenses over 2011. No shocking amounts, but it’s interesting to see how parties spend their budgets. The item ‘meetings’ (bijeenkomsten) includes coaching for a party meeting (CDA), teambuilding (GroenLinks) and a weekend away with the party’s council members (PvdA). D66 spends a large share of its budget on an assistant, the VVD relatively much on meals and drinks. Almost all parties spend a significant amount on flowers, wreaths and ribbons for the remembrance of the war victims on 4 May.

‘Closing Rijksmuseum passage will worsen traffic safety’

According to an analysis by cyclists’ organisation Fietsersbond, there are errors in a report used by the Zuid district to underpin a decision to close the Rijksmuseum passage for cyclists. According to the study, a bicycle ban will cause a slight improvement in traffic safety, but the Fietsersbond finds that the risk of accidents will rise.

Ship replaces 4 lorries

An electronic cargo ship of Mokum Mariteam transports containers through the canals, replacing ‘four compact lorries’. An important customer is the RAI. The idea is not new; DHL has been transporting freight through the canals for years (Bright / 24oranges)

6 May 2012, 18:56 | |

No portrait of Queen in court

Even though the legal obligation has been abolished long ago, courts across the country still have portraits of Queen Beatrix. The exception is the court at the Parnassusweg in Amsterdam, Merel Thie reported in NRC Handelsblad yesterday, where all but 2 portraits have been replaced with ‘highly neutral art, such as woven tapestries with fanciful lines’. The official portraits have been returned to the state.

27 April 2012, 14:50 | |

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