Amsterdam

Cities That Address Sustainability Challenges Attractive to International Businesses

Direct correlation between cleaner air and waste water and the amount of foreign investment going into cities

03 April 2019 From Paul Münzner Filed Under: 2019, Featured, SCIENCE & STUDIES

Urban sustainability may be a hot topic, but is there a direct material benefit for cities that make an extra effort? Researchers at the University of Amsterdam Business School say there is. The international business scholars note that air quality improvement measures and good waste water treatment practices appear to make cities more attractive destinations when it comes to foreign direct investment.

Clean Air, Water Boosts Foreign Investment

To arrive at its finding, the team examined seven years of data from 185 Chinese cities to see whether improvements in air quality and waste water treatment appeared to affect foreign direct investment. The research found that there appeared to be a direct correlation between cleaner air and waste water and the amount of foreign investment going into cities.

Figures cited include a $1billion per annum increase in foreign direct investment when a large city like Shanghai achieves significant air quality improvements and potential for as much as $750 million per annum in extra investment for a city like Beijing when waste water treatment percentages rise.

The finding is specifically interesting because it indicates the possibility of a greater commitment to corporate responsibility than in the past. In commentary, the study’s authors refer to a “race to the bottom,” in which multinationals invest in other countries because they hope to be subjected to laxer environmental regulations appearing to be replaced, at least at city level, by a “race to the top,” in which multinationals strive to associate themselves with green cities.

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They postulate that the reasons for this are growing commitment towards employee wellbeing and expat quality of life. Since polluted environments have negative consequences for employees’ mental and physical wellbeing, a pleasanter environment may have positive consequences for both morale and productivity.

There is also considerable pressure from consumers for large companies to clean up their acts. By associating themselves with green cities, international firms enhance their reputations and gain a competitive advantage.

Profit Follows When People and Planet Benefit

By demonstrating the potential economic value of sustainable city management, the team draws attention to the third pillar of sustainability, profit. It is generally believed that when we have many industries, there must necessarily be more pollution. The University of Amsterdam report strives to prove that this is not necessarily the case.

Indeed, by embarking on initiatives that will benefit the environment and society, cities can spark a virtuous cycle in which environmental improvements ignite economic growth which in turn funds further improvements and further foreign investment.

The study calls for policymakers to set and enforce emissions and wastewater regulations and to call for investors to make use of clean energy and wastewater recycling. In addition, city pollution-reduction and clean-up programs should enjoy priority, while companies that go the extra mile in reducing pollution should receive incentives.

Finally, the authors refer to India’s war on pollution headed by Environment Minister, Harsh Vardhan. The country is home to 22 cities that rank amount the world’s 30 worst in terms of air pollution. They remark that if the new policy measures succeed, India’s cities may well become more prosperous as well as becoming healthier places to live.

Amsterdam Cleans up City Center by Eliminating Parking Spaces

Eliminating Parking Spaces in Amsterdam Means 1,500 Fewer Parking Spaces Every Year

02 April 2019 From Paul Münzner Filed Under: 2019, Cycling, Featured

Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, wants to replace parking spaces with bike tracks, bike parking, and trees. It has announced its strategy to eliminate about 1,500 parking spaces from its city center every year. Due to Het Parool, it is even possible to reduce the number of parking spaces of at least 11,200 by December 2025. Although this may sound like a revolutionary step, there is an orderly plan that should ensure a relatively smooth transition.

Successive Reduction of Parking Permits Whilst Increasing Parking Fees

Already, anyone wishing to park in Amsterdam’s city center must have a permit to do so. None of these permits will be revoked, but new ones won’t be issued when existing permit holders no longer need their parking spaces. In addition, the cost of the permits will rise. As streets are cleared, sidewalks will be widened, more trees will be planted, and better infrastructure can be put in place for bicycles and pedestrians.

The plan forms part of an agreement between the current governing coalition members whose parties have left-leaning and green sentiments. But cleaner air and more spacious streets aren’t the only reasons why Amsterdam needs to implement the strategy.

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Amsterdam’s subsoil has a relatively delicate structure, and decades of heavy traffic have damaged it to the point where many waterside streets are in urgent need of repair. With road closures inevitable, there’s a need to reduce pressure on central Amsterdam’s infrastructure. Eliminating parking spaces will help to achieve this goal.

