Politicisation, polarisation and public participation : planning history of Groningen, the Netherlands, in 1970's (1)

The first large-scale Traffic Circulation Plan (Verkeerscirculatieplan, VCP) in the Netherlands was introduced in 1977 in the city of Groningen. This was an interesting process since political ideals had to convince a suspicious public that had no reference to successful similar projects. The inner city was divided into four sectors by the overall one-way traffic restriction, and cars had to go out to the ring road to move from one sector to another. The process of introducing this VCP will be discussed in terms of politicisation, polarisation and public participation. These three were the political creeds of the new left politicians who advanced into the municipal council in the early 1970s and took the initiative in realising the VCP. They got the substantial power in planning back from the bureaucrats (politicisation), and rejected compromising with the nongovernment parties (polarisation). However, the opportunities for the public to participate in the planning of the VCP were strikingly lacking. This case study will help to understand the social factors that contribute to the environment-friendly transportation system.