The Rampart, The Traffic Artery, and the Park; Designing for the city regions of Antwerp

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The dust jacket wrapped

around this book is also a

map showing all the main

components of the urban

strategies elaborated in

this graduation thesis.

Unfold it and have a look

Graduation thesis prepared for the

master’s degree in urban design at the

Eindhoven University of Technology.

July 2020

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may

not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever

without the express written permission of the publisher,

except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Graduation Studio Linkeroever I

2019-2020

Author:

P.J.E.M. (Patrick) Limpens

0970463

Graduation Committee:

Ir. M.W. (Marcel) Musch

Prof. dr. ir. P.J.V. (Pieter) van Wesemael

Unit AUDE

Chair of Urbanism and Urban Architecture

Department of the Built Environment

Printed by DeDigitaleDrukker B.V.

Eindhoven, the Netherlands

Bound by Bontje Book Solutions

Sittard, the Netherlands

The Rampart, the Traffic Artery, and the Park

Designing for the city regions of Antwerp

Abstract

Antwerp is currently implementing two large structuring plans; the ring project

called the Grote Verbinding, and a polycentric strategy for the suburban region

called the Network City. With the first, the city wants to solve traffic congestion

via the Oosterweel-tunnel; completing the highway ring of Antwerp. This

will also mark the city’s shift to a more sustainable model split. In addition,

Antwerp plans on relocating most of the highway underground in order to construct

a large ring park, that enables the city to shift the growth of the periphery

to the ring zone. Thereby stimulating the creation of a defined urban edge

along the inner-city and suburbs facing the ring; establishing a better connection

between the two. The Network City, wants to shift the city to a polycentric

structure, that is multimodal, and short-distance. It is thereby particularly looking

at strategic densification hubs in the suburban region, allowing this area to

achieve a higher degree of autonomy, while relieving the transport system in

the inner-city.

There is a certain duality in these plans; the first tries to reconnect the

city and its suburbs; the second almost tries to do the opposite. A clear spatial

plan for both of these projects is still missing. What also seems to be missing

is a strategy that directly tries to limit the growth of the periphery, as the city

is now relying on the quality and success of the two described plans. From a

population perspective, the city might be underestimating the effects the ring

project will have on the popularity and population growth of the city, and its effect

on the rise in property value. This might make the city’s densification plans

insufficient, and it may result in them not being able to house the demographic

they aspire to – families who left the city for cheaper housing. In extension,

it might then be a missed opportunity that the left bank – Linkeroever, Zwijndrecht,

and Burcht – is mostly left out of these plans.

This study will try to draft a strategy that allows the city to attain a

more polycentric structure, while maintaining a strong link between the inner-city

and suburbs. At the same time, it tries to apply spatial limitations to the

growth of the peripheral regions, and research ways to expand the densification

plans should the population increase more than expected. This is based

on the assumptions that the ring will be fully put underground, to simulate a

maximum densification scenario; and that Linkeroever, and Zwijndrecht and

Burcht, will therefore become part of the inner-city and suburban region,

respectively. The strategy will use the interplay between the set the rampart, the

traffic artery, and the park, as its main design approach – the three paradigms

which Antwerp used to define its city in the past. An interplay that enables it to

also establish cultural, recreational, climatic, and historical links throughout

the regions of the metropole.

The strategy proposed in this study is separated into (1) the metropolitan

region, (2) the suburban region, and (3) the inner-city region. For the first

(1), the strategy establishes a green belt around the city through the interaction

of the set; limits the growth of the periphery with the appointment of ecological

and economic radials; and positions the fortification spiral as the third structuring

element besides Antwerp’s radial-concentric system, to add a cultural, historic,

and recreational connection throughout the metropole. The second (2),

positions the inner fortification belt as a green necklace that links the various

economic, cultural, recreational, and ecological zones in the region together,

and defines the edge of the suburban region; and devises a polycentric

strategy in which the current radial shaped economic carriers in the region are

attached to the ring zone on one side, and the fortification belt on the other.

Thus, maintaining a serving function and spatial relation to the city. The third

(3), uses the water element of the ramparts to give thematic direction to the

ring park, with an inundation area on the left and small-scale water structures

on the right, which strengthens climate resilience, ecology, and heritage. And

finally, Linkeroever, Burcht, and Zwijndrecht are expanded by reading historical

and present structures, to root them more in their own history, and establish a

connection to the city.

Table of Contents

Introduction 11

I Exploratory Research

1.1 De Grote Verbinding

1.2 Historical-Morphological Analysis of Antwerp

1.3 Optimism, Realism, and Pessimism

1.4 Towards an Overarching Strategy for Antwerp

16 - 92

18

37

62

80

II The Metropolitan Region 94 - 122

2.1 De Stelling van Antwerpen

2.2 A Spatial Strategy for the Metropolitan Region

96

116

III The Suburban Region 124 - 175

3.1 The Suburban Fortification Belt

3.2 A Polycentric Strategy for the Suburban Region

4.1 The Green City Ring

4.2 A Densification Strategy for the Ring Zone

127

162

IV The City Region 176 - 278

178

228

Conclusion 281

Acknowledgements 286

Bibliography 289

List of Figures 308

Appendix

I List of highway caps and tunnels

II Morphological analysis of the ring zone of the

inner-city of Antwerp and Linkeroever

313 - 357

313

322

Introduction

Antwerp is on the eve of implementing two large structuring plans that are

going to change the face of the metropole forever. The first project is the socalled

Grote Verbinding (Big Connection). With this project the city of Antwerp

is going to rebuilt its city highway, the ring of Antwerp, in a multi-million-euro

project that is going to span the next ten to fifteen years. With it, the city

wants to tackle the large congestion problems it is currently facing through the

construction of the Oosterweel-link; a tunnel under the Scheldt that is going to

make the existing ring ‘round’. A completion that will also mark the city’s shift

to a cleaner modal split, with less motorised traffic and more cycling and public

transport. Parallel to this the city wants, on the long-term, to relocate almost

the entirety of the ring underground, in the most ambitious highway capping

project of the past 50 years. On top of this cap the city wants to build a lush

green ring park. A park that has the ability to shift the growth of the peripheral

regions to the area along the ring; the edge of the inner-city and suburbs.

Stimulating the creation of a defined urban edge and a better cohesion

between city and suburbs. In addition, the city wants to create a healthier and

more climate resilient city, that positions Antwerp as one of the most competitive

metropolitan regions in Europe; to attract new talent and investment to the

city.

At the same time the city wants to actively stimulate the growth of

its metropole into a multimodal, short-distance polycentric city; a Network

City as Antwerp calls it. With this move the city wants to shift the focus of the

densification to the so-called 20th century belt; the suburban region across the

ring. With the polycentric strategy the city wants to appoint strategic densification

hubs along existing multimodal hubs or large amenities in the suburban

region. Thereby allowing the suburbs to gain a higher degree of autonomy,

relieve the pressure on the exiting transport system of the inner-city, and also

slow down the growth of the peripheral regions.

Figure 0.0

Aerial photograph of Antwerp and its

suburbs (Google, 2020).

Within these two projects we find a certain duality. The ring project tries to

increase the connection between the city and its suburban region, through

the park and the urban edge. While the polycentric strategy, is almost doing

the opposite; creating a larger sense of autonomy through the stimulation of

polycentric hubs. At present a clear spatial plan for both of these projects is

11

still in development. For the ring project there have been several studies for the

design of the different ring park sections, but these still require further elaboration.

Regarding the polycentric development, we can only find the general

concept described above. There seems to be a plan missing that directly tries

to limit the growth of the periphery; currently the city is instead relying on the

quality and pull of the two previous plans. What also seems to be missing is an

overarching strategy that incorporates these two larger plans into the bigger

picture of the metropole.

Looking at it from a population perspective, we might be able to conclude

that Antwerp is underestimating, to some extend, the effects the capping

of almost the entire ring will have on the popularity and population growth

of the city, and how this in turn will affect the rise in property value along the

ring. As can be observed in similar projects around the world; these kinds of

plans have a drastic effect on the popularity and property prices of the areas

in their immediate vicinity. As a result, the municipality’s planned densification

efforts might not be enough to keep up with the demand. More specifically, the

city may then also not be able to house the demographic they aspire to in the

densification of the ring area – families who have left the city due to increasingly

smaller and expensive apartments. In extension of this, it might then be

a missed opportunity that the role of the left bank, that of Linkeroever and

the neighbouring villages of Zwijndrecht and Burcht, is largely missing in the

narrative of both of these plans. On this side of the river, the plans are more

half-hearted. The ring highway is not capped here, and due to the Oosterweel-link

its landscape might even become more segregated. At the same

time, we might be able to see hints of what Linkeroever’s role, and that of

Zwijndrecht and Burcht, are going to be in the future of the city. With the creation

of a multimodal P+R structure at the edge of Linkeroever, the inclusion in

the low-emission zone within the bounds of the ring, and the urban edge that

both Linkeroever, and Zwijndrecht and Burcht are getting, it seems that the city

might see them as long-term parts of the inner-city of Antwerp and suburban

region, respectively.

This study, in light of these findings, will try to draft a strategy that allows the

city to attain a more polycentric structure, while managing to maintain a strong

link between the inner-city and the suburban regions. At the same time, it

tries to apply spatial limitations to the growth of the peripheral regions, and

research ways to expand the densification plans should the population growth

increase more than expected due to the success of the ring project. This strategy

will be based around two assumptions. The first is the complete capping

of the ring on both the left and the right bank. This positions the ring project

as a scenario in which the ring park has the fullest potential to attract people

12

to the city, allowing for the exploration of a strategy that needs to maximise its

densification efforts. Expanding on this, the second assumption concerns the

role of the left bank. The strategy positions Linkeroever as part of the inner-city

of Antwerp, and Zwijndrecht and Burcht as part of the suburban region.

As its main design approach this strategy will lean on the interplay between the

set of the rampart, the traffic artery, and the park; three paradigms Antwerp

has used to define or enclose its city. The term ‘rampart’ pertains any reference

to the historical defensive structure of Antwerp during its time as National

Redoubt. The term ‘traffic artery’ is based on the ring highway of Antwerp,

but since Antwerp is shifting to more cleaner modes of transport, the term will

apply to any type of major transport. The term ‘the park’ includes any green

structure that has barrier like properties. The interplay mentioned is partially

observed in the current ring project, but fully in the design of the Leien; one of

Antwerp’s major inner-city traffic arteries. In the Leien the spirit of the former

Spaanse Omwalling lives on not just in the morphological shape of the traffic

artery and city park, but also in the rows of trees planted on the boulevard. A

reminder to the trees planted on the rampart. This creates a subtle historical

link that is used to contribute to the creation of a more pleasant atmosphere

on the boulevard. The interaction that occurs here in which an element from

one of the paradigms is used to solve a problem and/or improve the spatial

quality of one of the other paradigms, could be useful for the various goals

this strategy has. As traces of these three paradigms are already present in the

various stages of the metropolitan region.

Therefore, this study tries to provide an answer to the following research

question: How can the interplay between the set, the rampart, the traffic artery,

and the park, be used to developed a strategy that gives spatial direction to

Antwerp’s metropolitan region, its suburban region, and its inner-city?

In order to provide an answer to the main question, a number of sub-questions

have been posed. These questions relate to a specific region in Antwerp’s

metropole, and each form their own chapter. Leading up to these chapters,

chapter I will trace the past, present, and future of Antwerp to come to the

findings as discussed in the previous sections of this introduction. The chapter

will do so on the basis of an analysis of peer-reviewed and grey literature, and

spatial and historical analyses. The chapter will subsequently, combine these

findings and give a more elaborate explanation of the research question and

sub-questions posed in this study. The chapters following will all pertain to a

specific region in Antwerp’s metropole and start with a spatial and historical

13

analysis of the region’s past and present, before concluding with the strategy

relating to the specific region. The sub-questions related to these chapters are:

Chapter II: The Metropolitan Region

1. How did the system of the Stelling van Antwerpen in Antwerp’s period as

the nation’s National Redoubt work?

2. How is the relationship between the remnants of this system and major

ecological, morphological, infrastructural, and economical structures in

Antwerp’s metropolitan region?

3. How can the interplay between the set – the rampart, the traffic artery, and

the park – give spatial direction and definition to the metropolitan region?

Chapter III: The Suburban Region

1. What was the composition of the the inner fortification belts in Antwerp’s

suburban region?

2. How do the remnants of this composition relate to the major ecological,

morphological, infrastructural, and economical structures in Antwerp’s

suburban region?

3. How can the interplay between the set – the rampart, the traffic artery,

and the park – create a polycentric strategy for the suburban region, while

keeping a relationship to the inner-city of Antwerp?

Chapter IV: The City Region

1. What was the composition of the defensive structure of the inner-city and

Linkeroever?

2. What is the spatial response of the area adjacent to the ring in the inner-city

and suburban region?

3. What are the basic morphological characteristics of the city districts along

the ring?


the park – give thematic direction to the green ring and create a densification

plan for the city and suburban districts along the ring, and Linkeroever

as part of the inner-city of Antwerp?

Following these chapters, chapter V holds the conclusion and reflection of this

study. Time-crunched readers may want to read the following selection: chapter

1.4, 2.2, 3.2, 4.2, and the conclusion. This includes the positioning of the

main research question, the main findings of all the chapters, and the design

for the three city regions.

14

15

I

Exploratory Research


1.2 Historical-Morphological Analysis of Antwerp


1.4 Towards an Overarching Strategy for Antwerp

1.1

De Grote Verbinding

On the project that is going to complete the ring of Antwerp

and change the interaction between the city and its suburbs.

In the upcoming years, Antwerp is going to rebuilt its city highway; the Ring of

Antwerp, in a multi-million-euro project. In this project that is going to span the

next ten to fifteen years, Antwerp wants to tackle the large congestion problem

that plagues the city. The current highway ring that circumferences three-quarters

of the city, will be completed through the controversial Oosterweel-Link.

A completion that will also mark a change in the city’s modal split; car- and

freight traffic will be guided around the city in a large curve, and travel to the

city itself will be nudged to public transport and (E-) bicycle.

Parallel to the completion of the ring, most of the highway will be

refurbished – intersections simplified, more bridges between city and suburb,

and measures to contain the noise- and air pollution. On the long term, the

ambition is to cover most of the ring under a green canopy; a highway cap.

A canopy that should increase the air quality and climate resilience of the city,

and connect the several loose green patches along the track of the highway.

Additionally, the covering of Antwerp’s ring should facilitate the refocus of urban

development from the peripheral areas, to the vicinity of the ring, creating

a defined façade for the city as well as its suburbs. Thereby stimulating the participation

of Antwerp’s suburbs in the metropolitan system, and changing the

relation between city and suburb. The largest changes, however, are reserved

for the left bank of Antwerp, for the district ‘Linkeroever’. A district that, after

completion of the Ring, could finally become an integral part of Antwerp.

This chapter will elaborate on the goal, the changes, and the effects

that the project ‘De Grote Verbinding’ will have on Antwerp and its suburbs,

and how the relationship between the former and the latter, and the city and

Linkeroever, could change as a result.

Over de Ring

What started as the ‘Over de Ring-project’ in November of 2016, with the

ambition memo ‘Over de ring, samen naar een aantrekkelijke metropool’,

has at the start of 2020 been dubbed ‘De Grote Verbinding’. Between 2017

and 2018, the different facets of the projects have been elaborated by six

design teams in consultation with the citizens of Antwerp and several stakeholders,

like the Flemish government, the municipality, the harbour, several

citizen movements, Lantis 1 and the intendant. 2 This has led to 18 ‘liveability

1.

Lantis (Leefbaar Antwerpen door

Innovatief Samenwerken) is the new

name of the Beheersmaatschappij Antwerpen

Mobiel (BAM); the government

company that is going to oversee the

construction of the ‘Oosterweel-Link’.

(Gazet van Antwerpen, 2019)

2.

The intendant is a position appointed

by the Flemish government to

oversee a certain project. Since

2018, professor Alexander D’Hooghe

has been appointed Intendant voor

de leefbaarheidsmaatregelen in de

Antwerpse Ringzone. He and his team

are to oversee the design process and

execution of the 18 highway cap and

liveability projects (Gazet van Antwerpen,

2018).

18

Figure 1.0 - Previous spread

Photograph taken above the Kennedytunnel

looking towards Linkeroever

(own image).

projects.’ These projects have been subdivided into seven ring parks, the

Oosterweel-Link and the Bridge over the Scheldt river (Municipality of Antwerp,

2019).

Seventeen ambitions, as described in the ambition memo, form the basis

of the seven ring parks, the Oosterweel-link, and the bridge. In short, these

seventeen points can be summarised by the follow goals: (1) Antwerp and

Flanders want to cap the Ring to become one of the most competitive metropolitan

regions in Europe; to attract new talent and investment to the city. The

covered ring with its, already large public facilities, is the perfect place to show

the vibrancy and cultural richness of the metropolitan life. (2) Creating a park

on the capped ring, and linking the loose patches of green together, will make

the city healthier, by reducing heat stress, flood risk, and sound- and noise

pollution. (3) Facilitating a more attractive ring zone, should shift the growth

of the city from the peripheral area to the new ring park. Thereby changing

the appearance of both city and suburb, breaking the existing barriers and

creating a larger connection. And (4) reducing peak traffic by increasing

alternatives to car- and freight traffic, like public transport or bicycle highways,

and pedestrian paths. Subsequently, also creating a larger connectivity in the

metropolitan region. The ring project, because of its scale, will be executed in

phases to generate success stories. Throughout the project, the ambition is to

collaborate with both citizens and experts. Estimations for the total project vary

between 6 and 8 billion euros (The Intendant for the liveability measures in

Antwerp’s ring zone, 2016a).

Figure 1.1

Map of the seven ring parks, the

Oosterweel-Link, and the bridge over

de Scheldt (The Intendant for the

liveability measures in Antwerp’s ring

zone, 2016a).

19

Towards a new modal split

As mentioned previously, the ring project and the Oosterweel-Link is going to

facilitate a modal shift to less car use and more use of public transport, cycling

and walking. The goal is to achieve a 50/50 split when the project is finished.

This ambition is not new; the ring project joins the ambitions of the Mobility

Masterplan of 2020, and subsequently 2030; and the plan of the province,

the ‘Routeplan 2030’. All these plans roughly describe the follow points to

decrease congestion and pollution, and to maintain its position in the metropolitan

agglomeration of the Flemish Diamond and the European Megalopolis

(or Blue Banana): (1) improving the capacity and quality of the current road

network, by disentangling the city- and regional traffic flows; (2) stimulate alternatives

for car- and freight transport, by improving via water (Albertkanaal),

railway, public transport and bicycle; and by enacting low-emission zones

(inner city and Linkeroever) and giving financial stimulation (for instance with

toll); (3) setup a network of park & ides (P+R’s) with multimodal transport possibilities

(car, public transport, E-bicycle) on a radial and tangent system to the

city and suburbs; and (4) create a high quality bicycle network (Municipality of

Antwerp, 2015; Flemish Government, 2018; The Intendant for the liveability

measures in Antwerp’s ring zone, 2016b).

A big curve around the city

To relieve the pressure of Antwerp’s Ring, regional and city traffic will be

separated after the completion of the ring project. Regional traffic will be

guided around the city in a large curve, through the so-called Harbour track

(Haventracé). This track is a collaboration on a larger scale between the city of

Antwerp and Ghent. It includes a shift from the now dominant E17-route (approaching

Antwerp from southwest), to the E34-route that gives direct access

to the harbour. At the side Ghent, the shift also facilitates better access to the

harbour, with a refurbishment of the R4 and conversion of the N49 (Flemish

Government, 2010). This shift will soften, to some extent, the noise- and air

pollution in Zwijndrecht and Burcht; the villages to the west of Linkeroever.

Passing the harbour, the regional traffic will use the only built part of

the R2, or Antwerp’s large highway ring (see chapter 2.1 for the history of the

R2); the Liefkenshoektunnel. Once through the harbour, the traffic will travel

through the new-to-be-built A102. A track that is part of the unrealised R2.