In Amsterdam’s context, it’s also worth noting the distribution of space allocated to roads, sidewalks, parking, bikes and bike parking. 88 percent of Amsterdam’s trips aren’t undertaken by car. Public transport and bicycles may be the choice of the majority of people, but cars are still getting the most road space. Meanwhile, cyclists, who represent the majority, struggle to find suitable spots to leave their bikes.

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Apart from reducing the number of city parking spaces, Amsterdam’s authorities also hope to move many parking spaces into underground parking lots, adding to the space available for bike and pedestrian-friendly facilities.

By the way: Exceptions are to apply for nursing staff, disabled peoples or car sharing providers. They don’t need to worry about their parking permits.

Tallest Timber Tower HAUT to Be Built in Amsterdam

HAUT's cross laminated timber stores more than three million kilos of carbon dioxide

09 August 2016 From Paul Münzner Filed Under: Featured, Green Building

The production of wooden materials requires less energy and is less polluting than common construction materials like steel or concrete. Thus, it is a further possible component for the carbon-neutral city. On the other hand, steel has the advantage of being exactly calculable. Its material behavior does not change when it comes to changing stress directions. Timber is directionally dependent. It implies different properties in different directions. In brief, timber is anisotropic and inhomogeneous. However, that does not prevent the construction of the 21-story timber tower HAUT by the Dutch river Amstel in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Timber Tower - Amsterdam - Team V Architecture — The municipality of Amsterdam has selected Team V Architecture to develop this remarkable high-rise structure (Team V Architecture)

Start of construction in 2017

Chosen by the municipality of Amsterdam, Team V Architecture and brand partner NLE will develop this exceptional high-rise structure. HAUT certainly has the potential to become the tallest timber tower in the world if things go the way the designer Team V Architecture expects. The start of construction works of this innovative prototype is expected in the second half of 2017. The cycle storage space and underground car park have an area of about 2,800 m². With about 55 different sized apartments, the total gross floor area of the 73 m high building is roughly 14,500 m².

Timber Tower Entry - Green Building Amsterdam - Team V Architecture — HAUT’s cross-laminated timber stores more than three million kilos of CO2 (Team V Architecture)

Timber tower with the highest sustainability grade

The public urban winter garden in the base of the building improves the mental wellbeing. It is even possible for residents to grow their own vegetables. According to Team V Architecture, HAUT’s cross-laminated timber stores more than three million kilos of carbon dioxide. Together with energy-generating facades and the collected and purified wastewater, this timber tower is targeting for a BREEAM Outstanding rating – the highest possible sustainability grade for green buildings.

Inside Timber Tower - Green Building Amsterdam - Team V Architecture — (Team V Architecture)

Situated in Amstelkwartier

The timber tower HAUT is situated in Amsterdam’s residential neighborhood Amstelkwartier next to the River Amstel between Oud-Zuid and Watergraafsmeer. Additionally, the district will offer some 4,000 residential units in the near future, together with shopping opportunities and small business facilities. The new park Somerlust adjacent to the Amstel is also already open to the public.

Timber Tower - Green Building Amsterdam - Team V Architecture — (Team V Architecture)

HAUT is not the first timber tower project in this magnitude. For instance, a further tall wooden building is situated in India. It is called Hyperions and already under construction.

Daimler Demonstrates Autonomous Bus With CityPilot in Amsterdam

With a speed up to 70 km/h on a section of the longest bus rapid transit (BRT) line in Europe

29 July 2016 From Paul Münzner Filed Under: Featured, MOTORING

The focus is often on cars when it comes to autonomously driving vehicles. Thanks to Daimler AG, variety comes to the table. In the Netherlands, Daimler Benz recently demonstrated its autonomously driving bus. During the officially first test drive on a route of about 20 kilometers, it was not needed to use the brake pedal or accelerator.

