Below you’ll find a recent example of my newsletter. Click here to subscribe.

It’s been quite a while since the last newsletter I’ve sent. From now on, I’ll use this newsletter mainly for updates about things I’ve been working on. The frequency will be low.

Reducing car ownership

Fewer cars, more space for cycling

In 2018, Amsterdam announced that it wants to reduce car ownership. This was an unusual step: many cities want to reduce car use, but reducing car ownership is often a bit of a taboo.

In an article in OEK, the magazine of Fietsersbond Amsterdam, I discuss why and how Amsterdam tries to reduce car ownership. You can download the pdf of the latest OEK here (the article is on page 7), but if you’re a Fietsersbond member and live in Amsterdam, you’ll get OEK delivered to your home.

Background analysis

In a background analysis on my website, I analyse Amsterdam’s policy to reduce car ownership in detail; trying to figure out which measures are likely to work, and which ones probably not.

Municipalities and social media

Mastodon versus X

In November last year, I analysed the contact pages of large Dutch municipalities to see which social media they listed. The result: almost all used major platforms like Facebook and Twitter to communicate with residents, and many used Whatsapp. Not one mentioned Mastodon or Signal.

Last month, I’ve updated the analysis. Here’s what’s new:

• Amsterdam now actively uses Mastodon to communicate with citizens (also when there’s a storm, for example);
• Zaanstad no longer mentions Twitter on its contact page. It’s unclear whether this is the result of a deliberate choice to ban Twitter;
• Almere and Dordrecht now use the name X, although not consistently. Other municipalities still refer to Twitter or use the bird logo.

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