Specifics on the project are quite ambiguous; the current information describes

a road that is built below ground level (onder het maaiveld) that connects to

the E313. The type of tunnel and whether the A102 will be fully below ground

level is still un clear. Traffic to Brussels will be guided via the southeast section

of the ring, making it the only section to facilitate regional transport. Originally,

the plan was to extent the A102 tunnel to the intersection of the R11

20

with the E19 to Brussels, however, this failed to reach sufficient support from

the adjacent municipalities. The city is going to stimulate freight traffic to use

the bypass through the harbour by installing toll rates in the Kennedytunnel

and the new Scheldt tunnel (Flemish Government, 2018; Lantis, n.d.). Parallel

to the construction of the A102, a new rail connection to the harbour is

plannend, connecting to the railway going to Lier. This connection, along with

the Antigoontunnel (popularly called the Liefkenshoek railway tunnel) built in

2014, will relieve the freight transport in the Kennedytunnel and the ring zone,

which in turn offers opportunities for public transport, as well as that it stimulates

freight traffic via train. The construction of the A102 and the second rail

connection to the harbour has been pushed back till after the completion of

the Oosterweel-Link around 2024. The total project is estimated to cost 800

million to 1,00 billion euros (Flemish Government, 2010).

Once the Oosterweel-link is complete, the Charles de Costerlaan will be

disconnected from the highway. This cuts Linkeroever off as part of the highway

network, and its now, quasi function of ‘completing’ the ring. In the current

plans the section of the road from the highway until it reaches the edge of

Linkeroever will become a (very wide) bicycle and pedestrian corridor. What

will happen to the Waaslandtunnel, whether this road will remain a car tunnel,

is a of yet uncertain. It is however, currently one of the most unsafe car tunnels

in Belgium (Thijs, 2018; Crevits, 2008).

Scaling up the bicycle

Along with the untangling of the car and train network, the bicycle network is

improved and scaled up. The bicycle (and the pedestrian) is going to be the

most important link in trips shorter than five kilometres, in urban as well as

in suburban settings. Antwerp wants to achieve this by improving the bicycle facilities

on main traffic arteries, and by creating car-free zones on a neighbourhood

level. The city wants to join in on the E-bicycle trend to achieve bike connections

for distances greater than 15 kilometres. Regional bicycle corridors

will be expanded to handle the increased traffic, both radially and tangentially.

For the latter connection, the capped ring and the R11 are proposed as links

between Antwerp’s radial system of roads. The connections between urban and

rural areas will be improved, importantly for both daily residential and economical

traffic, as well as leisure travel. This network will mainly be built along

existing linear elements, like channels, highways, and railways, or the old system

of chaussee roads (steenwegen) to cater to an average speed of 15 to 25

km/h. A system like this will be, for a large part, outside of the municipalities

jurisdiction, and will require collaboration from Flanders and the province of

Antwerp. The majority of this network is already in place, the different mobility

21

E34 to

Knokke-Heist

And Gent's

harbour

Chaussee

to Gent

22

Chaussee

to Tempse

I I I I I I

The radial development

is especially visible in the

more rural part of the

Waasland.

This is the ferry route.

Chaussee

to Brussels

Zwijndrecht

Burcht

Inside the ring will become

low-emission zone

This road will be disconnected

from the highway.

A bus

Chaussee

to Aartselaar

and tram

Chaussee to

Bergen op

Zoom

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I Iv

Train to

Ghent

E17 to

Ghent

Legend

I I I I I I

Highway

Bicycle

Train

Ferry

This will become the main route after Antwerp's ring is completed.

Chaussee with

public transport

This is the

Liefkenshoektunnel.

A12 to

Bergen op

Zoom

There will be no

highway lid on the

left side. Here the

intersections will just

be made compacter.

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Main track going through the harbour.

You can clearly see that

Antwerp developed along

the radial axes of its

chaussees.

Train to

Brussels

Harbour

This is the Oosterweel-Link.

the Scheldt

bridge will

be built here

A12 to

Brussel

This is the

Kennedytunnel.

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line will

be

al ong the ring.

built

This

is the

R 11.

Chaussee

to Brussels

Chaussee to

Roosendaal

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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

I I I

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

This section

E19 to

Brussel

will

Train

to Roosendaal

This is the

still be quite

b usy.

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

Train

to Breda

new A102 car & train

Chaussee

to Breda

Chaussee

to Brecht

Chaussee

to Turnhout

Chaussee

to Nijlen

The P+R system

follows the old

chaussees network.

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

Chaussee

to Lier

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

I I I I

tunnel.

E19 to

Breda

E313 to

Eindhoven

and Maastricht

Three options for

the rail connection.

Train

to Lier

Train

to Lier

Train to

Mechelen &

Brussels

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

Highway network

Highway network

Highway network

Highway network

plans mainly focus on building the missing links (Flemish Government, 2018;

Municipality of Antwerp, 2015).

Bicycle network

Bicycle network

Bicycle network

Bicycle network

The upcoming bridge over the Scheldt is going to be an important step in

realising the high-quality bicycle network discussed in the previous section;

a bridge that will only be accessible for pedestrians, public transport, and

cyclists. Due to its above ground connection, the bridge will be a faster alternative

to the ring area and city from the Waasland, than the current Kennedytunnel

and Sint-Annatunnel on Linkeroever. Which are often plagued with

congestion and safety issues. The bridge is going to be an important link in the

concentric connection that Antwerp is striving for in the ring zone; a concentric

connection that intersects all the major traffic corridors coming to the city

(Team West; De Urbanisten; Omgeving; COBE, 2018).

Railway network

Railway network

Railway network

Railway network

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A system of park & rides

To stimulate less car-oriented traffic in the urban fabric, Antwerp is improving

and expanding its park & ride system. This includes scaling up the existing

P+R’s and building new ones at crucial highway intersections, like Linkeroever,

Merksem and Luchtbal, increasing the total parking capacity with 4000

vehicles. The public transport (mostly trams) at these P+R’s will be expanded to

transport people to the city for economic or recreational activities (Municipality

of Antwerp, 2020). The traffic arteries used to connect the P+R’s and the city

mainly follows the old system of chaussee roads, making this strategy a continuation

of their historic connecting function.

The ambition is to transform these P+R’s to multimodal transport

hubs to various destinations in the city and suburbs, and let them function as

not only as a transfer point for car traffic, but also for the previously mentioned

bicycle network. In addition to this, connections to a light rail or metro network

are researched (Municipality of Antwerp, 2015). The mobility plan mentions

increasing the attraction of using the P+R’s by adding certain facilities, like a

carwash or kiosk.

Figure 1.2

Map of the infrastructural changes of

the ring project (The Intendant for the

liveability measures in Antwerp’s ring

zone, 2016a).

More public transport

With the ambition of building a robust P+R network, minimising congestion

and car travel, and reducing noise- and air pollution, the city of Antwerp is not

only installing a low-emission zone within the bounds of the ring, but is also

going to invest in a better public transport network. Currently, tram and bus

traffic are plagued with increasing congestion and long delays (Flemish Government,

2018). Antwerp is predominantly focusing on scaling-up the tramway

network, only resorting to busses when no other option is available. A distinction

is made between urban tram tracks (stedelijke tram) and normal tram

23

tracks, it is unclear what this distinction entails (increased frequency, less stops,

etc.). In the upcoming years the possibility of installing tram rails on the quay,

the capped ring, and possibly the R11 will be researched. The capped ring

in this system is supposed to form the tangential link that is going to connect

the different radials coming to the city, much like in the previously mentioned

bicycle network. However, in contrast to the bicycle network, the public transport

will not go fully around the city, but stop at the P+R on Linkeroever (Team

West; De Urbanisten; Omgeving; COBE, 2018).

In addition to the tram improvements, the city wants to encourage travel via

water-, bicycle-, or regular taxis, possibly reserving separate lanes for this type

of traffic. For example, the municipality is looking into allowing more ferry

transport on the Albertkanaal, approaching the city from the east. The mobility

plan also describes the city’s interest in car sharing, stating that they want

to stimulate this, and are thereby joining in on the beginning transition from

car-ownership to car-access (Municipality of Antwerp, 2015).

The bigger picture

The Grote Verbinding will be an integral part of the Strategic Spatial Structure

Plan for Antwerp that is currently in development. An overview of the plan

outlining the main goals was released in 2018 in a memorandum. In this

document the city subdivides their ambitions into three groups: The Vibrant

residential city, the Smart network city, and the Resilient landscape (Department

of Urban development, Team Spatial planning, 2018, p. 3).

The first, the vibrant residential city, focusses on Antwerp’s housing

market; the city want to keep a healthy cross-section of the entire population.

Antwerp expects to grow with 30.000 new families by 2030. Half of the homes

needed for this are already planned, and for the other half they are counting

on the continuity of the market. They especially want to tackle the current trend

of families with children leaving the city in favour of the suburbs, by adding

more family apartments in their own projects, as well as stimulating the market

to do the same. Through changes in the building code, the city wants to nudge

the market to continue to build larger projects with collective space. Affordability

is a big reason why families are moving out. The city wants to cater to these

families, and prevent the downsizing of apartments as a result, by introducing

new financing options, like leaseholds or developing housing companies in

which the residents can buy shares (Department of Urban development, Team

Spatial planning, 2018, pp. 7-9).

The city makes a distinction between five areas in the city (see figure 1.3).

Antwerp wants to shift the densification focus to what they call the 20th century

belt – the suburbs across the ring, as this area already has a diverse range

of amenities available. They see areas along public transport hubs, on the

Figure 1.3

Drawing of the Vibrant Residential City

(Department of Urban development,

Team Spatial planning, 2018, p. 8).

24

periphery of green areas, or on larger and underutilised parcels as potential

locations for densification. Urban renewal and densification, according to the

city, should go hand in hand with creating pleasant public space and green

areas. Linkeroever is mentioned in its own category (Leap across the River),

however, not much is stated about its development, just that the “tradition of

master planning continues.” In the upcoming years Linkeroever will continue

to establish itself as: “A unique, green part of the city on the water, and as a

part of a regional landscape, from the river to beyond the Ring and the city’s

boundaries.” The ring project receives special attention as a means to densify

and interweave or connect the various parts of the city with each other, creating

new facades that face the Ring Park (Department of Urban development,

Team Spatial planning, 2018, pp. 10-13).

Figure 1.4

Drawing of the Smart Network City



In the Smart network city section, the city elaborates on its vision to further develop

to a multimodal, short-distance city and the smart city of Flanders, leaning

on their wide spread of amenities in the city fabric, and their internationally

acclaimed port, maritime petrochemical cluster, and diamond and fashion

industry. Antwerp is committed to close and shorten urban cycles in terms of

energy, materials, drinking water and food. The city is developing a heating

grid for new and existing districts; a circular water management model, and

urban agriculture. Using data is mention, however not specifically. Shortening

distances on an economical and residential neighbourhood level is mentioned,

however, mostly in the sense of becoming more efficient in using space; i.e.

sharing offices, warehouses, cars (Department of Urban development, Team

Spatial planning, 2018, pp. 16-19).

In the spatial elaboration, Antwerp discusses their aim to densify

locations that are now often mono-functional, like supermarkets or hospitals.

Adding mixed programme at these locations will increase their economical

function and function to the neighbourhood. Antwerp also discusses the possibility

of creating “strategic hubs” at mobility hubs, like P+R’s, train stations,

or airports, because they connect several modes of transport. Expanding their

amenities might make them attractive places to spend time. The city explicitly

makes a distinction between functions that operate on a city or regional scale,

like hospitals, theatres, and museums; and neighbourhood functions, like supermarkets,

as a means of creating links in the city. Antwerp mentions explicitly

that they are going to continue to develop into a polycentric city with a wide

range of amenities in the city and neighbourhoods. Specific attention will go

in increasing mobility between the left and right banks, mentioning the bridge

over the Scheldt, improved ferry service, and the public transport tangent on

the ring (Department of Urban development, Team Spatial planning, 2018,

pp. 20-23, 35).

25

Noorderpark

This section will

receive a

combination of lids

and earthen walls.

Scheldepark

According to the

plans, Linkeroever

is also going to

get a defined

edge.

Earthen walls will be

built along the parts

of the highway that

are staying exposed.

Parts of

Zwijndrecht

and Burcht

are also going

to get

densified.

Linkeroever's nature

is still divided by the

highway in the current

plans.

Antwerp wants

to create a more

robust connection

between city and

suburb, by turning

streets into

avenues.

Antwerp is using

the covering of

the ring as a way

of densifying the

city.

Schijnvalley

Stream valley of

the kleine and grote

Schijn.

All the suburbs

will get a defined

edge ones the ring

is covered.

Legend

Highway

26

Green street

Morphology with defined edge

Ring Park

Contours suburb or village

Zuiderpark

The green ring of

Antwerp connects

to four larger ecological

zones to the west, north,

east and south.

Figure 1.5

Drawing of the Resilient Landscape



With Resilient landscape, Antwerp want to restore its connection with the water

and increase the percentage of residents that live within walking distance of

public green (currently 61 percent), thereby creating a green-blue structure that

will help them become climate resilient. Regarding densification the city mentions

that it must constantly be weighed up against the additional requirements

it brings regarding the requirements for greenery, stating that taller buildings

could be an option to allow unpaved surfaces as much as possible. In the

inner-city they want to focus on eliminating as much paved surface as possible

to also improve heat stress and water problems; experimenting with garden

streets and greening the interior of building blocks. In addition, Antwerp

encourages private inhabitants to make gardens, green facades/roofs (Department

of Urban development, Team Spatial planning, 2018, pp. 26-28).

Antwerp established four types of green in the city: Green mist, Superparks,

Scheldtpark, and Ring Park. The first category established that there are

several loose patches of green scattered throughout the city (parks, in streets,

on facades, etc.), in which every opportunity needs to be seized to expand

them to the Ring Park with green streets. Connecting functions are reserved

for the latter three categories, with a special place for the Ring Park, that is

supposed to connect the local green with the regional nature. (Department of

Urban development, Team Spatial planning, 2018, pp. 29-31).

Figure 1.6

Map that shows the densification

along the ring zone and the concept of

the green ring and green radials (The

Intendant for the liveability measures in

Antwerp’s ring zone, 2016a).

Growing around the ring

With the capping of the ring Antwerp wants to facilitate a more attractive ring

zone that is no longer crippled under the effects of the highway. In doing so

the city is creating some well needed densification space. By increasing the

attractiveness of the ring zone, the city wants to shift the growth of the city from

the peripheral area to the vicinity of the ring. In doing so Antwerp want to

create a defined urban edge on the inner-city as well as the suburbs. With the

densification project the city wants to create an attractive environment for the

families that have left the city in recent years, in favour of the suburban region

or the peripheral area (Department of Urban development, Team Spatial planning,

2018, p. 43).

With the creation of the defined urban edge the city wants to change

the relationship between the inner-city and the suburbs. These zones now both

turn away from the ring zone, with the urban edge the city want to go from

turning their backs to each other, to facing one another. In the plans it seems

that Linkeroever, and also parts of Zwijndrecht and Burcht are also getting a

defined urban edge. As we have previously read, there is not yet a clear role

for Linkeroever in the city (The Intendant for the liveability measures in Antwerp’s

ring zone, 2016a, p. 11). In 2016, a design competition for Linkeroever

was launched by the city architect. Five projects won the competition,

27

however, none of these projects will become reality as the competition was

initiated to generate ideas on which direction to take. As of yet, there has been

no follow-up (Municipality of Antwerp, 2017). However, we might be able to

speculate, that with this urban edge, the instalment of the low-emission zone,

and the P+R structure, that Linkeroever might be transitioning to become more

urban or even part of the inner-city.

Currently Antwerp has 530.104 inhabitants in its metropolitan region, including

the historic city and suburbs. Roughly an increase of 50.000 inhabitants

since 2010 (Municipality of Antwerp, 2020). A prognosis made in 2008,

designed four scenarios for population growth between 2009 and 2030.

The ones that considered a positive migration index, projected a growth to

587.000 to 610.000 inhabitants (Rotthier, 2008, p. 4). A population projection

of LaboXX made in 2010, states that this projection has not been

completely accurate because it makes a wrong estimation of the number of

international immigrants coming to the city. Correcting for this, the research

designs two scenarios, one in which the population of Antwerp will grow to

610.000-622.00 by 2030; and the other in which the large influx of immigrants

will continue till 2030, which would mean a growth to 714.000

inhabitants (LaboXX, 2010, pp. 2, 54). Since we are now at the halfway point

– 2020 – we can check both projections to see which one is closest to reality.

Comparing both graphs, we see that the most positive scenario of the Antwerp’s

projection comes closest to the current situation; LaboXX’s projection is

already at or above 550.000 in 2020. That being said, it is probably too early

to make definitive conclusions. With the ring project that is going to greatly

increase the liveability of the city, and probably its international image and

pull, we might see a stronger immigration pattern once the city comes close to

finishing the project. The Demografische vooruitzichten 2016-2060; bevolking

en huishoudens expects that Belgium cities, like Brussels, Liege, and Antwerp

will continue to see a strong international migration pattern until 2060 (Federaal

Planbureau & Algemene Directie Statistiek, 2017, p. 38). And perhaps we

should also not underestimate the pull that an increase in family apartments

can have on all the families that have left the city in recent years.

The green ring around the city

With the ring park the city wants to link all the loose green patches around

the current ring together, and make the city healthier, by reducing heat stress,

flood risk, and air and noise pollution. The city mentions in its water plan

that it wants to research how the ring park might contribute to the city’s water

system (De Urbanisten; Witteveen+Bos; Common Ground, 2019). Antwerp

wants to subsequently connect this green ring to the four green radials entering

28

Figure 1.7

Image of the four large ecological

structures entering the city (Municipality

of Antwerp, 2020).

Figure 1.8

The concept of the Bermenlandschap.

The shoulders of the highway will first

be raised and made greener pending

a total capping of the highway at a

later date (over de ring, n.d.).

the city, that connect to larger green structures in the peripheral areas. For Linkeroever

the green radial does not actually connect to the ring park as it does

on the right side of the river, here the green radial – the Scheldt river valley – is

actually part of the ring park itself (Municipality of Antwerp, 2020).

Not capping immediately

The highway ring is not going to be capped in one go; because capping the

ring is a costly affair, most sections will first receive what the project team is

29

calling a Bermenlandschap (highway schoulder landscape). In this Bermenlandschap

the shoulders of the road are raised and made greener, as the

above image shows, to reduce noise and air pollution to some extent, and to

increase the liveability of the area directly facing the highway. Once a highway

cap is imminent, the cap can be attached to the Bermenlandschap (over de

ring, n.d.). Looking at the cross sections it seems that the ring is lowered to

some extent, but still sticks out quite a bit once the cap is installed.

2

1

Figure 1.9

The urban plan for Linkeroever as

part of the ring park (Team West; De

Urbanisten; Omgeving; COBE, 2018).

Linkeroever

Figure 1.9 shows the urban plan for Linkeroever as currently proposed by

Team West; a design team consisting out of De Urbanisten, Omgeving, and

COBE. In this plan the larger intersections currently in the landscape of Linkeroever

are going to be rebuilt to be compacter, and the Bermenlandschap

is also going to be installed here to some extent. Where in other plans the intention

of fully capping the highway at one point in the future is discussed, the

plan for Linkeroever mentions no such ambition. This could have something to

do with the highway lying on a dyke in the southern section of Linkeroever. The

biggest change in the highway landscape of Linkeroever, is the construction of

the Oosterweel-link; the new tunnel on the northern side that is going to make

Antwerp’s ring round (Team West; De Urbanisten; Omgeving; COBE, 2018).

Another important topic is the creation of the ring park on this side

of the river. For this, the plan actually does not propose very much, other than

that it creates three wildlife bridges, that are supposed to increase the cohesion

between the segregated landscape that is Linkeroever’s ecological zone (Team

30

West; De Urbanisten; Omgeving; COBE, 2018). What is missing in the design

is a (urban) plan for the city district itself. There are a few areas in the plan that

show some kind of densification, but no real explanation is given for this.

The plan does indicate the position of the P+R structure of Linkeroever, near

the intersection of the highway with the Blancefloerlaan (1). The highway exit

of Linkeroever will therewith be relocated to that P+R structure. The current exit

will be turned into a green boulevard, that extends to the new Scheldt bridge

to the south. The Charles de Costerlaan (2), the boulevard that is going to be

disconnected from the highway, can here be seen to end in a bicycle bridge

going over the highway. What happens at the other end, at the Waaslandtunnel,

is still unclear.

Conclusion

Figure 1.10

A new modal split.

Hoort bij Antwerpen A new model split

Verkeerssysteem voor Verkeerssysteem na

From the analysis of Antwerp’s current plans, we can conclude that the city is

striving for a modal shift in which the number of trips per car are reduced to

50 percent of all travel movements, with the other half being covered by public

transport, bicycles, and walking. The city is doing this by installing several

new P+R structures in and around the city region, at the exits of the highways.