Premiere journey for Daimler’s autonomous bus on the longest bus rapid transit (BRT) line in Europe

According to Daimler, the autonomous bus stops by achieving centimeter accuracy at traffic lights. Also at the bus stop, the bus arrives in automated mode, opens and closes the doors, and drives away again. The brakes are activated automatically in a gentle way thus the autonomous bus comes to a standstill safely in case of red lights. Even if the traffic lights turn green, the bus remains standing in case of still crossing pedestrians. After moving off automatically, the bus is able to master challenges like passing through tunnels, braking for obstacles or pedestrians and communicating with traffic signals. CityPilot activates the automatic braking system that decelerates the vehicles as required in order to avoid a collision. Allegedly, Daimler Buses is the world’s first manufacturer to put a city bus into automated operation in a real-life traffic situation.

After moving off automatically, the bus is able to master challenges like passing through tunnels, braking for obstacles or pedestrians and communicating with traffic signals. CityPilot activates the automatic braking system that decelerates the vehicles as required in order to avoid a collision. Allegedly, Daimler Buses is the world’s first manufacturer to put a city bus into automated operation in a real-life traffic situation.

Autonomous Bus - Daimler AG - CityPilot - ECOURBANLAB — (Daimler AG)

The driver’s job

The only thing the driver has to do is keeping an eye on the system. A large display provides all important information for the driver in an innovative presentation style, and can concentrate fully on his or her core tasks. He or she does not need to deal with tickets, at all times. The electronic ticket system is doing this job. It is an important element of the bus’s connectivity and dispenses with the conventional selling and checking of tickets by the driver. The system provides information if the road is suitable for automated driving. Then, the driver can decide to switch on the CityPilot with a trigger button. The autonomous drive stops immediately if the driver overrules CityPilot by moving the accelerator, brake pedal or steer.

CityPilot – Highly specialized equipment

Daimler can fall back on experiences with the Future Truck. This self-driving truck was presented on 3 July 2014 in Magdeburg, Germany. It was not needed to reinvent a long-range radar with a range of up to 200 m, electrically actuated Servotwin steering and the mirror cams which are used instead of exterior mirrors. Further cameras, Wi-Fi and the satellite-controlled GPS navigation system are additional essential tools. Two short-range radar sensors in the front section and two at the front corners cover distances from 50 centimeters to ten meters ahead of the bus. 3D vision and recognition of obstacles and pedestrians are realized with two stereo cameras with a range of up to 50 meters.

Even at a speed of 70 km/h, the driver does not steer the autonomous bus

Wi-Fi enables communication with the route infrastructure like traffic lights or railway crossings. Probably the bus can more often take advantage of “green waves” of traffic lights compared to common buses. The intelligent connectivity of the cameras and sensors allows a precise picture of the surrounding area and the exact position of the autonomous bus.

On their website, Daimler states:
The Mercedes-Benz CityPilot is not science fiction, it can already become a reality tomorrow. Even today, the bus is in public operation following an exemption from the state transport authority in Stuttgart according to Section 70 of the German vehicle licensing regulations, based on an expert report by TÜV Rhineland. It is allowed to operate on public roads despite deviating from the normal technical and service specifications.

“…we are investing approximately €200 million in the further development of our city-bus portfolio. The advantages of CityPilot for our customers are clear: Our Future Bus operates fuel efficiently and with minimal stress on the engine. That has a positive impact on operating and maintenance costs, vehicle lifetime and availability.” Hartmut Schick, Head of Daimler Buses, states.

Three sections subdivide the autonomous bus

The low-floor bus is partitioned into three sections. The so-called service section is located in the front close to the driver. The middle part, express section, provides standing room for short journeys and quick passenger flow. The rearward lounge section is intended for passengers spending more time. Their smartphones can be charged wirelessly, inductively that is.

The longest bus rapid transit (BRT) line in Europe

The advantages of BRT systems are that they are quick to establish for urban and traffic planners, as well as being inexpensive and flexible. Due to the fluent and safe traffic routing with less or ideally no traffic lights, a high average journey speed and thus an improved quality of life is achievable. BRT’s diminish traffic volume, exhaust gas pollution, traffic volume and traffic noise. According to experts, there are now about 180 BRT systems worldwide with a total fleet of approximately 40 000 buses. They carry around 30 million passengers every day. Above all, South America is regarded as a BRT region; its rapidly growing metropolises are making good use of BRT systems.