The petition calling for a car-free Kruisstraat has already gathered 700 signatures. Local residents launched the initiative out of frustration over the ongoing noise and disruption caused by “asobak” drivers, motorbikes, and quad bikes racing down the street. “You’re risking your life cycling here,” one resident said.
While 700 signatures is significant, it’s still far from sufficient, according to locals who gathered on Wednesday afternoon at the community centre on Trompstraat. They say they’ve had enough of the disturbances and believe the measures taken so far to tackle the traffic problems have been ineffective.
“You really do fear for your life cycling along here. They practically run you off the road. It’s life-threatening for children,” said one middle-aged resident. The main source of frustration is the group that congregates around Woenselse Markt in the evenings and uses Kruisstraat as a makeshift race track to show off. One resident mentioned hearing that many of them come from outside Eindhoven, though their identities remain unknown.
Flyers and Political Support to Boost Petition
Residents from three neighbourhoods—Hemelrijken, Gildebuurt, and Woenselse Watermolen—are backing the ‘Kruisstraat Car-Free’ petition. To gather even more signatures, flyers will be handed out around Woenselse Markt next weekend. The organisers are also appealing to local politicians. “We want as many councillors as possible to sign the petition,” says Joan van de Laar, secretary of the neighbourhood association.
Spillover Nuisance on Montgomerylaan
Many signatories live on Montgomerylaan, where traffic problems have worsened since Kruisstraat traffic can only exit via Gildelaan. “The noise is unbearable. We can’t even sit outside. Some evenings, it really gets me down,” says one anonymous resident.
So far, at least one councillor is said to have signed the petition. What the follow-up process is and what the municipality’s position is in this, is not yet entirely clear. A plan to improve situation in the neighbourhood will soon be presented from the business association. But according to Joan van de Laar of the Neighbourhood Association, this is separate from this petition.
The municipality is still considering its position in response to the petition, a spokesperson told Studio040.
Source: Studio040
For Eindhoven news: Chaitali Sengupta.
