Successful citizens' initiative rewarded with a VIP reception at the opening of the Corbulo Tunnel
A VIP reception was held at the opening of the Corbulo Tunnel on June 22. Provincial Executive Member Frederik Zevenbergen and City Council Member Hubert Schokker used the occasion to thank the citizens’ initiative Team Compromis RijnlandRoute. For months, the members had successfully campaigned for a tunnel instead of a sunken road structure cutting straight through Voorschoten.
In 2012, the province of South Holland decided that the new N11-West would be built as a sunken highway running straight through Voorschoten. This not only means that the village will be split in two, but also that dozens of homes will have to be expropriated and businesses will close. Even the future of Buitenplaats Berbice is uncertain.
Comprehensive report
The citizens’ initiative Team Compromis RijnlandRoute is taking the plunge and has decided to investigate the technical and financial feasibility of a bored tunnel under Voorschoten. The team consists of the initiative’s founders, Jaap Poorta and Rob van Engelenburg, other residents of Voorschoten involved in the project, and outside experts.
On August 23, 2012, the team presented a comprehensive report to representatives of the municipality, the province, and the House of Representatives. The conclusion was that, given current knowledge of drilling technology, a bored tunnel under Voorschoten is technically feasible and within the available financial constraints.
First successful citizens' initiative of this scale
What followed was a process lasting several months, involving dozens of meetings, navigating the appropriate political channels, and a call by the Provincial Council to the responsible provincial executive to reconsider the earlier decision. Now, twelve years later, the Corbulo Tunnel—a bored landscape tunnel—is being opened.
“Team Compromis RijnlandRoute was the first successful citizens’ initiative of this scale,” says Alderman Hubert Schokker. “Thanks to their expertise and perseverance, home expropriations, business closures, and the relocation of sports fields were prevented. And now there is no highway cutting right through Voorschoten. Kudos to this extraordinary group of people!”
A toast
As a token of appreciation for their tremendous efforts, the participants were treated to a VIP reception last Saturday along the N434. Together with Provincial Executive Member Frederik Zevenbergen and Alderman Hubert Schokker, they raised a glass of non-alcoholic beverage to celebrate the completion of the work on the bored tunnel and the sunken section, followed by a tour.