Antwerp is also facilitating this modal shift by separating the passenger

and freight traffic, with a new highway and railway connection through the

harbour. This will direct all the through and freight traffic around the city in a

large curve, and thus freeing up space in the existing railway system in the city,

allowing for more passenger traffic. In addition to the untangling, Antwerp is

going to install tolls on the ring around the city for freight traffic, and establish

a low-emission zone within the bounds of the ring.

Radiaal stadsmodel

31

To a radial-concentric city model

With the ring project, Antwerp is going to start to transition from a radial to a

radial-concentric city model. This is facilitated by the instalment of the extensive

bicycle highway and public transport network along the ring park, and the

new railway and highway through the harbour and past the suburbs. The city is

even mentioning the intention of extending the latter concentric connection to

the south in some form of highway, railway, or public transport. These changes

tie into Antwerp’s plans to become a polycentric city.

rkeerssysteem rssysteem na na Linkeroever Radiaal Radiaal as part stadsmodel of the inner-city

Radiaal-concentrisch

Naar Naar binnen binnen gekeerd gekeerd

It seems that with all the interventions happening; the stadsmodel

completion of the ring

and disconnecting the Charles de Costerlaan from the highway network; the

implementation of the P+R system at the borders of the ring road and the

instalment of the low-emission zone; and the defined edge that Linkeroever is

going to get, that the city district could be making the shift to become part of

the inner-city of Antwerp. Instead of, like it seems to be currently, being connected

more to the Waasland; the region to the west of the city. As of yet, the

city has no clear vision for Linkeroever.

Figure 1.11

From a radial to a radial-concentric

city model

Figure 1.12

Linkeroever as part of the inner-city of

Antwerp?

Hoort bij Waasland Hoort bij Antwerpen Verkeerssysteem voor V

32

Figure 1.13

A defined urban edge for the ring

park.

Towards a paradigm shift.

Verbonden (groene ring) Geen rand Stedelijke rand

With the construction of the ring park, the city wants to refocus the growth

of the peripheral areas to the ring zone and thereby create a defined urban

edge on both the side of the inner-city and the suburbs. With this densification

strategy, the city wants to initiate a paradigm shift in the relationship between

the city and its suburbs; from two districts that are currently facing away from

each other, the city was to go to districts that are turning towards each other.

Thereby stimulating a better connection. With this densification the city wants

to increase its share of apartments for families. Special care is taken towards

making these homes affordable, via leaseholds or by developing housing companies

in which residents can buy shares.

Figure 1.14

From turning away to facing each

other.

Radiaal-concentrisch

stadsmodel

With the ring park the city wants to connect the several loose green patches

Naar binnen gekeerd Verbonden (groene ring) Geen rand

around the current ring, and make the city healthier, by reducing heat stress,

flood risk, and air and noise pollution. In doing so the city wants to become

one of the most competitive metropolitan regions in Europe, in an effort to attract

new talent and investment to the city. Antwerp wants to use the Ring Park

as the link between the green areas in the city and the larger scale regional

nature areas. Attaching the green in the city through green streets to the Ring

33

park, and attaching the Ring Park to the regional nature via green radials.

This should lead to an increase in the percentage of residents that live within

walking distance of public green.

Polycentric development of the suburban region

Further densification should mainly be done in the twentieth century belt; the

suburbs on the other side of the ring. Preferably at areas that have a multimodal

transport hub (like train stations, or P+R’s), or some kind of large-scale

amenity like a hospital. The city wants to use this to transition into a polycentric,

multimodal, and short distance city. However, a clear spatial plan is currently

still missing on where these strategic locations are. This plan is currently

being developed.

Population projections

With the current population projections, it seems that Antwerp will have

enough homes to keep up with the population trend. However, there need

to be two side notes. The first is that we might see a greater domestic and

international migration pattern once the Ring project comes close to finishing,

or when it is finished. The second is that all the family apartments that Antwerp

wants to build in the upcoming years, can have a greater than expected pull

on the families that have left the city in recent years.

34

35

36

1.2

Historical-Morphological

Analysis of Antwerp

On the development of the city along the river the Scheldt

The first mentioning of a settlement near the Scheldt is speculated to be

around 250 A.D. in the name of two Roman settlements; Scaldis (Scheldt in

Latin) and Scinda (The Schijn). The subsequent Dark Ages marked a period of

shifting country borders for Antwerp under the rule of the Frankish Empire, in

which the Scheldt became a national border on multiple occasions, as a result

of the subsequent treaties of Verdun, Meerssen, and Ribbemont. Antwerp became

a stronghold with a moat at the hands of the Normans, who conquered

the settlement in 836. Under the rule of the Holy Roman Empire, the Margraviate

of Antwerp (Graafschap van Antwerpen) was established in 974. The city

subsequently received town privileges (stadsrechten), in 1221 by Duke Henry II

of Brabant. The city kept holding a strategic position at the border of the Holy

Roman Empire, reachable by land and by sea which played an important role

in its development. Until the signing of the Treaty of Senlis in 1493, the Scheldt

served as a border between the landgraviate of Brabant (to which Antwerp

belonged) and the landgraviate of Flanders, which belonged to France. With

this country border alleviated, and the Scheldt now reachable via the Western

Scheldt (de Westerschelde), the city flourished as an international trading hub

and port city, allowing the city to grow. Antwerp was subsequently appointed

the most important trading city of the Northern Netherlands, by Emperor

Charles V (Karel V). These events roughly mark the city’s entrance to its golden

age, which leads us to the drawing of figure 1.5 (Broeders, et al., 2017, pp.

52-119).

The following pages will describe the morphological development of

Antwerp over the course of its history. Specifically, this chapter’s overall goal is

to see how the relationship between the inner-city and its suburbs developed,

and the relationship between the left and right side of the river.

37

Oisterweele

Merxem

Zwijndrecht

Opt’ Veer

Doorn

St. Willebrord

Borcht

Berchm

Hoboekem

Luythagen

Wilryck

Mortsele

38

Figure 1.15

A map of Antwerp in 1573. Derived

from the Ostium Scaldis fluvii cum

insulis quas efficit of Christiaan Sgrooten.

(KBR Belgica, n.d.)

1573

The map to the left shows Antwerp at the end of its golden age and on the eve

of the Siege of Antwerp (1584-1585) during the Eighty Years’ War (1568-

1648). The city of Antwerp is here enclosed by the Spaanse Omwalling, built

by Charles V to replace the medieval wall, and establish Antwerp’s role as

important trading hub. The wall was five kilometres long and comprised of

nine bastions and had four monumental, Renaissance gates. The outside of

the rampart was made out of brick, the inside out of earth (Gazet van Antwerpen,

2015). After the abdication of Charles V, the empire was split in two

parts; a Spanish and an Austrian part (which continued the flag of the Holy

Roman Empire). Antwerp and the entirety of the Netherlands fell under the

domain of the Spanish Empire. A distain for the Spanish, economic decline,

and religious tension (Catholic Spain v. Protestant Netherlands), resulted in a

revolt which ultimately led to the Eighty Years’ War. In response to the rebelling

Netherlands, the Duke of Alva ordered the construction of the Citadel of

Antwerp (south section of the rampart), a pentagonal bastion fort, in the early

days of the Dutch Revolt (1567-1572) to defend and quell any resistance from

Antwerp’s in habitants. This explains the large open area to the north of the

fort (the esplanade); to have a clear field of fire (Michielsen, 2016; Military

Heritage Antwerp, n.d.).

On the map we see three roads going to the small villages of Merxem,

Doorn (what will become Deurne) and Berchem, followed by Luythagen.

These roads were the start of the Belgian chaussee roads (Steenwegen)

(Wegen-Routes.be, 2016). On the left side of the river, at that point in time

called the Borgerweertpolder, we see Fort Vlaamsch Hoofd, built in 1568 to

defend the left bank. The fort was later popularly called Fort Opt’ Veer or Fort

‘t Veer, because of the ferry services between Sint Anne (or Sint Anneke) – the

settlement on the Borgerweertpolder – and Antwerp (Verbraeken, 2018a).

On the south side of the left bank we see a road meandering towards Borcht

(later Burcht) and Zwijndrecht. There are several other forts along the dyke of

the polder; starting from the south we see the Sconce (schans) of Borcht (1),

Redoubt Melkhuis (2), Fort Tholouse (3), the Loopschans (4), and the sconce

Melsensluis (5) (Van Ham & University of Leiden, n.d.).

Images and maps (see chapter 4.1) have illustrated that the Borgerweertpolder

was used as inundation area during the Siege of Antwerp.

The entire section could become overrun with water by puncturing the dykes

surrounding the peninsula. The water of the Scheldt was much easier to control

up until the development of the harbour, which narrowed and deepened the

river, leading to the 6-metre tidal difference it has today (De Urbanisten; Witteveen+Bos;

Common Ground, 2019, p. 32).

39

Oosterweel

Merxem

1

6

Swijndrecht

Fort t’ Veer

5

Doorn

Crayehof

2

St. Willebrord

3

Burcht

4

Berchm

Hobokem

Luythagen

Wilryck

Mortsele

40

1664

The map to the left shows Antwerp a few years after the signing of the Treaty of

Münster that marked the end of the Eighty Years’ war between the then Republic

of the Seven United Netherlands and the Spanish Empire. The map shows

that the Spaanse Omwalling was reinforced with several ravelins at the east

entrance of the city, and that the Citadel was enlarged with three ravelins.

On the left bank we see a new linear east-west connection between

Antwerp and the hinterland. The limited literature available on this road, suggests

that this is a dyke called the ‘Grote Groene Weghe’ that was supposed

to give access to Antwerp in the event that the Borgerweertpolder was inundated.

The three diagonal waterways connecting to the road seem to confirm

this (Antrop, De Maeyer, & Vandermotten, 2006, p. 19). The result of these

inundations is visible in the landscape of the polder in the form of the Geuzeweel

(1), the Galgeweel (2), and the Burchtse weel (3), which all formed after

dyke breaches. Probably due to one of the inundations during the Siege of

Antwerp in the Eighty Years’ War (Antwerpse Vereniging voor Bouwhistorie en

Geschiedenis, n.d.; Verbeeck, 1944, p. 166). We also see a new road along

the northern side of the Borgerweertpolder called the Scheldeweg (Scheldt

road).

We see that many forts and sconces have been discontinued after

the war. The Sconce (schans) of Borcht (4) is still visible, we further see a few

new redoubts at the end of the diagonal waterways and an unnamed fort/

sconce (5) north of Fort t’ Veer that was sometimes connected to Antwerp with

a pontoon bridge. Further to the north we see the early development of Fort

Isabelle (6), and continuing to the west we see three new unnamed sconces.

Near Swijndrecht we see the newly built Fort Laer, built in 1638 by the Spanish

(Verbraeken, 2018b).

Figure 1.16

A map of Antwerp in 1664. Derived

from the Flandria illustrate of Antonius

Sanderus, and a more detailed map of

Antwerp by Joan Blaeu (BnF Gallica,

n.d.; Oudelandkaarten.eu, n.d.).

1846

The map on the next page shows Antwerp halfway through the 19th century.

Between this map and the previous one, Antwerp has had four different rulers.

After the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714), the Southern Netherlands

again belonged to the Holy Roman Empire under Charles VI according

to the Treaty of Utrecht. Subsequently in 1795 after the Battle of Fleurus, the

Southern Netherlands were annexed by France, and in 1799 after Napoleon’s

Coup of 18 Brumaire, fell under his rule. In 1814-1815 after the Napoleonic

Wars, the Treaty of Paris was signed which ultimately led to the formation of the

United Kingdom of the Netherlands. Which added the Southern Netherlands

to the reign of William I (Willem I der Nederlanden). However, this did not last

long, because of growing unrest due to, among other things, a difference in

religion (Catholic in the south and Protestant in the north) and general lack of

41

Ekeren

Austruweel

Merxem

6

3

1

8

Zwijndrecht

5

Tête de

Flandres

4

St. Willebrord

Borgerhout

Deurne

Crayehof

7

Burcht

Berchem

Ruytemberg

Hoboken

Wilryck

Luythagen

Mortsele

42

Figure 1.17

A map of Antwerp around 1846 (Geopunt,

n.d.; Felix-Archief, n.d.).

autonomy, the south began to rebel in 1830; called the Belgian Revolution.

This was resolved in the London Conference of 1830 were the major powers

of Europe recognized the secession of Belgium, establishing Belgium’s

independence. It took until 1839 for William I to accept this with the Treaty of

London, which defined borders between the United Kingdom of the Netherlands

and the Kingdom of Belgium. Under Leopold I, the Kingdom of Belgium

became a constitutional monarchy (Broeders, et al., 2017, pp. 192-269).

On the map to the left we see that the Spaanse Omwalling was

further reinforced with ravelins to the north and south, and that the Citadel was

strengthened with to lunettes pointing to the south. We also see a large new

lunette; the Lunette of Herentals (Hebbelinck & Plomteux, 2009).

The defence system on the Borgerweerpolder has been increased considerably

since the previous map. We see that Fort Isabelle (1) has been developed to a

lunette, and that a new lunette was built near the Galgeweel; Fort Burcht (2).

We see that Fort Vlaams Hoofd has been rebuilt to a star fort (or bastion fort)

and that a lunette (Fort Calloo; 3) and a pentagonal fort (Fort Zwijndrecht;

4), along with a defensive moat have also been built. This development was

initiated by the French, who wanted to establish Antwerp as an international

trading city, after the reopening of the Scheldt river in 1792 (Enthoven & Van

der Maas, 2015). Shifting the main economy from a textile to trading. The

Borgerweertpolder was supposed to have a key role in this. Napoleon had

big plans for the Borgerweertpolder, as he wanted to build an entirely new city

there. This was the first time in history that the polder was viewed as not only a

place for military usage, but also as a place for residential development. The

new city would receive the name Ville Marie-Louise, and would get an arsenal,

shipyards, and residential barracks. A temporary pontoon bridge was supposed

to connected the two sides of the river (Schoofs, 2003a). We also see

the delicate pattern of ditches of the Borgerweertpolder for the first time.

We further see the leftovers of Fort Stengel (5), a fort built by the French to defend

the chaussee to Ghent. The Dutch later demolished it, because enemies

could also capture it and use it as a base of operations (Verbraeken, 2014c).

At the start of the peninsula we see that the Blokkers dyke (6) has been extended

to the south with the Suyker dyke (7).

The focus of the French, and later William I, on the development of

the harbour left its marks on the city, with the creation of the le petit basin (7)

and subsequently the le grand basin (8); the current Bonapartedok and the

Willemdok respectively. And the channel from Antwerp to Herentals to the

north of the city, outside of the ramparts.

This is the first map that shows morphology. We see that Borgerhout,

Deurne, Berchem, Merxem, and also Zwijndrecht have developed as linear

settlements along the chaussee roads. On the left bank, we see that another

43

Ekeren

Austruweel

Merxem

Zwyndrecht

Tête de

Flandre

St. Willebrord

Deurne

Borgerhout

Burcht

Berchem

Ruytemberg

Rooy

Hoboken

Wilryck

Luythagen

Mortsele Moortsel

44

dyke has been made to cater to the chaussee road connecting Antwerp to

Ghent, and that this has been connected, quite pragmatically, to the historic

road in Zwijndrecht. The creation of this chaussee, in the 18th century, also

establish the visual axis with the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal (Cathedral of

Our Lady) still present today. We also see that the train has made its entrance,

with a connection to Ghent from Vlaamsch Hoofd. And the Iron Rhine (IJzeren

Rijn), which connects Antwerp to Weert and Roermond, and Mönchengladbach

(Broeders, et al., 2017, p. 287). And the Railway to Roosendaal.

1897

The map to the left shows Antwerp’s time as National Redoubt. Antwerp’s

appointment as National Redoubt was a measure to centralise the defence of

Belgium after its independence in 1939. As defending the whole country would

be unrealistic. In the even that Belgium would come under attack, the King,

parliament, the army, and other important members of society, could retreat

to Antwerp. Awaiting foreign aid. Antwerp was chosen over other city’s like

Brussels due to its position along the Scheldt (Nagels, 2012, p. 48; Busschots,

2014).

The Grote Omwalling is now enclosing the city, and thereby replaces

the Spaanse Omwalling which has now been incorporated into the fabric of

the city as the Leien and the city park (1). The Grote Omwalling increased the

Figure 1.18

Antwerp’s entire defence system during

its period as the Belgium’s National

Redoubt (Van de Sijpe, n.d.).

Figure 1.19

Map of Antwerp around 1897 (Topotijdreis,

n.d.; Felix-Archief, n.d.).

45

Ekeren

Austruweel

Merxem

Zwyndrecht

Vlaamsch

Hoofd

Deurne

Borgerhout

Morkhoven

Burcht

Berchem

Groenenhoek

Kiel

Berchem

Nachtegaalshoek

Hoboken

Wilryck

Luythagen

Motsele Mortsel

46

city’s surface by a factor of five, giving much needed space to a very populated

city. It thereby also enclosed several neighbouring villages like Borgerhout

and Berchem, and parts of the harbour (Verboven, 2018b). The city also started

on the construction of fortification belts some distance from the city, 4 and

14 kilometres respectively. Of which we see the 4 kilometres variant partially

on the map; the Brialmont belt (Province of Antwerp & Fortengordels, 2014,

pp. 76-77). More about this defence system in chapter 2.1. The creation of

the Brialmont belt also marked the entrance of the R11, or the Krijgsbaan as

it was called back then. The supply road would be equipped with a train and

telegraph line sometime after.

Another big change in the city is the straightening of the quays, which happened

between 1877 and 1885. This was a direct result of Antwerp’s growing

harbour, which was still predominantly focussed around the quays (Broeders, et

al., 2017, p. 286). We also see several new train lines added on the right side

of the river, and a new station on the location the is now being redeveloped to

the district Nieuw Zuid. Travellers could use this station to take the ferry to the

Vlaamsch Hoofd on the Borgerweertpolder.

On the left bank we see that Sint-Anneke, the village near the fort, has started

to expand in a linear fashion along the chaussee to Ghent, and along the

shore to the north. And we see that a defensive dyke has been added behind

the wet moat around the Vlaamsch Hoofd.

Figure 1.20

A map of Antwerp around 1933 (Cartesius.be,

n.d.; Topotijdreis, n.d.).

1933

The map shows us Antwerp during the Interbellum. We see that the space in

the Grote Omwalling was all but filled, and that the harbour has started to

expand rapidly, even beyond the bounds of the ramparts. The notion also

started to sink in, in the Interbellum, that a defensive concept of defensive forts

and inundation areas was no longer effective. Which marked the decline of the

defensive structures in and around the city (Schoofs, 2003a).

As a result of a growing need for space, the city turned its attention

(again) to the left side of the river. In 1923, the province of Antwerp bought

Linkeroever, and Zwijndrecht and Burcht, from the Province of East-Flanders.

Linkeroever was to become part of the municipality of Antwerp; Zwijndrecht

and Burcht, kept their own municipality (Zwijndrecht). This was the first time in

its history that there was no border between the right and the left side, meaning

that Antwerp could finally expand to the other side of the river (Schoofs,

2003a).

In light of an impending urbanisation of the left bank, the Intercommunale

Maatschappij van de Linker-Scheldeoever (Imalso) was founded in

1929. The foundation started to systematically raise the polder with sand from

47

Ekeren

Luchtbal

Austruweel

Merxem Merksem

Zwyndrecht

Sint Anna

Deurne

Borgerhout

Morkhoven

Burcht

Berchem

Groenenhoek

Kiel

Berchem

Nachtegaalshoek

Hoboken

Wilryck

Luythagen

Motsele Mortsel

48

Figure 1.21

The masterplan of De Heem and

Vanaverbeke from 1934 (De Klauw,

2016).

the Scheldt, visible in the north-eastern section of Linkeroever. Burying parts

of Linkeroever’s now redundant defensive structure. As a side effect of these

events, the northern side developed into a popular recreational spot; the Sint

Anna beach. A beach that is still used today. In the wake of the urbanisation,

Imalso started to construct two tunnels that would connect both sides of the

river; The Waaslandtunnel and the Sint-Annatunnel, an automobile and pedestrian

tunnel respectively. The former connected to the Tunnellaan, a road that

connect to the northern side of the Leien, and via a diagonal to Zwijndrecht.

De pedestrian tunnel connects to Fort Vlaamsch Hoofd. The tunnels opened

in 1933. During the construction of the tunnels, the city launched an international

design competition for the development of Linkeroever as a city district.

Several heavy weights took part in the competition, like Le Corbusier. Large

utopian plans were submitted, as stimulated by the city itself. No first prize

was ever issued. Instead the architects De Heem and Vanaverbeke unofficially

developed a plan for the district that would be (partially) executed after World

War II. As was fashionable at the time, their plan was largely inspired by modernistic

principles, with large green boulevard for cars (Schoofs, 2003a).

