Pilot ‘Olifantenpaadje’: faster route to Utrecht Science Park
During rush hour the cycle paths in the city centre heading towards Utrecht Science Park are very busy. From September, Utrecht municipality is testing a quieter route between Utrecht Central Station and Utrecht Science Park with the ‘Olifantenpaadje’ (desire line). The aim is to improve the distribution of cyclists and reduce crowds around popular routes.
The project is an initiative of two lecturers from the Hogeschool voor de Kunsten, Floor Bouwmeister and Friso van Booij, who won the bicycle spreading challenge of platform U-Forward with their idea ‘Utrechtse Olifantenpaadjes’. Together with Utrecht municipality, they designed signs equipped with a real-time pressure meter and advise on a quieter route, designated as ‘elephant path’. This alternative path bypasses busy points such as Tivoli and directs cyclists via the Ledig Erf, for example, a route that is just as fast and more comfortable despite the extra kilometre during rush hour. Congestion is indicated by colours: green (quiet), orange (normal) and red (busy).
With the pilot, which runs until the end of November 2024, the municipality wants to investigate whether cyclists find the signs useful and are willing to choose an alternative route. The alternative routes offer fewer intersections and traffic lights and pass through greener parts of the city. In this way, the municipality hopes to better regulate bicycle flows in Utrecht.
Utrecht Science Week: Art and science unite at the Betweter Festival on 25 September
From 25 September to 4 October, the Utrecht Science Park will be alive with curiosity and exploration during the annual Utrecht Science Week. For over a week, the Utrecht Science Park opens its doors to everyone interested in both applied and fundamental science. In close collaboration with various partners, a diverse programme is put together, with special focus on themes such as sustainability and health.
Record number of children from across the province of Utrecht meet researchers
A morning spent interviewing, pipetting or philosophising with researchers from Utrecht. That’s what 3,400 children from Utrecht did on the morning of Wednesday 1 April during the eleventh edition of Meet the Professor. 280 researchers from Utrecht cycled to primary schools in the city and surrounding area to show the children who they are, what they do and what sparks their curiosity. In pairs, because research is something you do together.
ALS gene discovery forms basis for treatment development
Researchers at UMC Utrecht’s ALS Center have found new genetic abnormalities that play a role in the development of ALS. As a result, the group of patients in whom the cause of the nerve and muscle disease can be pinpointed has grown from 20 to 25 percent. The finding also helps to better understand ALS and may eventually contribute to the development of targeted treatments for some of the patients.
