The finished F50 cycle route from Oss to Uden

Two weeks ago, in my latest post, I wrote that the F50 cycle route from Oss to Uden was completed when the cycle tunnel in Nistelrode was finished. That was not entirely true, there was still some work to do on the route in the municipality of Maashorst (to which Uden now belongs). That work was done recently, and now, indeed, the F50 from Oss to Uden is complete.

The final part of the F50 in the municipality of Maashorst (formerly Uden) was widened in May 2022. This sign informs people about the work.

The other major final change was this tunnel in Nistelrode that I described in my latest post.

In Uden (since January 2022 part of the new municipality of Maashorst) the cycleway still had to be widened. That was done in May 2022. The cycleway also got a new smooth surface of red asphalt. In the village of Nistelrode there was a small but significant change to the cycle route as well, that will now be made permanent. The cycle street in the village got a modal filter. It is no longer possible for drivers to traverse the entire village by car via that cycle street.

The cyleway at the town border of Uden when that was still the municipality of Uden in the before situation (2020).

Since 1 January 2022 Uden is part of the new municipality of Maashorst, hence the new sign with the town’s name, next to the also new main cycle route into the town. Wide and with a surface of smooth red asphalt. Note the now standard tactile edge markings that warn people when they cycle too close to the edge of the path.

The model filter in Nistelrode had become necessary due to the work on the cycle tunnel there. The important entrance road into the village was closed for those road works (which took three months longer due to the council’s mistake with the building permit). During that time people started to find alternative car routes. Unfortunately, one of those routes was using the cycle street. This increased the volume of motor vehicles and that, in turn, changed the traffic situation in the cycle street. In 2020, a council member stated in the local press that he used the route himself, “I cycle in the middle of the street and notice that the cars stay well behind me”. But that had changed in 2021, when the regional newspaper wrote: “According to residents many drivers speed and they even damage mirrors of parked cars on the narrowed street.”

In 2020, the cycle street in Nistelrode could still be used by through motor traffic.

The council placed a temporary modal filter closing the street for all traffic except cycling and mopeds. That improved the situation for cycling in the cycle street. This filter will now become permanent (but at a slightly different location).

In a trial, the cycle street was closed temporarily with concrete blocks. This made through traffic impossible, but all homes were still reachable by car. At the end of June 2022, the council announced that the temporary model filter would become permanent, albeit at a slightly different location.

“The temporary modal filter was put in place while work was being done on the Noorderbaan roundabout [right next to the cycle tunnel]. In consultation with the village advisory council and street associations, the municipality of Bernheze has decided to make the filter permanent. This to guarantee the safety of cyclists.”

The before situation in the municipality of Maashorst (2020)

The same location after the work had been finished. The cycleway now looks like a main cycle route due to its width, colour and road markings.

I rode the entire F50 cycle route from Oss to Uden once again and you can choose which video you would like to see. The entire route with the side-by-side comparisons where the final changes occurred, or an excerpt of that video that only shows the changed parts (and the location of the modal filter).

The before sitution at the ecoduct (wild life crossing) over the A50 motorway.

The cycle path after it was widened and resurfaced in 2022.

Note: I did not cycle all the way into the centre of Uden this time, that would have forced me to cycle too far. I was still very much recovering from my surgery when I filmed this. That is why I took the train to Oss this time and only rode this route from there. The other times I filmed this route I always cycled from ’s-Hertogenbosch all the way to Oss and then back there from Uden. But that is an over 50km round trip and that was simply too far now. By taking the train to Oss and cycling this route to Uden and back the same way, I reduced that distance to under 25km. I will have to see what changed in Uden another time.

Enjoy the ride!

The entire ride on the finished F50 cycle route from Oss to Uden.

An excerpt of the above video, showing only the parts that changed in 2022.

The Netherlands has no traffic sign for a school zone. In Nistelrode they found an exceptional solution: they used the sign I only know from the United States. That is possible because “school zone” is exactly the same in Dutch and English. Obviously, this sign has no legal weight in the Netherlands, it only informs people that there is a school.