Figure 1.22

A map of Antwerp around 1952 (Cartesius.be,

b; Topotijdreis, n.d.).

1952

The map to the left shows Antwerp after the Second World War. We see that

the Grote Omwalling is starting to get dismantled. Along the northern section

49

Ekeren

Luchtbal

Merxem Merksem

Zwyndrecht

Linkeroever Sint Anna

Sint Anna

Deurne

Morkhoven

Burcht

Groenenhoek

Kiel

Berchem

Middelheim

Hoboken

Wilryck

Luythagen

Motsele Mortsel

50

of the city, the Albert Canal has received its current shape, and now connects

to the new parts of Antwerp’s harbour.

On the left side of the river, big changed have occurred. The grid,

that is so familiar for Linkeroever has been constructed, on a now almost fully

raised landscape. All the fortifications, except for the moat and fort Burcht, and

sections of the ditch structure, have disappeared under sand from the Scheldt.

The grid structure present on Linkeroever was based on the plan of De Heem

and Vanaverbeke, but not identical. After the war, the idea of building one

coherent plan had made place for a pragmatic sector division that filled the

grid with various building typologies. To the north, we see the structures of the

popular recreational spot Sint Anna beach, which was at its peak after the war.

Further to the west we see an extensive grid pattern; the remnants of Camp

Tophat, an American repatriation camp from after World War II. Parts of this

grid structure is still visible in the current Sint Annabos (Schoofs, 2003a). We

further see the construction of the yacht club on the east side of Linkeroever,

and that the railway structure has become more extensive with a turn structure

near Galgeweel.

Figure 1.23

Map of Antwerp around 1969 (Cartesius.be,

c; Topotijdreis, n.d.).

1969

The map of 1969 shows the explosive growth the suburban region of Antwerp

has experienced in the post-war baby boom. We also see that the harbour has

grown quite substantially from the previous map. Another notable change is

the removal of the Grote Omwalling in favour of the highway ring of Antwerp;

the R1.

The highway was planned since the end of the 1950s. In 1958, a

royal decree determined the track of the highway ring around Antwerp. The

construction started in the early 1960s and was completed by 1969. The highway

follows the contours of the ramparts, and all the major junctions are located

at the lunettes of the ramparts; these locations held a lot of space. Only

two small sections of the lunettes have been preserved in the southern part of

the city. In the north, about half of Noordkasteel has survived, but this would

soon also be further reduced. The track of the Omwalling was used because it

was lower than the other parts of the city and suburbs. However, this means the

highway also runs on the track of an old water way, which means the highway

needs to be constantly dewatered (De Urbanisten; Witteveen+Bos; Common

Ground, 2019, p. 32). The ring also marked the third Scheldt crossing; the

Kennedytunnel. A tunnel for cars opened in 1969. Left of the tunnel, we can

still see the dry dock used to construct the tunnel segments. To the right of

the tunnel a train tunnel was built, that connect the train from the Waasland

directly to the city, in a track along the ring. This train tunnel would soon mean

the departure of the train station on Linkeroever (1971). Almost simultaneously

51

Ekeren

Luchtbal

Merxem Merksem

Zwyndrecht

Linkeroever Sint Anna

Deurne

Morkhoven

Burcht

Groenenhoek

Kiel

Berchem

Middelheim

Hoboken

Wilryck

Luythagen

Motsele Mortsel

52

with the design of the R1, a larger ring around the city was planned to prevent

congestion; the R2. However, this was delayed, and later scrapped due to

heavy protests from the neighbouring municipalities. One section of the R2

was constructed in 1991, a section that goes through the harbour, called the

Liefkenshoektunnel (Wegen-Routes.be, 2016).

On Linkeroever we see that several sectors have been developed. The sector

division has resulted in a mix of mostly low-rise buildings; semi-detached, rowhouses,

or villas. We also see the start of the high-rise blocks on Linkeroever. In

1961 a design competition for Parkwijk was issued, the current Europark is the

result of this. Following in the 1960s and 1970s several high-rise apartment

block would be built. This allowed living in higher densities and the height of

the buildings gave Linkeroever somewhat of an urban skyline. However, these

high-rise flats severely increased the contrast in the areas (Schoofs, 2003b).

Further to the west we see that a road that would later become part of the

ring of Antwerp has been constructed and connected to the Tunnellaan. In the

northern side of Linkeroever, we see that the Sint Anna beach is slowly diminishing

in size. We further see that the Galgeweel, has received its final shape,

and we also see the start of Blokkersdijk, the body of water to the north-west.

Middenvijver is the only part the is still not raised with sand. We see remnants

of the ditch structure here, and what would be the start of a monumental axis

in the plan of De Heem and Vanaverbeke.

2019

This map shows the city and Linkeroever in its current state. We see that the

suburbs and city have further grown around the ring. The train station in the

south has been removed to make way for the palace of justice at the southern

end of the Leien, and we also see the development of a new city district;

Nieuw Zuid. A neighbourhood that should be finished by 2030 (Municipality

of Antwerp, n.d.). We see that the ring on the left side of the river has been extended

further to the north to connect to a section going to Knokke-Heist. This

also meant the birth of the Charles de Costerlaan, the second highway exit on

Linkeroever, that feeds the Waaslandtunnel, and currently quasi completes the

ring. The diagonal of the Tunnellaan has been redubbed to Dwarslaan, and

remains detached.

Figure 1.24

Map of Antwerp in 2019 (OpenStreet-

Map, n.d.).

On Linkeroever we see that the northern sectors have received development.

There are several new high-rise flats, and a new villa district at the eastern

edge of Linkeroever. A tram line has also been built on Linkeroever. This line

runs on the Blancefloerlaan – the old chaussee road with the visual axis to

the cathedral – all the way to the edge of Zwijndrecht. Via the fourth Scheldt

53

tunnel; the Brabotunnel (1990) this tunnel connects to the city of Antwerp

(Antwerpen stad, n.d.).

The middle section has also been further developed. The infamous

Chicago building has taken residence here; the highest of the high-rise on Linkeroever,

which now almost exclusively hold social housing. The flat is known

for its drug and criminal milieu (Verelst, 2005). Around 2013 the project IGLO

(InterGenerationeel Project Linkeroever) was started to increase the social

cohesion between the different cultures and generations that live on Linkeroever.

Because of this project the city has already invested in the improvement of

the public domain, and the construction of a day-care, youth centre and care

apartments (Municipality of Antwerp, 2013). Along the south-western edge of

Linkeroever we see a lot of new development. Currently a new district is being

built next to the highway exit, called Regatta. A neighbourhood that is planned

to be finished around 2030 (awg architecten; bOb Van Reeth Batoo; B-architecten).

On the other side of the highway exit we find a small industrial area

and business district.

We see that Middenvijver in the middle of Linkeroever, has finally

been raised, but also has been left untouched. It was marked as an extension

area, but as of 2017/2018 is marked as park and recreational area (Municipality

of Antwerp, n.d.). The terrain holds several annual festivals (Festival fans,

2020). To the west we see the Rot; the leftovers of a 16th century stream. We

also see that the Blokkersdijk has received its final shape. The area is currently,

like much of Linkoever’s nature a breeding area for birds (Municipality of

Antwerp, 2013, p. 42). Further south, the Burchtse weel has received its final

shape. The area is now also connected to the Scheldt, as an inundation area

(Beheersmaatschappij Antwerpen Mobiel, 2006). To north we see that the grid

structure of Camp Tophat has been replaced by the Sint Annabos.

54

Conclusion

Figure 1.25

Never a place of destination.

Never a place of destination

Throughout its history, Linkeroever has never really developed to become

anything more than a place you go through to get to the other side of the river.

What started in the 16th century with the ferry transporting travellers to the other

side of the Scheldt, and continued in the 18th century with the arrival of the

train, and now, in the 20th (and 21st) century, developed to the highway that

almost literally cuts Linkeroever in half at the Charles de Costerlaan. Plaguing

the district with traffic congestion.

Several factors can be held responsible for this. The first (1) is that the Scheldt

river, for a large period in history has been a border between two countries, or

two margraviates. Only becoming part of Antwerp in 1923. The second (2) is

the long-standing position of the polder as a blue defence line in the military

system of Antwerp, with a potential submersion through inundation always

looming over its head. The third (3) is perhaps the influence of all the failed

plans in the area, and the influence of the Second World War. Starting in the

19th century with Ville Marie-Louise and Napoleon, and continuing in the

20th century with the international design competition. The forth (4) reason,

might be the clean slate start (the tabula rasa) that spurred the development of

present day Linkeroever. It never got the chance to develop like its neighbouring

villages/districts, the fort and defensive constructions were demolished and

buried underneath sand from the Scheldt.

55

Figure 1.26

Anomaly in the urban fabric.

Anomaly in the urban fabric

All of Antwerp and its surrounding villages have developed in a linear pattern

along the chaussee roads, Linkeroever is the odd one out in the urban

fabric of the city (and in Belgium). As a (partially) completed extension plan –

planned all at once, and because of reason discussed above, the urban fabric

of Linkeroever is quite different than that of the city and its suburbs. Linkeroever

contrasts hard with the inner city of Antwerp and its suburbs in terms of morphology

and typology (high-rise flats, semidetached houses, detached villa’s).

Figure 1.27

Disconnected from its history.

Disconnected from its history

Linkeroever, in comparison to the rest of Antwerp and the surrounding area, is

less connected to its history. Where it is still possible to read the development

of the latter, either explicitly or implicitly (as palimpsest), this is somewhat different

for Linkeroever. Historic structures pre-1900 are difficult if not impossible

56

to read in the landscape or urban fabric. The elevation of the terrain with sand

from the river the Scheldt is to blame for this.

Figure 1.28

On the same place as the Grote

Omwalling

On the same place as the Grote Omwalling

We have seen that the ring of Antwerp, the R1, was built directly on the track

of the Grote Omwalling, the rampart that was part of Antwerp’s major defence

system during its time as National redoubt. All the major intersections have

been placed at the lunettes of the old rampart. This area was chosen because

there was space available, and because the area was lower than the surrounding

built area. However, the ring being in the same place as the old rampart,

means that it is running on a discontinued waterway, and thus has to be

permanently kept dry.

57

These are the

contours of the

Spaanse Omwalling -

the first paradigm.

These trees remind us of the

trees planted on the Spaanse

Omwalling in the 16th century.

However, these trees are

also part of the third

paradigm - the park.

The Lunette of Heren

tals is beautifully

incorporated in the

fabric of the city as a

park.

When the Spaanse

Omwalling was

demolished, the free

space gave way to a

spacious traffic artery -

the second paradigm.

58

Figure 1.29

abstract depiction of the paradigms

These are the of the rampart, the traffic artery, and

contours of the the park.

Spaanse Omwalling -

the first paradigm.


Lunette of Heren

s beautifully

porated in the

c of the city as a

.

The first, second and third paradigm

The last notion, that the current highway ring is located on top of the previous

ramparts is a finding that shows potential. Combined with one of the conclusions

from the previous chapter about the ring development; that the green

ring is going to facilitate a shift from the inner-city and suburbs from turning

their backs to each other, to facing one another, we might be able to establish

three different paradigms for defining or enclosing a city. The Spaanse Omwalling

and Grote Omwalling are the first paradigm, the highway ring – and

important traffic artery – is the second paradigm, and the upcoming green ring

could be the third paradigm. Or, in a more detached form we can distinguish:

(1) the rampart as the first paradigm, (2) the traffic artery as the second paradigm,

and (3) the park as the third paradigm.

These three paradigms represent different ways of completing, defining,

or enclosing a city. All of these paradigms are, of course, a product of

the time they were constructed in, and the result of dominant trends in politics,

mobility, economics, and climate. The first paradigm, the rampart, was a

barrier that quite literally tried to keep people out, only allowing entrance at

specific points. The second paradigm, the traffic artery, resulted in an urban

environment that was so unpleasant due to safety, and air and noise pollution

that people turned away from it, becoming a barrier in its own right. The third

paradigm in the plans of Antwerp, the park, also has defining properties in the

sense that it tries to define two separate areas; the inner-city and suburbs. But,

tries to do so in a way that creates a pleasant urban environment that inhabitants

of the city will flock towards. Thereby, also establishing a better connection

between the two separate entities. So, these three paradigms all have

defining qualities, but do so in completely different ways.

Figure 1.30

Drawing of the three paradigms as

applied in Antwerp’s Leien. The old

map is from Topotijdreis (Topotijdreis,

n.d.).

We can however establish that the last paradigm is not completely standing

on its own in the design of the ring park. While the park is still the main carrier

of city’s defining structure, we also see that Antwerp is planning on creating

a concentric tram line and bicycle highway along the ring park. This suggests

59

an interplay between the second and third paradigm, only this time the traffic

artery is filled in by transport modes that are less disruptive. A connection to

the first paradigm, the rampart, seems to not be consciously established in

the design of the ring park. Looking at the previous historical morphological

analysis we can distinguish a structure in the urban fabric of Antwerp that has

qualities of all three of these paradigms: the Leien.

In the transition from the Spaanse Omwalling to the Grote Omwalling,

the massive leftover space was used to build a major traffic artery

through the city; the present-day Leien. In its construction the rough shape of

the former rampart was petrified in the urban fabric of the city, as illustrated

by the drawing on the left page. In addition to this, the shape of the lunette of

Herentals was preserved in the urban fabric as the current city park, and the

Leien were decorated by several rows of trees. In this structure we find an intricate

interaction between the first, second, and third paradigm. We find that the

spirit of the Spaanse Omwalling lives on not just in the morphological shape

of the Leien and the city park, but also the rows of trees that are planted on the

boulevard, which remind us of the trees planted on the Omwalling in the 16th

century. While the average passer-by will probably not link these trees back to

the Spaanse Omwalling, one of its elements is nonetheless contributing to the

creation of a more pleasant atmosphere on the boulevard itself. It is perhaps

even what keeps it from turning into a space meant purely for movement, as

we have seen in the current ring zone.

This interaction between the three paradigms in the way we have seen in the

Leien; that an element of one of the paradigms is used to solve a problem,

or improve the spatial quality of one of the paradigms, might be a very useful

Figure 1.31

A painting of the Spaanse Omwalling

by J. Hoenagel in 1598. The painting

shows the rows of trees that have

been planted on the rampart. Why

these trees have been planted on the

ramparts is not entirely clear, perhaps

because of some recreational quality

(Follens, 2019).

60

method for the city to adopt in the development of the ring park. Introducing

elements of the Grote Omwalling, for instance, the water element of

the moats and inundation areas, might be useful for alleviating some of the

effects of climate change. At the same time, a link like this could establish a

(more) powerful connection to recreation and heritage, creating a more robust

position for the ring park in the urban fabric of the city. Expanding the scope,

the interaction between the three paradigms might even be useful in Antwerp’s

other plans, to develop the suburban region into a polycentric environment,

and to limit the grow of the peripheries of the metropole.

61

1.3

Optimism, Realism,

and Pessimism

On the love and hate relationship between people and the

car, and the effect it has had, and still has, on our cities.

The car, a means of transport that, in its relatively short existence, has perhaps

had the most effect on how we structure cities. A relationship that started out

quite optimistic, with large utopian plans and dreams has, starting half way

through the seventies, turned to realism, in light of rising traffic congestion,

environmental awareness, and limited resources. A realism, that perhaps in

recent years has turned to pessimism, with rising global traffic congestion,

increasingly worsening climate change, and growing concerns concerning

air and noise pollution. As a result, a shift is now starting to take shape away

from the (individually-owned) car to other types of transport. A shift that puts

a larger focus on cleaner, safer, and more efficient mobility, including a wide

range of modes of transportation, like public transport, (electric) bicycles,

autonomous and/or shared vehicles, and even old-fashioned walking. And

with this, we see concepts (re)emerge like the 30-minute-city, decentralised or

polycentric cities, and transit-oriented development (TOD). Concepts that can

have large spatial, social, and economic consequences in present day cities.

We increasingly see cities removing or hiding their highways, a

trend not just motivated by climate or health concerns, but also because of a

growing lack of space in the inner-city fabric. Space has become a valuable

commodity in cities, with many cities struggling to sustain a healthy housing

market they are often looking at reclaiming space in harbours, or even on top

of highways, mostly built during the sixties.

The following pages will explore the rise and fall of the car in cities,

from the start of the twentieth century till present day. It will subsequently, trace

the current trend in the shift from the car to more sustainable means of transport,

and illustrate which spatial effect this has on cities.

62

Figure 1.32

The Ford Model T in its iconic black

rendition (Kirn Vintage Stock, 2015).

3.

Translated into English in 1929 as The

City of To-morrow and its Planning.

4.

Translated into English in 1967 as The

Radiant City.

Utopian optimism

The image of the car and the infrastructure that exists because of it, has had

quite a rocky ride throughout its history. The car started to rise, at large,

around the time Henry Ford started manufacturing the Ford model T; the first

mass-produced car in 1908. The moving assembly line on which the model

was produced, allowed Ford to reduce the prices so that most people could afford

it. In the nineteen years that the automobile was manufactured, Ford was

able to produce over 15 million models and thereby managed to extended its

reach far beyond the United states; putting almost the entire world on wheels

(History.com Editors, 2020; Brooke, 2008).

The entrance of the car in people’s everyday life spurred the imagination

of how cities should function, and what they would look like with this new

mode of transportation. The automobile became a symbol of modernity and

progress, and it became an omnipresent feature in many drawings, like those

of Harvey Wiley Corbett or Hugh Ferriss, and utopian city concepts developed

in the early twentieth century (Lorenzo, 2015, p. 29). Le Corbusier’s Urbanisme

3 published in 1924, was one of the first proposals for a more car-oriented

approach when designing for cities. In his view, cities did not yet tap into

the potential that cars had, in the prementioned book he states that: “A city

made for speed is made for success” (Corbusier, 1987, p. 179). In his 1935

publication La Ville Radieuse, 4 Le Corbusier’s notions about city planning

had matured into a conceptual city, carefully dived into living, working, and

63

Figure 1.33

A model of Ville Radieuse (Merin,

2013).

Figure 1.34

Perspective drawing of one of the

streets of Ville Radieuse. The image

shows the vertical separation of cars

and pedestrians (Merin, 2013).

64

recreational zones, consisting of vertical architecture with wide open horizontal

areas for cars, cyclists, public transport, and pedestrians vertically separated

from each other (Kohlstedt, 2018).

Other contemporaries, and rivals, like Frank Loyd Wright also made grand

visions for car-use in cities. In his 1932 book, The Disappearing City, and in

the subsequent 1935 exhibition in the Rockefeller Center, Wright presented his

Broadacre City. A plan in which he proposed, having a dislike for dense industrial

cities, spread cities out into low-density neighbourhoods consisting out

of generous plots of land. Wright believed strongly in the car as an instrument

of freedom and said that there should be a “a new standard of space measurement

– the man seated in his automobile” (Robertson, 2018). Conceived

during the Great Depression, Wright never intended to build his city but rather

wanted to use it as a means of addressing social, economic, and environment

issues (Gray, 2018).

Figure 1.35

A 1950s bird’s-eye view sketch of

Broadacre city (Images of Network,

2017).

After the Second World War the influence of the car gained speed in cities

around the world. In post-war United States, the trend of flocking to the cities

during the 1940s and 1950s reversed. Thanks to low housing costs and GI Bill

benefits, even the working-class American – the veterans of the war – could

now afford to own a house. Under the heading of the American Dream,

combined with the baby boom, this development spurred unprecedented suburbanisation;

between 1948 and 1958, 85% of American homes were built

in suburbs (Elliott, 2015a). This enormous cry for houses resulted in the mass

65

production of houses, famously done by William J. Levitt of Levitt and Sons, in

their so-called Levittowns. In the 1950s and 1960s, the company built around

140.000 homes using the assembly line. It marked the largest private housing

projects in United States history; in New York the firm built 17.000 dwellings

between 1947-1951, and another 17.000 in Pennsylvania between 1952-

1958 (Elliott, 2015b; Lasky, 2018). For the generation that lived through the

Great Depression and the War, these homes represented a high standard

of luxury. However, due to their mass-produced nature, the Levittown house

would soon become synonymous with homogeneity and dullness. They were

also a physical representation of racial exclusiveness, as most of them did not

have any black families; the initial lease of Levitttown called only for whites

(Cals, 2016).

The rise of the suburb was made possible by the car, which helped

in promoting a ‘car culture’ in the United States. Each resident of the suburb

needed to have a privately-owned car to go to work or purchase groceries.

