ABSTRACT
In Schiermonnikoog the cyclist reigns. Because visitors are prohibited from driving their cars on this small island off the northwestern coast of the Netherlands, its street scene is dominated by rented bicycles. Schiermonnikoog, designated a national park in 1989, is different from other Dutch villages in other respects. The traffic signs, parking lots, dividing lines, bicycle lanes, speed ramps, traffic lights, roundabouts, safety islands and pedestrian crossings that constitute the traffic landscape elsewhere are absent. Even sidewalks are a rarity. Cyclists, local buses, taxis, pedestrians and the occasional car of one of the island’s inhabitants share the streets without any problems. Paying a little attention does the trick.
