Dozens of plants are currently growing in parking lots on the São Paulo Drive in Overvecht, a neighborhood in the Dutch city of Utrecht.
The plants deliberately occupy a parking space and if a car drives over it, a small piece of nature is destroyed. But if they are still intact in a few days, you may wonder how much use those parking spaces actually have. That is exactly what social designers Lisa Strijbosch and Maartje de Goede are currently investigating.
Too Much Space for Cars
The experiment was realized in collaboration with the Fietsersbond (Bicycle Union). “We work together with them and that’s how we started looking at the street in a different way,” explains Maartje. “We noticed that cars take up a lot of space in the city. The parking spaces on the São Paulo Drive are reserved for potential cars, but they are almost always empty. You could use that public space for so many better purposes.”
Parking Experiment in Progress
The plants were placed on May 6th. “We have been a little disobedient and poured earth into six parking spaces and then put a colorful collection of rescued plants in it. There is also a large yellow sign that says: parking experiment in progress.”
The Neighborhood Takes Care of the Plants
The reactions in the neighborhood are very positive, says Maartje. “The neighborhood is taking very good care of the plants. We water the plants every day, but local residents think they should get more water. So they water the plants too, including children with water guns. So that’s very nice.”
The experiment has already been successful, says Maartje. “We hope, of course, that the plants can stay and that the result will be sent to the municipality to speed up the process a bit, so that nature gets a little more space in the city and cars a little less.”
© Pictures: Anna van Kooij
© Text: RTV Utrecht
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