The production of cars increased threefold between 1945 and 1955, and with

it the system of roads they had to drive on. The federal government started to

invest heavily in the development of the Interstate Highway System. 5

In Europe a similar trend of suburbanisation and the creation of an international

highway system took place (the E-road network). In contrast to the United

States situation, the European suburbs were fuelled not only by a quantita-

5.

Also called the ‘Dwight D. Eisenhower

National System of Interstate and

Defense Highways’. The system also

had certain military aspects, as the

highways would allow quick travel

(and evacuation) through the country

in case of an attack (History.com

Editors, 2019).

Figure 1.36

Aerial photograph of Levittown

Pennsylvania. Due to its mass-produced

nature, the Levittown house would

soon become synonymous with homogeneity

and dullness (Cals, 2016).

66

6.

Also called the ‘Dwight D. Eisenhower

National System of Interstate and

Defense Highways’. The system also

had certain military aspects, as the

highways would allow quick travel

(and evacuation) through the country

in case of an attack (History.com

Editors, 2019).

7.

The European Communities (EC) is the

predecessor of the European Union.

tive lack of housing, but also by a qualitative lack because of the destruction

during the war (Ter Heide & Smit, 2016; Hesse & Siedentop, 2018). The void

in cities that was the result of this de-urbanisation was filled by unskilled immigrant

workers, who had no problem with the low-quality housing. The suburbanisation

peaked during the 1960s and 1970s in most European countries;

a few countries were earlier, among them Belgium, The United Kingdom, and

Switzerland, who experienced their main suburbanisation during the 1950s.

The urbanisation further resulted in a more social and spatial segregation. The

new-found mobility that people had resulted in social groups living increasingly

further apart, in an increasingly homogenous composition (Rottiers, 2004).

Many countries introduced policy to structure and guide the suburbanisation,

the Netherlands for instance introduced its ‘groeikernen’ 6 (grow core) policy

which appointed specific locations for suburbs. This was to prevent the urbanisation

of (too much) rural land, and to prevent the Randstad from merging

together (Bruinsma & Koomen, 2018, pp. 32-34).

Growing realism

The optimism towards the car started to change in the seventies. In the United

States and Europe, commerce and industry started to leave the city due to

suburbanisation in favour of the open rural area, creating large business parks

and shopping malls. As a result of all this urban sprawl, traffic congestion was

on the rise, and was becoming a serious problem (Animesh, n.d.; Vidová,

2010, p. 43; Rottiers, 2004); Melosi, 2010).

Another reason for the changing attitude towards the car, was the

increasing awareness for climate change. A growing movement initiated by the

publication of The Limits to Growth from the Club of Rome. This report showed

the world for the first time, using computer simulations, that the earth could

probably not support the current rates of economic and population growth

beyond the year 2100, if it would even last that long, even with advancements

in technology (The Club of Rome, n.d.). Two consecutive oil crises added

momentum to the message from the Club of Rome, the first one in 1973 and

the second in 1979. The former let to Europe-wide car-free (Sun)days (Stapel,

2017, p. 26; Kettell, n.d.). In the Netherlands a total of ten car-free Sundays

were held between 1973-1974, and in Belgium six times between the same

period (Wikipedia, 2020). This growing awareness for, and discussion about,

the environment led to the introduction ‘Environmental Impact Statements’ in

many countries around the world from the 1970s onward. These documents

described the positive and negative environmental effects of a proposed plan

or project, and were meant to help decision making. The United States was the

first country to adopt these statements in 1970, in the following years and the

1980s, Canada, Japan, and Australia would follow as well. The EC 7 also pro-

67

vided a guideline for an environmental statement for the twelve EC countries in

1985 (Autosnelwegen.nl, n.d.). These oil crises also put a stop to the massive

economic boom that came after the Second World War. Resulting in a worldwide

rise of inflation and unemployment (Kramer, 2020; Bruinsma & Koomen,

2018, p. 35).

These two factors combined, and the counterculture that rose around

the world from the mid 1960s until roughly the start of the 1970s, due to the

economic decline, led to many protests concerning, among others, war, racial

segregation, sex, woman’s rights, the environment, and the building of highways

8 (Stapel, 2017, p. 28). The trend developed in the United States around

1965, when the baby boom generation reached maturity, with the hippie

movement, mainly initiated by the Vietnam War (Lumen, n.d.). This counterculture

spread to become a worldwide trend, among others, in Japan, Mexico,

and Brazil; the large amount of youth around the world did not agree with the

notions of the established order. In Europe, the students revolt of Paris in May

of 1968 is a famous example, but there were also protests in the Netherlands,

Belgium, Germany, and Italy (Mitropoulou, 2011; Lambeets & Van Dijl, 2018).

8.

In the Netherlands the protest regarding

the construction of the A27 near

Amelisweerd is quite interesting. The

first protest managed to bring 3000

people, to prevent the demolition of

a forest that was in the way of the

highway. The protest managed to

get national media coverage. It took

a vote from parliament to settle the

situation (Autosnelwegen.nl, n.d.).

Pessimism

In the 1980s and at the end of the 1970s, a shift becomes noticeable in

spatial planning that again puts a larger focus on the city as a place to live,

in favour of the suburb. The declining economy, rising traffic congestion, and

the terrible state in which cities worldwide were in, all led to a shifting focus

on the city. Cities in that period, because of the large-scale emptying in the

1950s and 1960s of middle to high income residents, were mostly populated

by students, low-skilled immigrants, and low-income households; i.e. people

that could not afford the suburb. As a result, most cities had to deal with impoverishment

(Kasadara, 1980, p. 30; Rottiers, 2004). In the Netherlands this

already led to a large-scale urban renewal process halfway through the 1970s

for the people living in the city at that time, especially in Rotterdam which had

to deal with terrible inner-city living conditions (redactie gebiedsontwikkeling.

nu, 2019; Pflug, 2019).

The suburbanisation and spreading of work, recreation and living,

was taking its toll on cities and society at large. Cities and governments began

nudging people back to the city, and people in general started to see the benefits

of living close to certain facilities again. Cities, mostly large metropoles

like New York began to shift from manufacturing to newer economies, like service

and governmental institutions. Therewith creating central business districts.

With this shift, cities in the United States but also in Europe, started to attract

more and more middle and high-income class residents, marking an era of

gentrification 9 and urban renewal (Peck & Hollingsworth, 1996, pp. 149-150;

Rottiers, 2004).

9.

Gentrification is a process in which a

neighbourhood is upgraded by rehabilitating

the existing housing stock, with

an increase in rent or property value

as a result. This is then accompanied

by the influx of middle- or higher-class

people, which often results in the

displacement of the previous, often

poorer residents (Grant, 2003).

10.

New Urbanism aspires to reintroduce

traditional architecture and planning

abiding with traditional development;

reviving traditional urban planning

instead of reinventing it. Advocating

the development of affordable housing,

mixed-income environments, and

walkable neighbourhoods; reducing

car traffic. The focus on old building

patterns has received the critique that

New Urbanism overlooks the economic

and social realities of the modern

world; that people are more mobile,

and that we now have multi-national

companies and globalization. The

affordability is also an issue, as New

Urbanism relies mainly on the private

market to provide diversity (Nor, 2017,

pp. 14-16; Congress for the New

Urbanism, n.d.).

68

Figure 1.37

An image of war protesters burning

their draft card for the Vietnam War in

1966 (Sr Felipe, 2016).

11.

The Compact City could be described

as the opposite of urban sprawl, preferring

high-density, mixed use cities,

with short transportation distances that

minimises use of undeveloped land.

Like New Urbanism, the Compact

City also looks to traditional urban

planning in old European cities. The

concept strives to obtain a sustainable

urban form, centring around three

main themes: economy, environment

and society. Critics state that the

concept lacks clear evidence for its alleged

benefits, and that all three pillars

must be focused on in equal measure,

as failure to do so may weaken the

approach (Nor, 2017, pp. 17-19).

12.

Smart Growth is a concept based on

the belief that through public and private

subsidies urban growth could be

refocused to inner metropolitan areas

as well as to the suburbs. Existing

neighbourhoods could be revitalized

by providing mix land usage and creating

walkable environments, thereby

preserving open space and farmland.

High-density would encourage walking,

biking, and public transport due

to increased accessibility to services.

Critics on the concept point out that

developing more housing units on

smaller land areas in combination with

preserving open spaces and farmland

leads to rising housing prices, because

it removes the least expensive land

from the table (Nor, 2017, pp. 16-17).

Critiques on the urban sprawl, the homogeneity of the suburbs, and the decay

of inner-cities also resonated in popular discourse at the time. The most

famous example probably being the discussion led by Jane Jacobs in her

book The Life and Death of Great American Cities, in which she celebrates

the diversity and complexity of old mixed-use neighbourhoods (Wendt, 2009).

In the architectural and urbanism discourse the unrest gave rise to several

movements during the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, all yearning to return to a more

high-density, human-oriented type of spatial planning that put a larger focus

on pedestrians, cyclists, and public transport. As this type of planning would

be more economically, environmentally and socially sustainable, since the

concentration of people would mean shorter transportation distances as well

as making services and facilities more economically viable. The high-density

would also increase diversity, as more segments of society are mixing and

living together in the same area. However, the process of redevelopment and

rejuvenation of existing urban areas could also lead to quite the opposite;

rapid gentrification. Nevertheless, advocates of New Urbanism, 10 the Compact

City, 11 or Smart Growth 12 – the emerging urbanism concepts during

this period - considered high residential density highly important for creating

pleasant, sustainable cities. And, in the case of the former two, they drew their

inspiration from studying the older European cities pre-industrialisation (Nor,

2017, pp. 12-17).

At the same time, the notion started to sink in that the congestion problem

could not be solved by simply adding more asphalt. Combined with the rising

fuel prices of the time, and the Chernobyl disaster which put environmental is-

69

sue firmly back on the map, led to an increase in investment in public transport

in countries around the world. We see an increase in public transport usage

in New York during the late 1980s and late 1990s (Pucher, 2002, pp. 33-34)

(Autosnelwegen.nl, n.d.). The Netherlands also shifted its focus away from the

car from the mid 1980s onward. The third and fourth Memorandum on Spatial

Planning focussed more on public transport and the decrease of car-use

(Bruinsma & Koomen, 2018, pp. 35-37). This was supported by the Structuurschema

Verkeer en Vervoer (Structure scheme traffic and transport) in 1977,

which proscribed a decrease in the building of roads and an increase in public

transport. Specifically, the intercity train network, buses, and high-speed train

connections to Belgium and Germany (Autosnelwegen.nl, n.d.). A trend we see

Belgium, and the rest of Europe as well; starting from the 1980s and continuing

through the 1990s, a high-speed train network was being developed all

over Europe, both national and international (De Preter, 2016).

Moving forward?

The trend of re-urbanisation, or urbanisation at this point, of the late 1980s, is

still continuing today. According to the United Nations as of 2018, 55 percent

of the world’s population is living in urban areas. A percentage that is expected

to increase to 68 percent by 2050 (United Nations, 2018), and to 80 or

90 percent in 2100 (Nijskens, Hilbers, Lohuis, & Heeringa, 2019, p. ix). As

a result of this allure, megacities with more than ten million inhabitants are

becoming more and more common.

Due to heavy investments in infrastructure, and cultural and recreational

facilities, cities have become the economic powerhouses of the countries

they are in. People are drawn to them for the education, jobs, cultural

events, creativity, the recreational possibilities they offer, and not unimportant;

the presence of other people. This is mostly rural to urban migration of highly

educated young people, however, immigrants in search of work and education

are also focusing on cities, where they join communities of the same heritage

(Nijskens, Hilbers, Lohuis, & Heeringa, 2019, pp. ix-x). Families on the other

hand, are moving out of the city in search for space and affordable (larger)

housing. This migration is leading to a three-way divide in the housing market:

overheating in major cities, revival in the surrounding towns, and an emptying

in the peripheral zones (Hekwolter of Hekhuis, Nijskens, & Heeringa, 2017,

pp. 7-8). As this urbanisation trend is going on, the search for space in the

city is becoming increasingly difficult. In recent years, redevelopment of brown

fields, 13 old harbours or industrial areas, or even on top of highways has

become common in cities (Nor, 2017, pp. 17-18; Stapel, 2017, p. 28). The

lack of space is often also caused by administrative building restrictions and

the not-in-my-backyard attitude that is rising globally. In addition to the scar-

13.

A brownfield is a piece of land that

has been previously developed for industrial

purposes, and has since been

abandoned, leaving the ground in the

area polluted (Merriam-Webster, n.d.).

70

city, supply is also lagging behind the growing demand for houses. Building in

cities often requires long planning, as they are subject to many layers of public

administration, and involve many stakeholders and interests. Besides these

local factors of supply constraints, regulation and zoning; residential property

as an investment good is also something that drives the housing prices to an

all-time high. Domestic, but especially foreign investors who play the buy-tolet

or buy-to-leave market are driving the prices up. All these factors have led

to a very (over)heated housing market in cities around the world. A trend that

is especially causing affordability problems for the middle-income earners.

Resulting in many families leaving the city, and young people often turning to

shared homes or small studios (Nijskens, Hilbers, Lohuis, & Heeringa, 2019,

p. x).

Trying to get a grip on the situation, cities are often turning to the

introduction of new taxation policies to ward of foreign investors using their

housing market as a place to store their equity. Cities like Vancouver, London,

and Toronto have already imposed such policies on foreign buyers (Kassam,

2017; Savage, 2018; Collinson, 2016). However, that will not solve the underlying

supply problem. For this a coherent housing and planning approach

is needed, focusing on the use of a limited amount of land and minimising the

disturbance of the (often) historic inner-city. While at the same time, creating

high-quality green and public space, suitable for several income and population

groups (Nijskens, Hilbers, Lohuis, & Heeringa, 2019, p. xii).

Despite the pull of cities, or because of it, traffic congestion is still a massive

problem. The average a person spends in congestion has been on the rise

since the 1990s (Muoio, 2017; Feldman, 2019). In the United States, the

average driver spends 54 hours in congestion in 2017. Los Angeles even

doubles this, with an average of 119 hours (Willingham, 2019). In Europe the

numbers are lower, but serious nonetheless. Here the United Kingdom is the

most congested country, with an average of almost 46 hours annually. Belgium

comes in second, at 40 hours per year. Not only is this a major inconvenience,

it also costs several millions of euro/dollars. (European Commission, 2018).

With all this congestion, comes serious air pollution. In 2018, nearly

30 percent of the European Union’s total CO2 emissions were caused by the

transportation of people and goods, of which 60 percent was from passenger

cars. As a result, countries around the world are attempting to cut back emissions

by switching to cleaner modes of transport, like carsharing, autonomous

cars, public transport, cycling, or walking (European Parliament, 2019). We

also see a growing trend of electrical cars, which emit no NO2, however, they

do still produce small particle pollution from the wear on tyres and brakes.

Which is also very polluting (Carrington, 2017).

71

One of the growing concepts is that of Smart Mobility. A term that is quite a

fussy concept, but generally strives to create transportation and infrastructure

that is safer, sustainable, affordable, and more attractive, by using technology

(sensors, big data, AI) and the integration of different transport modes, for

instance with mobility as a service (MaaS) (HERE mobility, n.d.; Lyons, 2018).

Smart Mobility is one of the components of the Smart City, 14 a concept in

which cities are trying to create a more sustainable, greener urban environment,

with competitive and innovative commerce, and an increased quality of

life. The concept arose during the 1990s, when ICT and the internet of things

(IoT) were becoming increasingly useful for cities (Albino, Berardi, & Dangelico,

2015)

Another approach with similar goals, but different methods is called

Sustainable Mobility. An approach that tries to reduce the need to travel (less

trips), encourage modal shift, reduce trip lengths and encourage greater efficiency

with relation to energy-use and emissions in the transport system (Banister,

2008). The main focus here is on accessibility, rather than mobility itself,

in addressing urban sustainability. This with particular attention to land-use

planning as a means to enhance the sustainability of urban mobility (Crutis,

2008).

14.

The concept smart city has six components

that are interrelated and influenced

by each other. The components

are: smart economy, smart people,

smart governance, smart mobility,

smart environment, smart environment,

and smart living (Zawieska &

Pieriegud, 2018).

Both of these trends in mobility fit into the larger narrative of cities struggling

with the effects of climate change. Cities around the world are increasingly

experiencing the effects of the extremes in weather, like floods, droughts, and

heat waves. As a result, cities are trying to become more climate resilient.

Meaning they are trying to reduce heat stress and increase their water storing

capacity, by creating storage basins, reducing paved surfaces and adding

more greenery in the urban environment. The trend of creating a modal shift

to more public transit, the bicycle, or walking, fits into this, because it frees

up space. Besides the climate aspect, the pollution in terms of health is also

improved by these kinds of measures (Wageningen Environmental Research).

Coming back to the trend the trend on making mobility more efficient

in both space and time related dimensions, and the shift to slower modes of

transport like the bicycle or walking, we also see a link to the rising scarcity of

space in cities. A trend that was set in with the emergence of New Urbanism,

the Compact City, and Smart Growth at the end of the twentieth century, but

has become increasingly important in with the increasing size and complexity

of cities. In recent years, terms like the 30-minute-city are gaining popularity,

meaning no matter where one lives, all daily facilities are accessible within 30

minutes from one’s home. The motive behind this is to increase the number

of opportunities for everyone (Australian Smart Cities Plan, 2016). Another

popular concept under somewhat the same banner is that of Transit-Oriented

72

15.

To be clear; polycentricism can refer

to intraurban patterns of clustering

of population and economic activity,

like we see in Los Angeles or London;

or interurban patterns, like the Dutch

Randstad or the Belgian Flemish

Diamond (Kloosterman & Musterd,

2001, p. 624). In the corresponding

paragraph, the former is discussed.

Development (TOD). A type of urban planning that integrates (multimodal)

transport and land-use development, often at railway stations. As perhaps a

continuation of the Compact City concept, TOD aspires to increase accessibility

by providing alternatives to car-based land-use; facilitating transportation

choice. Another argument for it stems from sustainability concerns relating to

less motorised transport and resource efficiency. And a third motive for TOD is

that it could, potentially, allow for a degree of human interaction in the public

domain that is difficult in car-dependent urban environments (Curtis, Renne, &

Bertolini, 2009, p. 3).

With the abovementioned concepts, we see a gradual move towards

more polycentric city models with several centres of economic or other activity,

as distinct from a monocentric city model with a clear divide between city and

suburban area. 15 A trend we especially see in cities above five or ten million

inhabitants, like Shanghai, Beijing, London, or recently Sydney (Kloosterman

& Musterd, 2001, pp. 623-624; Wen & Tao, 2015, p. 138). In 2016, the

Greater Sydney Region launched a plan to become polycentric by 2056. The

strategy proposes to transform the greater Sydney to a 30-minute city with

three connected subcentres to increase accessibility to jobs, reduce car traffic,

creating a better balance in the health and education services (aging population

and young children across the region), and responding to a changing

climate (Greater Sydney Commission, n.d.). Bertaud (2001) defines three types

of polycentric cities; (1) the urban village, (2) the random movement model,

and (3) the mono-polycentric model. The first model has no major CBD, but

1. The monocentric model 2. The polycentric model:

The urban village

Figure 1.38

Drawing of monocentric and polycentric

city models (Bertaud, 2001, p. 4).

3. The polycentric model:

The random movement version

4. The mono-polycentric model:

Simulateous radial and

random movements

Weak links

Strong links

73

rather has a number of self-sufficient urban villages that aggregate to form a

polycentric metropolis. Such a model has never been created in the real world.

According to Bertaud, such a model would contradict the only valid explanation

for the existence and continuous growth of cities: the increasing returns

obtained by a larger integrated labour market. In reality polycentric cities

operate in similar ways to monocentric cities, in the sense that jobs attract

people from all over the city. However, the patterns of these trips are different,

they tend to show a wide dispersion of origin and destination; almost in a random

fashion. Trips in polycentric cities are therefore often longer than those in

monocentric cities. A polycentric structure is often part of the natural evolutionary

development of a growing metropole. However, no city is ever completely

monocentric, or polycentric (Bertaud, 2001, pp. 5-7). A shift like this irrevocably

has consequences for the distance decay model of a city. 16 The creation

of multiple centres that are multimodal and highly diverse in amenities within

the metropolitan region, will likely increase the property value around these

centres. Textbook monocentric cities will have a decay curve that bottoms out

once one reaches the periphery of the city; polycentric cities however, because

of their multiple centres, have multiple spikes in their curve. Depending on how

well these spikes are planned; regarding how well the centres complement

each other, will determine the effect they have on their surrounding land value

(Decamps, Gaschet, Pouyanne, & Virol, 2019).

16.

The land-use model or distance decay

model assumes that the highest bidder

will obtain the use of land. Prices are

generally higher in the city centre or

CBD. Near the CBD you often find

high-end shops and offices; further

away from the CBD we find industry;

and at the periphery we find housing

(in a simplified distance decay model)

(cheergalsal, 2008).

CBD

High residential

medium density

Distance from CBD

Rent per m 2

Commerce/

manufacturing

Residential

suburb

Distance from CBD

Rent per m 2

Sub-centre

Residential

suburb

Strong

complementarity

Medium

complementarity

Strong

substutuability

Figure 1.39

Drawing of the distance decay model

of a monocentric and polycentric city

(Decamps, Gaschet, Pouyanne, &

Virol, 2019).

The struggle for space

As mentioned previously, the scarcity for space in the cities has resulted in the

increasing redevelopment of brown fields, old harbours or industrial areas,

and even on top of highways. Because of the relation to Antwerp and the

Grote Verbinding-project, the latter one will be further explored in this section.

With all the negative side-effects of cars as described in the previous

sections – the congestion, the noise and air pollution, and the large claim on

space – and in light of the sustainable alternatives in mobility, the questions

arises whether cars still have a future in the city, and if so, what that future

74

looks like. Because of the enthusiasm with which the highways were constructed

around the world in the sixties and seventies, many of them are in central

places in the urban fabric. With the increasing scarcity of space, many cities

are looking at these inner-city highways with hungry eyes. The last decades

have seen total removal, burying at great expense, or transitioning into boulevards

of urban highways, to improve the spatial quality, property value, and

restoring neighbourhood connections. Especially in the United States removal

has been a popular measure, highways were often constructed in a ditch here,

and many of them would have needed major refurbishment (Parker, 2012). In

Europe highways often do not directly go through the city, here the highway

often encircles the city in a ring road. Due to suburbanisation city and suburb

have often fused together, which is why they often for the underground

relocation of the ring and place boulevard on top. Other variants are reducing

the number of exits and narrowing the road or an incremental improvement

of the landscape on and around the highway; essentially creating a parkway

setting (Stapel, Top, Hanekamp, & Zandbelt, 2018, p. 35). When building new

highways, we often see that cities built them directly under ground, this can be

observed in cities like Brisbane, Sydney, Singapore, and Oslo.

The most famous highway project is probably Boston’s Big Dig. A project

constructed between 1991 and 2007, which involved the underground relocation

of a curved highway running through downtown Boston that isolated

the northern side of the city and the waterfront, and the construction of a

bypass (land and water tunnel) to East Boston on the other side of the river.

A project that was plagued by massive cost overruns (from 2,6 billion, to

15 billion, to 24 billion including interest), a delay of eight years, and a few

accidents with deathly casualties. However, the project did mostly do what it

promised to do; de traffic going through the city is still substantial, but out of

sight underground, and due to the bypass less congested then before (Flint,

2015; Sperance & Bisnow Boston, 2018). Above ground the tunnel now holds

some of the most valuable urban ground in the United States. From 2003 to

2005, the office rents along the capped highway went up by an average of

10 percent, while land prices jumped by nearly 40 percent. These land-value

increases were observed within 500 meters of the capped highway (Ascher &

Krupp, 2010, p. 195).

Another interesting example is Madrid’s covering of the M30, completed

between 2005 and 2011. A project that covers a ten km section of

Madrid’s ring running along the river Manzanares, including the full covering

of some of the intersections. Total costs of the project were 4,5 billion euros.

The overall goal of the project was to reconnect both sides to each other and

the riverfront. A large park with sporting and recreational options has been

75

built on top of the capped highway. As of yet it is still unclear how the project

has affected the property value of the existing urban fabric (the polis blog,

n.d.; West 8, 2011; de Architect, 2017).

Figure 1.40

World map of constructed and proposed

highway cap and tunnel projects

from 1960 till 2030.

The map and graph to the right shows a cross-section of the highway cap

and tunnel projects around the world from the 1960s till 2030 (projects in the

planning phase).

The list of already constructed caps and tunnels was compiled by

remote sensing of the urban fabric of major cities 17 using Google Maps –

underground highways show up in a different colour. The list of projects that

are in their planning phase was compiled using the Google search engine,

with variants on search terms like: highways cap proposal, highway covering

proposal, highway tunnel proposal, etc. The projects were subsequently

inventoried on basic characteristics (year, length, country, etc.), why they were

constructed, what has been built on top, and how the project was financed.

For the complete list of projects, see appendix I.

17.

A city with an agglomeration above

one million inhabitants.

From the graph we see that the trend of capping highways (similar to what

Antwerp is now planning on doing) started in the United States during the

mid-sixties, with Memorial Park in Los Angeles County, a cap of 200 metres.

Over the years, we see a subtle increase in length of the highway caps.

Especially European counties opt for a longer underground relocation of their

city highway. Interesting is the emergence of highway tunnels under the urban

fabric of cities around 2000, in Europe and Asia & Oceania, often around the

length of five kilometres. This seems to support the growing pessimism towards

car use from the previous paragraphs, in terms of climate and health, however

with an investment like this, it probably also means that cars will remain an

integral part of the city’s mobility system for quite some time after.

The main motives behind capping existing highways seems to be (1) creating

better connections between the two sides of the highway, (2) solving space

related issues and rising housing prices, (3) health related issues, like air and

noise pollution, (4) climate related issues, like water storage and heat stress,

(5) adding much needed green space, and (6) as means of establish the city as

a forward thinking modern city, using the highway project to attract new talent.

Once the highway has been put underground, we often see a park taking residence

on top of the cap. Only seldom do we see a building on top of the cap,

this probably has something to do with the expense it takes to build on top of

a highway (structurally). A park of course, helps in catering for public green,

the climate, and health, and it helps create a more suitable environment for

development. It should be noted that these projects are almost never done to

Figure 1.41

Graph of highway cap and tunnel

projects structured according to the

length of the underground highway

and construction year, and subdivided

according based the continent.

76

Cap

Tunnel

Cap

Tunnel

Europe

North America

South America

Asia & Oceania

20km

Length of underground highway

15km

10km

5km

1960

1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030

77

reduce traffic congestion.

The downside of these types of projects, next to their enormous costs, are that

they require quite some commitment from all parties involved, as they can

easily take more than ten years. The covering of the A2 in Maastricht,

started its planning phase in 2003, constructed the underground infrastructure

between 2010 and 2018, and is currently (2020) still working on the park,

boulevards, and new property on the cap (Avenue2, n.d.).

In terms of financing we see that these projects often run well into

the billion euros or dollars. Funding is often a mix between public and private

investment, and the believe that covering the highway will raise property values

of already existing buildings. Public investment is mostly a mix between municipal

(the city itself) and national funding, with the latter taking account for a

larger proportion. Private investment often means allowing investors to develop

parts of the land adjacent to the capped highway. Regarding the increase in

property value, we see that this is indeed the case. The covering of the A2 in

Maastricht, for example, led to an overall increase in property value of about

220 million euros; almost a quarter of the total investment. The reliance on

increase in property value and improved international allure for the city makes

it difficult to measure the direct profits of these kinds of projects (Stapel, Top,

Hanekamp, & Zandbelt, 2018, p. 35).

Conclusion

From the trend analysis we can conclude that we see that cities around the

world are becoming more populous, over half of the world’s population is

already living in cities, and this is only expected to rise in the future. As a result,

we see an increasing number of cities above 1 million inhabitants. This makes

cities struggle with an increasing scarcity of development space, with overheating

housing markets as result. Leading to cities increasingly redeveloping

brown fields, old harbours or industrial areas, and even relocating highways

underground to add development space. In addition, we see city’s dealing

with climate change in the form of heat stress and flood risk, often resulting

from a lack of greenery which also plays into negative health effects due to air

pollution.

We are currently in a shift from a car dominant mobility system to a mobility

system that is more focused on multimodal transport with a heavy focus on

public transport, cycling, and walking. A shift that is mainly fuelled by a drive

to find more space in the city, crippling traffic congestion that hurts the economy,

and because of growing climate and health awareness.

Along with this modal shift, we see an increase in movements that

rely on reducing the need to travel, making it more efficient, or try to shorten

transport trips, like the 30-minute-city, Sustainable Mobility, or Smart Mobility.

78

We see that morphology and the dominant means of transport are inextricably

linked to each other, acting and reacting to each other. The car becoming

mainstream during the 1950s and 1960s, among other factors, allowed

for unprecedented urban sprawl. Currently with the shift to slower modes of

transport in inner cities, we see the emergence of more high-density, polycentric

urban fabric. There are three types of polycentric city models; (1) the

urban village, (2) the random movement model, and (3) the mono-polycentric

model. The first one has never been realised in the real world, as it would contradict

the raison d’etre of cities. Trips in polycentric cities are often longer as

they tend to show a wider dispersion of origin and destination. The emergence

of polycentric cities is often the result of the natural evolutionary process of a

growing metropole. No city is however, ever completely mono or polycentric.

The availability of mobility in a certain area has effect on the number

of amenities, and subsequently on the property value of a certain area. With

the suburbs only being available by car, was probably one of the reasons why

they were so affordable. This resulted in a gradual decline of the distance

decay model of a city. Now with the emergence of more transit-oriented development,

we see multiple spikes in property value around the city, changing the

decline of the distance decay model.

Many cities around the world are removing their city highway or are burying it

under the ground. The main motives behind this are (1) lifting often hard barriers,

(2) solving space related issues, (3) health related issues, like air and noise

pollution, (4) climate related issues, (5) adding green space for recreation,

and (6) as means of establish the city as a forward-thinking modern city, using

the highway project to attract new talent. The projects by themselves seem not

to solve congestion related issues. As we have seen that putting down more

asphalt only leads to more congestion.

The projects often run into the billion euros or dollars, and rely on

a mix of public and private investment and funding. Profits are measured in

talent attracted to the city, and in terms of increases in property value along

the capped highway, which makes it difficult to measure. With these massive

investments that are still happening today, it seems doubtful that the car will

disappear any time soon. The projects can easily take more than ten years.

However, the rewards in terms of improvement of spatial qualities and property

value are quite large.

79

1.4

Towards an overarching

strategy for Antwerp

How the interplay between three paradigms is going to

shape Antwerp's future

The previous sub-chapters set out to explore the past, present, and future of Antwerp.

It did so by analysing the city’s current large-scale projects – the ring project

and the strategic spatial plan; by reading the city’s historical-morphological

development; and by analysing the past and present effects of trends relating to

the future of mobility in relation to a city’s urban form. The following pages will

present the main findings of these analyses as a way to gain an in-depth picture

of Antwerp’s current situation; to define missing elements or missed opportunities.

Subsequently, this chapter will formulate a vision for the metropolitan

region of Antwerp, and define a main research question and sub-questions to

achieve this vision.


1. Antwerp is striving to become a multimodal, short distance, polycentric city

with a model split of 50 percent car-use, and 50 percent public transport,

bicycles, and walking. It tries to do this by (1) switching from the current

radial city model to a radial-concentric model, by adding tangential connections

(like the ring road and Scheldt bridge); (2) by adding multimodal

transport hubs at the existing P+R’s in the city and by adding new ones;

(3) by adding strategic densification hubs along multimodal transportation

hubs (like train stations or P+R’s) or large amenities (like hospitals or theatres);

and (4) by separating through and freight traffic from city traffic via a

bypass through the harbour;

2. With the Ring project, Antwerp wants to shift the growth of its metropolitan

region from the periphery to the areas on both sides of the current ring

highway, and to strategic densification hubs in the suburbs on the other side

of the ring. With the densification of the area along the ring, Antwerp wants

to change the relation between city and suburb; from turning their back, to

facing each other;

3. Antwerp strives to attain a healthy cross-section of society in their city. However,

they especially want to keep families in the city, by adding affordable

apartments suited for them;

4. With the current population projections, it seems that Antwerp will have

enough homes to keep up with population growth. However, there are

80

two side notes here, (1) the domestic and international migration pattern

might increase once the Ring project is close to being finished, due to the

improved spatial quality and international allure of the project; and (2) the

building of new family apartments in Antwerp might reattract the families

that have left Antwerp in recent years;

5. Antwerp wants to use the Ring Park to reduce heat stress and increase the

city’s climate resilience, the city is currently looking into how to use the

park in its water management system. The Ring Park is also going to be the

link between the regional nature areas around the city (green fingers), and

the local green in the neighbourhoods (green streets);

6. Antwerp mentions that Linkeroever has no current densification plans; the

trend of making master plans will continue. While it seems, at the same

time, that Linkeroever will become part of the inner-city of Antwerp, with

the completion of the ring, the new P+R, the instalment of a low-emission

zone, and the creation of a defined edge;

7. The extensive plans of the Ring project on the right side are not applied

to Linkeroever, an area that has the potential to be the culmination of the

Ring Park. The connections between the different green areas here is supposedly

being improved, but due to all the earth walls segregation between

the areas might even increase, and the defined edge that guides traffic to

the Scheldt bridge is no longer present once it reaches Linkeroever.

1.2 Historical-Morphological Analysis

1. The ring of Antwerp was built on the same location as the Grote Omwalling,

the rampart that was part of Antwerp’s major defence system during

its time as National Redoubt. The intersections of the ring coincide with the

lunettes of the old ramparts. The ring being in the same place also means

that it runs on a discontinued waterway, and thus has to be permanently

kept dry;

2. The Ring Park will be the next paradigm of defining the city of Antwerp.

With this notion we can define three paradigms for completing, defining,

or enclosing a city: (1) the rampart, (2) the traffic artery, and (3) the park.

With the Spaanse and Grote Omwalling, the highway ring, and the ring

park as their physical application;

3. All three of these paradigms have barrier like properties, but achieve this

in different ways. The rampart quite literally tried to keep people out, only

allowing entrance at specific points. The traffic artery resulted in an urban

environment so unpleasant due to safety, and air and noise pollution that

the environment turned away from it. The park acts as a barrier in the

sense that it tries to define the areas around it, but does so in a way that

creates a pleasant urban environment that people will flock towards.

81

4. There is an interplay between the second and third paradigm in the

planned ring park. The park paradigm is the dominant defining element of

the city, but there is also a traffic artery planned in the shape of a tram line

and bicycle highway; transport modes that are viewed as less disruptive.

There seems to be no conscious link to the first paradigm.

5. In the Leien – the inner-city’s major traffic artery – we see an interplay

between all three paradigms, creating a structure that very carefully shows

the historical development of the city. The spirit of the former Spaanse

Omwalling lives on not just in the morphological shape of the Leien and

the former lunette of Herentals now turned into the city park, but also in the

rows of trees planted on the boulevard. A reminder to the trees planted on

the rampart. This creates a subtle historical link that is used to contribute to

the creation of a more pleasant atmosphere on the boulevard.

6. This interaction between the three paradigms in which elements from one

paradigm are used to solve a problem, or improve the spatial quality of

one of the other paradigms, might be a useful method for the city to adopt

in the ring park. Introducing the water element from the first paradigm

might for instance, help alleviate some of the effects of climate change. On

a larger scale, the leftover structure of the first paradigm might give direction

to the polycentric development or structuring of the peripheral areas.

At the same time, a link like this could establish a powerful connection to

recreation and heritage.

7. Linkeroever has a chance to develop into a proper city district, due to the

Ring project and the disconnecting of the Charles de Costerlaan. Throughout

its history, Linkeroever has never developed to anything more than a

place you go through to get to the other side of the river. First by train and

ferry, and currently with the highway that literally cuts Linkeroever in half at

the Charles de Costerlaan. The Scheldt as national border, the use as inundation

area, all the failed plans, and the tabula rasa type of development;

8. Linkeroever’s morphology contrasts hard with that of the city of Antwerp

and its surrounding villages; the former was planned all at once in a grid

pattern, the latter is the result of years of development along a linear pattern

(lintbebouwing);

9. Historical layers on Linkeroever are more difficult to read than is the case

for the rest of Antwerp; the palimpsest-like development that is present in

the city and suburb is almost non-existent on Linkeroever. Historic structures

pre-1900 are almost not present on Linkeroever due to the elevation of the

terrain in the twentieth century;

82


1. Over half of the world’s population is living in cities, a percentage that is

expected to only increase in the upcoming years. This makes cities struggle

with an increasing scarcity of development space, leading to the increased

redevelopment of brown fields, industrial areas, and on top of highways.

The struggle for space, and the rise of real estate as a means of storing

capital, leads to overheated housing markets;

2. Cities increasingly feel the effect of climate change and are therefore

striving to become more climate resilient, by adding more urban green and

water storage to counter heat stress and flooding;

3. Cities are in a shift from car dominant mobility to multimodal mobility with a

focus on public transport, cycling, and walking. A trend fuelled by the drive

for more space, crippling traffic congestion, and climate and health issues;

4. Morphology and the dominant means of transport are inextricably linked to

each other; acting and reacting. The rise of the car during the 1950s and

‘60s, among other factors, allowed for unprecedented urban sprawl. Currently

with the shift to slower, more short-range modes of transport in inner

cities, we see the emergence of more high-density, polycentric urban fabric;

5. The combination of access to mobility and diverse amenities at a certain

location has effect on the location’s property value. Moving from one CBD

to multiple – to a more polycentric city model – that complement each other

to some degree has effect of the distance decay model of a city;

6. There are three types of polycentric city models; (1) the urban village, (2)

the random movement model, and (3) the mono-polycentric model. The

first one has never been realised in the real world, as it would contradict

the raison d’etre of cities. Trips in polycentric cities are often longer as they

tend to show a wider dispersion of origin and destination. The emergence

of polycentric cities is often the result of the natural evolutionary process of

a growing metropole. No city is however, ever completely mono or polycentric.

7. Many cities are relocating their highway underground and develop a park

on top of the cap. There are six motives for this: (1) reconnecting neighbourhoods;

(2) reclaiming space; (3) improving health; (4) improving

climate resilience; (5) more green recreational space; and (6) to establish

the city as a modern metropole to attract more residents;

8. Capping a highway often runs well into a billion euros or dollars. They rely

on a mix of public and private investment and funding. Profits are difficult to

measure and are often expressed in an increase in global pull and increases

in property value. With these kinds of investments, it seems doubtful that

the car will disappear any time soon.

83

Problem definition

In the upcoming years Antwerp is going to implement two large structuring

plans. The first is the capping of the ring and its transition to ring park – the

Grote Verbinding; the second is the densification and subsequent polycentric

development of the suburban region, and thereby create what the city is calling

a Network City.

Both of these projects, although different, are densification strategies

that are comprised of the same three elements. The first (1) is that they are

both looking for a way to densify in the existing fabric of the city, and try to

do so in a way that stimulates economic progress. The ring project, with its

improvement in mobility and living environment tries to increase the domestic

and international allure of the city in order to attract new business. The

polycentric development in turn tries to focus densification around strategically

placed economic hubs, to strengthen their economic weight. The second (2)

element is the appointment of densification zones to get a grip on the growth

of the peripheral region; the edge of the suburban region and the villages

beyond it. While simultaneously creating a stronger definition of both the

inner-city and suburban region. The third (3) element is the stimulation of a

modal shift towards more cleaner sources of mobility like public transport and

cycling, to improve the health conditions and climate resilience of the city.

The ring project does this by capping the ring to take away the noise and air

pollution, and by adding an important concentric public transport and bicycle

connection on top. The polycentric strategy in turn tries to limit movement

altogether, by striving towards a short-distance city through the creation of

autonomous hubs. Thereby also putting some pressure off the transport system

in the inner-city

Within these projects we also see a slight contradiction. The ring project,

with its densification plan to create a defined urban edge, is catering to a

paradigm shift in the way the inner-city and suburbs are visually connected to

each other. From turning away from each other, the entire ring area will, when

the urban edge is complete, transition to facing one another. However, with

the wish of stimulating a polycentric development in the suburban region in

which the city is almost going to resemble an urban village model, we find the

opposite of what the ring project is trying to achieve. Admittedly, the ring project

also has a separating quality, however in light of the effect the highway is

currently having on the urban environment, the ring park is going to stimulate

a better connection.

As of yet however, both of these plans are still in their development stages.

The polycentric strategy is still missing a spatial plan. The city is currently only

suggesting that strategic densification hubs could be formed along multimodal

84

hubs, like the P+R structures, or large amenities. The information currently

available about these projects suggests that there is no conscious consideration

on how the inherent duality between, on the one hand improving

mobility and connectivity between the inner-city and suburban region, while

at the same time applying a short-distance polycentric strategy to the suburbs,

is going to fit together. An overarching strategy that links these two projects

together, and manages to give the suburban region a higher degree of autonomy

while keeping a strong link to the inner-city seems essential here.

Another point of criticism, is Antwerp’s approach to getting a grip on

the growth on the peripheral areas. It seems that Antwerp is only doing this in

an indirect manner; through the appointment of locations for densification.

In other words, Antwerp is relying on the attraction of the residential projects

they are going to build in the future, instead of directly devising spatial ways of

limiting the growth of the periphery.

Looking at the population projections and how many residential projects are

constructed annually, the city concludes that with the implementation of these

two plans, it can keep up with the demand and thus has no real housing crisis

in numbers. However, the city does experience a trend of families moving out

of the city due to increasingly smaller apartments, and because they cannot afford

the apartments that fit their needs. An issue that Antwerp is actively trying

to solve by giving families a place in the inner-city through the densification of

the ring zone.

We might be right to conclude here that the city might be underestimating,

to some extend the effect the capping of almost the entire ring will

have on the popularity of the city. A cap with this length is unpreceded, and the

effect it has on the liveability of the city can be enormous. This might attract

more migration to the city than currently expected. Another point is Antwerp’s

intention to cater to the families that have left the city because the apartments

were too small or too expensive. Looking at how office rents went up

by 10 percent, and land prices by nearly 40 percent in a 500-metre radius of

Boston’s Big Dig (Ascher & Krupp, 2010, p. 195) – granted the most famous

example – it could be a little naïve to think that price-wise this area is suitable

for families that left the city because it was too expensive for their needs.

In extension of this, it might then be a missed opportunity that the role

of the left bank is missing in the narrative of the ring project, as well as in that

of the polycentric development. On the one hand, we see perhaps clear signs

that this region is increasing its connection to Antwerp with the urban edge or

densification Linkeroever, Zwijndrecht, and Burcht are getting. For Linkeroever

this might even mean attachment to the inner-city of Antwerp, with the addition

of being included in the low-emission zone within the bounds of the ring, and

85

the multimodal P+R that is being build. However, on the other hand we see

half-hearted measures, such as the design of the ring park. On the left, the

highway remains uncapped and framed by the high green shoulders, a design

that because of the new tunnel here, keeps the segregated landscape almost

exactly the same. Which is a shame, because the green ring could reach its

culmination in the diverse large-scale ecological zones of Linkeroever.

Vision

From the previous paragraphs we can establish that there is a missing link

between the two large structuring plans that Antwerp is going to implement in

the upcoming years – the ring project and the polycentric development of the

suburban region. We also saw that Antwerp is not directly trying to limit the

growth of its periphery, but is instead relying on the quality and pull of the two

previous plans.

From a population perspective, we noticed that Antwerp might be underestimating,

to some extend the effect the capping of almost the entire ring

will have on the popularity and population growth of the city, and how this in

turn will affect the rise in property value along the ring. And subsequently, that

this might mean that families might not be the demographic that is able to find

their home in the densified ring area. In extension of this, we saw how the left

bank; the role of Zwijndrecht and Burcht, and the role of Linkeroever as part of

the inner-city is missing in the current plans.

In light of these findings, this chapter would like to propose a strategy that tries

to solve these issues. A strategy that allows the city to attain a more polycentric

structure, while at the same time manages to keep a strong link between

the inner-city and the suburbs. A strategy that applies spatial limitations to the

growth of the periphery, and researches ways to expand the densification plans

of the city should the population grow harder than expected.

For an extensive strategy such as the one described above a few

assumptions will be made. The first (1) assumption is the main ambition of the

ring project. While the ultimate goal of the city of Antwerp is to completely cap

the ring, this might for whatever reason not happen. So, for the sake of this

strategy the assumption will be made that the entirety of the highway ring will

be relocated underground. The reason for doing this is to not have to go too

deep into which parts of the ring stays exposed, and which will not. This allows

us to shift our entire focus on designing the ring park to its fullest potential; as

a structure around the city that helps alleviate some of the effects of climate

change, resolves most of the air and noise pollution caused by the ring, and

gives a significant region of the inner-city and suburbs a quality green park

for recreation. Positioning the ring project like this, simultaneously creates a

86

scenario in which the ring park has the fullest potential to attract people to the

city, thus allowing us to explore a strategy that needs to maximise its densification

efforts.

In extension, the second (2) assumption will involve the future of the

left bank. For Linkeroever, the assumption will be made that, in light of the

needed densification, it will transition to become part of the inner-city structure

of Antwerp. As mentioned before there are many indicators that point

towards this end; like the low-emission zone, the new P+R, and the defined

urban edge. This decision would in a real-world scenario be, understandably,

quite politically coloured; which might be the reason why there is still so

much ambiguity to the plans, or lack of plans put forward by the municipality.

Especially taking into consideration the ability of the population to launch a

counteroffensive, like they did when the plans of the R2, the bigger sister of

Antwerp’s city ring, were made public. Extending our view beyond Linkeroever,

it might be prudent to also assume that the villages of Zwijndrecht and Burcht,

and possibly the southernmost section of the harbour, on the other side of the

Scheldt also receive some kind of urbanisation. This due to their close proximity

to the ring park and the city, the pending mobility improvements because of

it, and because of the current densification plans that Zwijndrecht and Burcht

are receiving.

Following the assumptions made in the previous paragraph the strategy has to

do several things on different levels of the metropolitan region.

On the metropolitan scale, this strategy would need to find a way

to give spatial direction to the peripheral regions in order to define and limit

their growth, without interfering with current economic activity. Allowing all the

growth to take place within either the inner-city or suburban region.

On the suburban scale, this strategy needs to give spatial direction to

the polycentric development and definition of the suburban region on both the

left and right side of the Scheldt, while keeping a relationship to the inner-city.

This means increasing the autonomy of the suburbs via the stimulation of

economic activity already present in the region while keeping a certain serving

function to the city, and the improvement of especially concentric mobility

between the different parts of the suburbs, which in turn also reduces the

pressure on the transport network of the inner-city. A potential starting point

for the polycentric development might be the P+R structures which Antwerp is

currently suggesting.

On the inner-city scale, this strategy needs to give thematic direction

to the green ring on the left bank, and create a densification plan for the city

and suburban districts along the ring, with Linkeroever as an integral part of

the inner-city of Antwerp. This means finding an economic driver for Linkeroev-

87

er and improving the connectivity of the district with the inner-city of Antwerp,

both physically and visually.

A possible initial direction for this strategy may lie in the interplay of the previously

established set for defining a city – the rampart, the traffic artery, and

the park – that we have seen in Antwerp’s Leien. Here one of the elements

from the Spaanse Omwalling – the trees – was used to improve the spatial

quality of the Leien. The interaction that occurs here in which an element from

one of the paradigms is used to solve a problem and/or improve the spatial

quality of one of the other paradigms could be useful for our various goals in

the metropolitan region. As we have seen in the exploratory chapter, traces of

the three paradigms are already present in the various stages of the metropolitan

region. At the edges of the metropole we find the large park structures

that Antwerp is attaching its green ring to, and the outer fortification belt. In

the suburban region, we find the inner fortification belts and their concentric

supply road which is currently an important car road. And in the plans for the

ring we find a park structure, and an important concentric public transport

and bicycle artery. Introducing the interplay between these three paradigms

could provide a way to define and limit the growth of the metropolitan region;

it could establish the polycentric development in the suburban region and

help define its bounds; and on the scale of the city is could provide thematic

direction for the development of the ring park on the left (and right) bank,

while at the same time increasing the climate resilience of the city, via a link to

the water element of the inundation areas and wet moats around the ramparts.

Applying the interplay between these three paradigms not only allows us to

imbed an economic and residential connection in the various city regions, but

a connection to culture, recreation, climate, and heritage as well. The application

can not only serve as a way to devise the individual strategies, but can

bind them all together as well. Especially the link to the first paradigm; to the

extensive defence network that scales the metropolitan region, can help in

connecting the various parts of the metropole through a strong historical link

that can speak to the imagination of its inhabitants.

With the goal and approach established we need to define a starting point for

this strategy and a few intermediate measurement points.

Reading the development plans the completion of the Oosterweel-link

somewhere around 2027 might be a good starting point. This project is the

cornerstone of the ring project, once this project is finished the municipality

will redirect its main focus to the existing part of the ring. At this point in time

all the new P+Rs should also be constructed along with the improved public

transport to support them. Leading up to 2027, plans can be developed for

88

the densification process of Linkeroever, the ring zone, the polycentric hubs in

the suburban region, and the spatial plan for the metropolitan region.

For the existing part of the ring a timetable is not yet available. The

published proposals discuss a possible start somewhere around 2020. Since

parts of the project have not been granted a permit yet, we will set the start of

the underground relocation of the ring somewhere within the next five years;

between 2020 and 2025; and the completion somewhere between 2035 and

2040. At this point the bypass for through traffic (A102) is complete, and two

bridges have been constructed to reach Linkeroever via the capped ring. The

modal shift can now come to full effect. At this point the full focus can go to

the construction of the ring park, the densification along the ring and Linkeroever,

and the polycentric development of the suburban region, possibly at the

location of the P+R structures.

The densification of the area along the ring and Linkeroever can

probably start somewhere halfway during the underground relocation of the

ring road, when certain parts of it are finished. So, we will set a rough start for

this in 2030 and completion somewhere around 2045. In the same period,

the gradual shift to a more polycentric structure in the suburbs can start, as

should the implementation of the spatial strategy that limits the growth of the

peripheral regions.

After the completion of the densification of the ring and Linkeroever, the densification

focus can shift to the polycentric development of the city. Fully focusing

on the development along the P+R structure established during the construction

of the ring project and the modal shift to more public transport and short

distance traffic. In doing so, Zwijndrecht and Burcht have become part of the

suburban region of Antwerp, as well as the north-western sections of the harbour

along the green ring. Since there is no clear end to this densification, we

will set a global timeframe somewhere around 2050/2060.

The following spread will show the past few pages in graphic form; giving a

rough indication of the spatial implications of what has been discussed.

89

Roadmap Antwerp 2050+

Oosterweel - Link

Capped Ring Road

2020 - 2027 2020/2025 - 2035/2040

- The Oosterweel-link is finished; the ring of Antwerp

is now fully round, and traffic no longer has to go

through Linkeroever;

- (New) P+Rs are constructed along with the

improved public transport to support them;

- Development plans for the dinsification along the

ring zone, Linkeroever, and the strategic hubs.

- The ring highway has been completely relocated

under the ground. Remedying noise, health, and

climate related issues;

- The A102 tunnel has been built to guide regional

traffic around the city;

- The public transport line above the capped ring has

been built, along with the already planned Scheldt

bridge to the south. In addition to this bridge, another

bridge to the north has been built to stimulate the

modal shift and the development of Linkeroever;

- Transit-oriented has started to form around the

P+Rs on the right bank of Antwerp;

Legend

Highway

Public transport

Tunnel - new

High density - inner city or sub-centre

Medium density - ring suburbs

Low density - suburbs or villages

90

Industrial or harbour

Green City Ring

Metropolitan Antwerp

2030 - 2045 2027 - 2050+

- The Ring Park has now been constructed on the

entirety of the capped; ring left and right;

- Linkeroever has transitioned from suburb to part of

the inner-city of Antwerp, and hosts the culmination

of the Ring Park;

- The city and the suburbs facing the Ring Park have

been densified to create a defined edge;

- A new public transport ring has been added on top

of the A102 tunnel and the R11 - the road of the

fortification belt - to better connect the

transit-oriented development;

- The spatial strategy that limits the growth of the

peripheral regions has been implemented.

- The P+R have now developed to fully functioning

polycentric nodes;

- The public transport ring of the fortification belt has

been extended on the left bank to connect to Burch,

Zwijndrecht, and Beveren, following the fort belt

there;

- The areas in the suburbs facing the Ring Park have

received further densification;

- Zwijndrecht and Burcht have become suburbs of

Antwerp;

- The habour areas along the Ring Park have been

redeveloped to residential areas;

- A part of the industrial area to the north of

Zwijdrecht has also been redeveloped to a

residential area; The Ring Park is now completely

defined by morphology.

91

The previous pages have resulted in the following main research question:

How can the interplay between the set, the rampart, the traffic artery, and the

park, be used to developed a strategy that gives spatial direction to Antwerp’s

metropolitan region, its suburban region, and its inner-city?

To provide answer to this question, the following sub-questions per city region

have been formed:

The Metropolitan Region







the park – give spatial direction and definition to the metropolitan region?

The Suburban Region

1. What was the composition of the the inner fortification belts in Antwerp’s

suburban region?



suburban region?

3. How can the interplay between the set – the rampart, the traffic artery,

and the park – create a polycentric strategy for the suburban region, while

keeping a relationship to the inner-city of Antwerp?

The City region


Linkeroever?




the ring?


the park – give thematic direction to the green ring and create a densification

plan for the city and suburban districts along the ring, and Linkeroever

as part of the inner-city of Antwerp?

92

Figure 1.42 - previous spread

Drawing of the roadmap to Antwerp

2050+.

93

II

The Metropolitan Region

2.1 De Stelling van Antwerpen

2.2 A Spatial Strategy for the Metropolitan Region

2.1

De Stelling van Antwerpen

On the past and present of Antwerp's defence system during its

time as the country's National Redoubt

After Belgium’s independence from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands

with the Treaty of London in 1939, the newly installed government and army

command decided that it was unrealistic to defend the whole country in case

of an impending attack and therefore appointed Antwerp as its National

Redoubt; a fortified stronghold into which the army, the king, and the government

could retreat when war was upon them, and there wait for help from

foreign allies (Het Archief, 2016; Busschots, 2014). The main incentive for this

decision was the political unrest in France after the self-coup of Napoleon III in

1951, and the growing call for the annexation of Belgium (Verboven, 2018a).

Antwerp was chosen over cities like Ostend, Namur (Namen), and Brussels,

mainly due to three reasons: (1) Antwerp already was a fortress, building the

Redoubt in the other cities would have been more expensive; (2) Antwerp was

the financial capital of Belgium; and (3) Antwerp was conveniently located

along the Scheldt, meaning it could be supplied more easily, and was better

accessible for foreign allies (Nagels, 2012, p. 48). The strategic appointment

of Antwerp especially hinged on the latter, as the neutrality of Belgium was

assured by the five major powers at the time - Great Britain, Austria, France,

Prussia, and Russia – with the signing of the Treaty of London. Meaning that in

the event that Belgium’s neutrality was violated, one of these countries would

come to aid (Busschots, 2014; Nilesh, 2014; Duffy, 2009). 18

The concept of a National Redoubt has been widely used throughout

history, especially in the 19th and 20th century, and during both World Wars.

The strategy was, among others, used by the Germans, the Swiss, and the

Dutch. For the latter the National Redoubt was Amsterdam from roughly 1974

till 1920, after which it was extended to Fortress Holland (Vesting Holland);

an area roughly covering the present-day Randstad (Kruizinga, Moeyes, &

Klinkert, 2014, pp. 4-7). Opinions on the effectiveness of using a National

Redoubt are divided. Belgium saw its National Redoubt crumble quite quickly

in the First and Second World War, even with the arrival of Britain. The Netherlands

suffered the same fate during the Second World War, in which Fortress

Holland was taken in a matter of days. The reason for these failures is not entirely

clear, both of these Redoubts were designed with the same components;

fortification belts in low-lying terrain, relying heavily on inundations and water

barriers with a lifeline to large body of water for foreign aid. Switzerland’s

National Redoubt located in the Alps – heavily mountainous terrain – proved

18.

This promise was upheld by Great

Britain when Germany violated the

agreements of the Treaty in August

of 1914 by invading Belgium. Britain

subsequently declared war on Germany

on the 4th of August 1914 (Nilesh,

2014, p. 1012).

96



metropolitan region (Google, 2020).

to be more resilient (Kaufmann & Kaufmann, 2014, pp. 207-208).

With Antwerp definitively appointed as National Redoubt by law in

1959, construction started on its three components: (1) a new larger rampart

to replace the Spaanse Omwalling, (2) fortification belts, and (3) inundation

areas. Antwerp was Belgium’s official redoubt from roughly the 1850s till the

end of the First World War, with a short reprise of the role during the Second

World war (Verboven, 2018a). Although the total design was never a military

success, many of its components have survived and are now important cultural,

historical, architectural, and ecological relics (Busschots, 2014).

This chapter will explore the design and working of the historic

Redoubt system and trace its heritage to present-day Antwerp in relation to

function, ecology, morphology, accessibility, and economy. The chapter will

conclude with a strategic spatial plan that uses the interaction between the

set – the rampart, the traffic artery, and the park – to give spatial direction and

definition to the metropolitan region.

The National Redoubt

After a half-hearted attempt from 1850 till 1858 to create a fortress with the

existing Spaanse Omwalling and several small forts some distance from the

city; 1859 marked a turning point with the city’s definitive appointment as

National Redoubt. This meant easier access to funding which allowed Antwerp

to rapidly build its defensive network. The plan consisted out of three parts: the

Grote Omwalling, several fortification belts, and inundation areas.

19.

Henri Alexis Brialmont (1821-1903)

was a major general and inspector

general of fortifications (The Editors

of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2020).

Contrary to popular belief, Brialmont

did not design the fortification belts

himself, that was the work of the inspector

general of the genie Deannoy.

Brialmont did however, in his capacity

as member of the minister of war’s cabinet,

make some adjustments to the

original designs when the forts were

being built (Verboven, 2018a).

The Grote Omwalling built between 1859 and 1865 was meant to replace

the Spaanse Omwalling and the smaller forts, and give a very dense city some

much needed expansion space. The Omwalling increase the city’s surface

area by a factor of five, from 330 ha to 1630 ha, and enclosed several

neighbouring villages like Borgerhout and Berchem, and parts of the harbour

(Verboven, 2018b).

At the same time, construction started on the inner fortification belt

to keep the city safe from long-range artillery; a belt popularly called the

Brialmont Fortification belt, after Henri Alexis Brialmont. 19 A total of eight

forts – called fort 1 through 8 – were built at roughly 4 kilometres from the

ramparts, spaced at intervals of 2 kilometres from each other. This assured that

the forts could take the area behind, and between them under fire. The north

side of the city initially was not reinforced by forts, because the region could

be defended with the inundation areas. Between 1871 and 1882, however,

Fort Merxem was built to defend the plateau between the inundation area on

the north side of the city and the area next to the canal. The forts, except Fort

Merxem, were accessible via a paved road called the Krijgsbaan, and some

97

+++

+ + ++

++

+

++++++++++++++++++++++

Inundation area of the

estuarium of the

Scheldt River.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Netherlands

Belgium

++

+++++++++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Fort Doel

1580-1885

Scheldt Forts

Fort

Oudendijk

Fort

Liefkenshoek

Fort de Perel

Fort

Sint-

Marie

Fortje

Hendric

Fort Lillo

Fort St.

Philippe

++++++++++++++++++++

Fort

Stabroek

Fortje

Corderen

Batterij

Wilm

Schans

Smoutakker

10 to 12 kilometres

++++++

Fort Ertbrand

This an anti-tank ditch built b y Antwerp between 1937-193 9

4 km

Anti-Tank Fortification belt 1885-1939

5 kilometres

Fortje

Cappellen

Fort

Merxem

Schans

Drijhoek

Fort

Brasschaet

Fort

Schooten

to keep out the Germans.

Schans

Audaen

Fort 's

Gravenwezel

The Grote Omwalling 1859-1865

The Krijgsbaan extended to the left bank.

Left Bank of the Scheldt River

Defensive dyck

1870-1885

Fort van

Haesdonck

1906-1914

Schans

Landmolen

Fort

Bornhem

Schans

Puers

Schans

Halve

Maan

Fort van

Zwijndrecht

Schans

Lauwershoek

1906-1914

Fort van

Steendorp

Fort

Lierzele

Fort van

Cruybeke

Western Flank 1906-1914

Schans

Letterheide

Fort

Breendonck

Fort

Vlaamsch

Hoofd

4 km

Fort 8 Fort 7 Fort 6

Fort 5

Lunet

Deurne

Krijgsbaan, the current R11, connecting th e forts.

10 to 12 kilometres

Fort

Deurne

Fort 4

Fort

Waelhem

Fort 3

Fort 1

Fort van

Duffel

Inundation area of

the Small and Large

Schijn.

Fort 2

Brialmont Fortification belt 1859-1865

Eastern Flank 1870-1914

Schans

Boschhoek

Schans

Dorpveld

Fort

Kath-Waver

5 kilometres

Schans

Schilde

Fort

Oeleghem

Schans

Massenhoven

Fort

Broechem

Schans

Tallaert

Fort Lier

Fort

Koningshoyckt

Fort Kessel

98

Inundation system

Inundation system

Inundation system

Fortification Spiral

time later via railway (Province of Antwerp & Fortengordels, 2014, pp. 76-

77).

The fortification belt on the left side of the Scheldt, initially only

defended by Fort Vlaamsch Hoofd and the inundation area, was extended

between 1870 and 1885 with the Forts van Curybeke and Zwijndrecht. This

belt was connected to the older, but refurbished, Fort Sint Marie via a defensive

dyke and Schans Halve Maan (a sconce). Fort Sint Marie, along with the

other Scheldt Fort, are the oldest forts in Antwerp’s defence system. Built during

the 16th century, they continued to defend the Scheldt river and the connecting

dykes. The forts on the left bank were also accessible via a Krijgbaan, minus

the railway (Province of Antwerp & Fortengordels, 2014, pp. 76-77).

1870-1885

1870-1885

1870-1885



Fortification Belts

Fortification Belts

Fortification Belts

Scheldt Forts

Left Bank of

the Scheldt River

Scheldt Forts

Left Bank of

the Scheldt River

Scheldt Forts

Left Bank of

the Scheldt River

1580-1885

1580-1885

Western Flank

1906-1914

1580-1885

Western Flank

1906-1914

Western Flank

1906-1914



Brialmont Belt

1859-1865


Brialmont Belt

1859-1865

Brialmont Belt

1859-1865




Figure 2.1

Drawing of the defensive structure

during Antwerp’s time as National

Redoubt. The old map that was used

for this drawing KBR (KBR, n.d.).

The fortification belts 4 kilometres from the city were soon overtaken by the

firing range of new artillery – which now extended to an intimidating 7 kilometres.

This prompted the construction of the Anti-Tank, the Eastern Flank,

and Western Flank fortification belts between 1870 and 1914. Like their older

cousins, the positioning of these peripheral forts was determined by their firing

range. The forts were positioned 10 to 12 kilometres from the inner fortification,

with 4 to 5 kilometres between each fort. A sconce was placed between

each fort for additional support. This distancing positioned the northern belt

near the border with the Netherlands, and the east and west flank over the

river valley of the Rupel, Nete and Dijle; tributaries of the Scheldt River. In contrast

to the inner forts, the peripheral forts also needed to be able to defend

the area behind them in addition to the area next to, and in front of them. The

forts were supplied by the main traffic routes they protected, the Western Flank

forts were additionally accessible via train. These last additions brought the

total to 44 forts and 15 sconces (Province of Antwerp & Fortengordels, 2014,

pp. 76-77).

Initially the positioning of forts and the level of reinforcement was

influenced by whether or not a certain area could be inundated; as illustrated

by the Grote Omwalling of which the northern side was significantly less

reinforced than the southern side, the defence system of Linkeroever, and the

Brialmont fort belt which did not cover the north. The presence of floodable

areas probably became less of an influence due to the same reason as why the

older belts were no longer effective: the increased firing range of artillery. This

hypothesis could be supported by the lack of recorded inundations after the

18th century.

A final addition to the system would come in the Interbellum; between

1937 and 1939 the northern section of the peripheral forts was reinforced by

a 33-kilometre-long anti-tank ditch, with a width of 6 metres, and a depth of

3 metres. Initially, the ditch was meant to be dry, but because seep could not

99

+

+++

+++++

++++++++++++++++++++++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Netherlands

Belgium

++

+++++++++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

This dotted line marks the historic inundation areas.

Fort

Sint-

Marie

Schans

Halve

Maan

Fort Lillo

Fort

Liefkenshoek

Fort van

Zwijndrecht

Fort van

Cruybeke

++++++++++++++++++++

Fort

Stabroek

Schans

Mastvest

Schans

Smoutakker

Noordkasteel

Schans

Brilschans

++++++

To Northen Park

Fort Ertbrand

The fortification spiral in the inner-city and Linkeroever is almost entirely gone.

Fortje

Cappellen

Schans

Drijhoek

Fort

Merxem

Schijn

Fort 3

Fort

Brasschaet

Fort

Schooten

valley

Fort 2

The Anti-tank ditch is now

Flanders's longest protected

ditch, connecting several

ecological zones. You can

cycle along parts of it.

Schans

Audaen

Schans

Schilde

Fort

Oeleghem

Fort 's

Gravenwezel

Fort van

Haesdonck

Fort 8

Fort 5

Fort 4

Fort

Broechem

Schans

Landmolen

Schans

Lauwershoek

Fort 7

Fort 6

Fort Kessel

Fort van

Steendorp

M ost of the historic inundation areas are still use d as flood areas today.

Fort Lier

Fort

Bornhem

Schans

Tallaert

Fort

Koningshoyckt

Schans

Puers

Fort

Lierzele

Fort

Breendonck

Fort

Waelhem

Fort van

Duffel

Fort

Kath-Waver

Schans

Boschhoek

Schans

Dorpveld

Legend

Recreation

100 Education

Museum

Commerce

Office

Nature/ecological

Defence

Housing

Agriculture

Current flood

risk area

Historic

inundation area

Inundation system - historic vs.

current

Inundation system - historic vs.

current

be prevented the shift was made to a wet moat. The ditch has a saw-shaped

course, with linear tracks of several hundred metres. In its course, the ditch

bridges roughly 13 metres of height difference; the water is kept in place via

a system of culverts and locks (Province of Antwerp & Fortengordels, 2014, p.

41).

Fortification Spiral remnants

Fortification Spiral remnants

The above described defence system is a system based on concentric rings

accessible via radial roads; a system very familiar to Antwerp. Either by design,

but probably by chance, as almost none of the available literature describes

this shape; the total system can – granted with a bit of imagination – be seen

a spiral structure starting from the inner-city, gradually going outward to the

forts of the west flank. The shape is largely possible due to the linear direction

of the Scheldt forts. There is one 2014 study by the Province of Antwerp that

shows the spiral in drawing – the Kaderplan, Fortengordels rond Antwerpen

(Framework plan, fortification belts around Antwerp) – but does not expand

on why the structure is there or what it means, and shockingly does not even

mention the spiral intext.

Figure 2.2

Drawing of the remnants of Antwerp’s

defensive structure during its time as

National Redoubt. The map used is

from Google Maps (Google, 2020).

Remnants of the redoubt

The drawing on the next page shows how much of the Antwerp’s defence

system has been preserved to this day. As we can see, almost the entirety of the

peripheral and inner fortification belts has been preserved. Due to the massive

urban sprawl during the 1950s and 60s, the Brialmont forts can now be found

within the urban fabric of Antwerp’s suburban region. Continuing further inward

to the city, we see that there is not much left of Fort Vlaamsch Hoofd and

the Grote Omwalling; only Fort Burcht, two sconces, and a section of the wet

moat around NoordKasteel bear testament of what once was. As illustrated

in earlier chapters, the entirety of the Grote Omwalling was removed for the

construction of the ring highway, and Fort Vlaamsch Hoofd was buried under

a few metres of sand from the Scheldt river. As a result, we see the fortification

spiral observed in the previous section not continuing into the city, but stopping

around Fort Merxem.

Most of the forts have lost their military function, except for the fort

belt of (Fort van Cruybeke through Fort Sint-Marie) on the left bank. The forts

have now predominantly become home to recreational or cultural amenities,

with many becoming the base for associations or museums. Interestingly,

but perhaps not surprisingly, many of the forts have now become important

ecological reserves for the different bat populations in the region. A total of 19

forts and 1 sconce have been appointed as bat habitats. These bats and their

living environment are protected by law, meaning that any disturbance should

be avoided or compensated (Province of Antwerp & Fortengordels, 2014, p.

101

Potential agricultural belt

kFuture Ring Par

+

+++

+++++

++++++++++++++++++++++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Netherlands

Belgium

++

+++++++++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Scheldt Estuary

++++++++++++++++++++

P otential green radial

++++++

Peerdsb os radial

Northen Park of the Elsen, Masten, Paepen forests

forts

Potential

green

Schijn

belt with ecological

river valley

Green campus connection

R

i ver valley of the Scheldt

The Rupel river

River valley of the R

upel,

and

The Nete river

the Nete and Dijle

The Dijle river

Legend

102

Important ecological

areas

Current

corridors

Possible

corridors

Ecological structure - total

existing and potential

51). Many, but not all, of the defence structures have been marked as heritage

or protected landscape, or as city or villagescape (beschermde stads- en dorpsgezichten)

(Province of Antwerp & Fortengordels, 2014, p. 55).

Looking at the historic inundation areas we see that this currently coincides with

the designated flooding areas in the region. This is not surprising, since many

of the waterways have not been altered over the last few decades. The biggest

changes have occurred in the landscape that is now the harbour, and the district

of Linkeroever, which was raised artificially.

Ecological structure - radials


Ecological structure - tangents


There have been many plans for the fortification system over the years. Most of

these plans focus on individual forts, but there are two that study a larger scale:

the previously mentioned Kaderplan, Fortengordels rond Antwerpen (Framework

plan, fortification belts around Antwerp) from 2014, and the plan Herover de

fortengordel (recapture the fortification belt) from 2002. The former studies the

entirety of the redoubt system and comes to some of the same conclusions as

presented in this chapter; mainly the spiral and the large ecological structure

around the metropolitan region (next subchapter). The latter presents a plan for

the inner fortification belt on the left and right bank (see chapter 3.1 for more

information). What both of these plans have in common however, is that they

often focus on a very micro level – the scale of the individual fort – and scope

their strategy or development plan in such a way that it only includes the historical

and recreational dimensions, leaving what potential this system has from a

morphological, economic, or infrastructural point of view out of the study. The

Kaderplan study seems to have not received a follow-up since its release, the

Herover de fortengordel plan seems to have been only partially executed.

Ecological structure vs.

fortification spiral

Figure 2.3

Drawing of the defence system of

Antwerp in relation to large ecological

structures. The map used is from

Google Maps (Google, 2020).

The defence system in relation to large ecological structures

The dotted hatch on the left page shows and abstraction of the Biologische

Waarderingskaart en Natura 2000 Habitatkaart 2018 (Biological valuation map

and Natura 2000 habitat map 2018). The hatch represents all areas that are

deemed valuable or extremely valuable (Instituut voor Natuur- en Bosonderzoek,

2018). We see that most of the historic inundation, and the current flood areas,

have been marked as valuable ecological zones. This should not come as a real

surprise, since the historic inundation was predominantly a natural occurring

phenomenon focussed around large natural entities, that were adapted to suit

the needs of Antwerp. In extension to the comments on the value of the forts as

fauna habitats on the previous page, we also see that the majority of the forts

are deemed ecologically valuable.

We can distinguish a system of radial and concentric ecological zones

of which the three largest are: (1) the Scheldt River Valley leading to the Schel-

103

Antwerpen

+

+++

+++++

++++++++++++++++++++++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Netherlands

Belgium

++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Oost-Vlaanderen

Antwerpen

+++++++++

++++++++++++++++++++

++++++

Low density living in the forest

Agricultural linear development villages

Linear villages

City

suburb

Antwerp

Sint-Niklaas

Oost-Vlaanderen

Antwerpen

City suburb

Agricultural linear development villages

Lier

Formation of new centre function locations

104

Oost- V

laanderen

nt

Vl aams-Braba

Mechelen

Antwerpen

Vlaams-Brabant

++ +

++++++++++++++++++++

+++

++

+++

S u b ur b

++++++

++++++++

Structuring influence of the

fortification spiral

dt’s Estuary (radial), (2) the river valleys of the Scheldt’s tributaries the Rupel,

Nete, and Dijle, and (3) the Northern Parks of the Elsen, Masten, and Paepen

Forests. The latter two form a large semicircle around Antwerp. We can further

distinguish the three radials Antwerp is connecting its city and suburban region

to with the future Ring Project; the Peerdsbos, Schijn River Valley, and Campus

radial (ending in Middelheim), of which the latter is mostly a parkway connection.

Type of morphology along spiral

C

Low density linear villages

C

C

Cross-boundary structure

municipal and provincial

C

Reading the plans of the Ring Park, we noticed that these green areas are used

as defining structural elements, and as structures that add to climate adaptation.

Extending this notion to the map on the left page, we could establish

a few similar elements on the regional scale that could give structure to the

various urban and rural settlements in the region and complement the leftovers

of the fortification spiral. Starting with the two concentric elements, we see the

earlier mentioned semicircle of the northern parks and the river valley, including

the peripheral fort belts and anti-tank ditch, as a possible defining structure

for Antwerp’s city region. The second element is a potential green necklace

using the Krijgsbaan on both the left and right bank, and using the forts as

natural hubs; a necklace that might give a defining character to the suburban

region.

The various ecological radials could link these three green rings together.

If we expanded the set of valuable landscapes (forests and river valleys)

to not only include ecological zones, but agricultural landscape as well, we

can establish a few more radials that could provide definition to the low-density

development beyond the suburban region.

++++ ++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++

++++++++++++++++++++++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

+++++++++

++

Figure 2.3

Drawing of the fortification spiral in

relation to morphology. The map used

is from Google Maps.

The spiral in relation to morphology

Shifting the view to the morphological structure of the Antwerp region we see

that the fortification spiral has a certain structuring quality. The inner sections

of the spiral include the inner-city of Antwerp, it continues on to define the

city’s suburbs, even further out it encompasses the various low-density (linear)

villages around Antwerp, and it concludes with the three neighbouring cities:

Lier, Mechelen, and Sint-Niklaas. This quality should perhaps come to no

surprise as defining and encompassing certain areas (for defence) was exactly

what these structures were designed to do.

In relation to the ecological analysis of the previous spread, it seems

that the remnants of the National Redoubt could provide a defining quality to

the region as a whole, and perhaps at the same time a stronger connection –

maybe predominantly recreational and ecological – between Antwerp and Lier,

Mechelen, and Sint-Niklaas.

105

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Bridge to

the other

side.



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Belgium

No public

transport to

these forts.

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Meandering co nnection between t

Car and bicycle

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The last fort is not

accessible via the

defensive dyke

Radial

Ferry

crossing

Meandering bicycle connection

Cycle and public transport radial

++++++++++++++++++++

.


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The Brialmont belt has good accessibility by car, bicycle, and public transport.

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between forts; inter mittent public transport con nection.

Cycle and public transort radials

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Bicycle path running along anti-tank ditch.

Two bridges

across

the channel

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Meandering connection bicycle connection between forts; most forts are accessible by public transport.

Train and

bicycle radial to forts.

+++

Legend

Recreation

Education

Museum

also to these forts.

Commerce

Office

Nature/ecological

+++++

Defence

Housing

Agriculture

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Less direct accessibility

spiraling out of the city centre

Radial connections become more

important towards the periphery

At the same time however, reading the jurisdictional borders present in the

map on the previous page, we see that the remnants of the National Redoubt

are not only situated in a total of 23 different municipalities, but also cross

provincial borders. The final section of the left bank forts near Sint-Niklaas

are situated in the Province of Oost-Vlaanderen (East-Flanders); the rest is in

Antwerp’s province.

All the forts are currently the property of the municipalities they inhabit. This is

the result of an arrangement started in 1971 and finalised in 1977, in which

the ministry of national defence (ministerie van landsverdediging) sold the forts

to the ministry of finance, which subsequently sold it to the municipalities. This

as a result of the decree that made the forts lose their military status (Nagels,

2012, p. 35). This fragmentation over so many municipalities is probably the

reason why there is no overarching strategy regarding the fortification system.

Figure 2.4

Drawing of the Accessibility of the defence

structures. The map used is from

Google Maps (Google, 2020).

Accessibility of the defence structures

The drawing to the left shows the accessibility of the defence structures.

Reachability for the Brialmont belt is notability, and unsurprisingly, better for

all modes of transport than that of the peripheral forts, with the exception of

the bicycle network, which grands equal access to all forts. Public transport is

the category that is lagging behind; some of the forts on the left bank are not

a reachable via bus or train. Starting from Antwerp central station, all forts

are accessible by car in 30 minutes, bicycle in 90 minutes, and 60 minutes

by public transport (those that are reachable by public transport) (TravelTime,

2020).

The infrastructural network of highways, trunk roads, bicycle highways,

and public transport, is mainly based on a radial system extending

outwards from Antwerp. A few concentric connections are present. The

Krijgsbaan, the historic road giving access to the Brialmont forts, is an important

traffic artery of the suburban region. The Krijgsbaan on the left bank has

a similar, but less extensive role. A section of the anti-tank ditch doubles as a

recreational bicycle path. Almost the entirety of the eastern and western flanks

are accessible via a concentric bicycle (highway). However, distances between

access roads and the forts do become longer. For highways and train traffic,

only the western flank is accessible via a concentric connection. As a result, we

see that the peripheral forts are much more reliant on the radial connections

extending from Antwerp, than the inner belts.

Following the fortification spiral outward from the city, we find that

the forts are very reachable up until the Lunette Halve Maan, where the

highway intersects the Krijgsbaan of the left bank. The spiral can be picked

up again after Fort Sint-Marie, at the border of the harbour as a bicycle road.

A ferry provides crossing between the two remaining Scheldt forts. Following

107

Highways and Highways trunk and roads and trunk trunk roads roads

Bicycle Bicycle roads Bicycle - roads highway roads - highway and - highway local

and and local local

the harbour, the anti-tank ditch is only intermittently accessible by bicycle or

Figure 2.5

public transport; the ditch does not function as a concentric (bicycle) connection).

Drawing of the different transport

modes and their infrastructure.

Starting from the railway, we see that the spiral can be picked up via the

Public transport Public Public - transport bus - bus - bus

Public transport Public Public - transport train and - train - ferry train and and ferry rence ferry for these drawings (OpenStreet-

OpenStreetMaps, was used as refebicycle

path along the track of the ditch. After crossing the canal, the spiral

Map, n.d.).

becomes somewhat watered down until the western flank (left of the cycle and

public transport radial on the map); the spiral can be traced in large movements,

but no direct track is available for bicycle or motorised traffic. The western

flank provides good access to the forts on all fronts. At the end of the spiral

– at Sint-Niklaas – we find a possible loop back to Antwerp in the form of the

chaussee to Ghent, and the railway and bicycle highway running parallel to it.

The chaussee ends, as discussed in previous sections, with a visual axis to the

cathedral starting from Zwijndrecht.

This spread shows the different infrastructural networks discussed on the

previous page. These drawings were compiled using a combination of Google

Maps and Open Street Map. The highway and bicycle networks show the

future state of the network after the ring project is completed, for the highway

these sections (the Oosterweel-Link and the A102) are drawn with a dotted

line. The train and ferry map also shows the three variants for the second railway

connection discussed in previous chapters.

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Public Public transport Public transport transport - train - train and - train and ferry

and ferry

ferry


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+

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A12 to

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E34 to

Knokke-Heist

And Gent's

harbour

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The Netherlands

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Oosterweel-link

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Current highway development, mobility plan 2030.

A102 tunnel

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E19 to

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E34

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section of the R1.

1972 R2 plan

E313 to

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This is the N16, a dual


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carriageway connecting the E17 and A12.


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Mechelen's current ring.

This was to become the A101 to Mechelen.

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Legend

Current highway

Through traffic

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A12 to

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Residential areas

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1973 R2 plan

The R2, or the big ring around Antwerp

Almost since the opening of the R1 in 1969 – the current ring around Antwerp

– the Intercommunale E3 20 determined that a larger ring around the city

of Antwerp would be necessary to avoid congestion. A plan for such a road,

at least one that circumscribed the south-eastern part of the city was already

drawn up in the early 1960s. Starting form 1972, several plans would be

drawn up for a north-western extension of this road, going through Antwerp’s

harbour. The plans from 1972 and ’73 also included a bypass of the R1 to

Mechelen. Due to several factors, ranging from massive protests from the

inhabitants of the different municipalities to financial shortages which prompted

successive ministers of public works to choose different priorities, the R2

was never built. At least, not in its entirety. For a short moment in the first half

of the 1980s the plans for the left bank section of the R2 were revived, with the

construction of the Liekenshoek tunnel in 1991; the harbour tunnel, and the

only toll road in the country. However, again due to heavy protests of the local

inhabitants and politicians, a connection between the E34 and E17 was never

made (Wegen-Routes.be, 2016).

The maps to the left show the three different plans drawn up for the

R2, in relation to the highway development currently described in the mobility

plan for 2030. In addition to this, the second rail connection to the harbour is

shown with the three options for a connection to the eastern hinterlands. The

constructions on both of these projects is projected to start after the completion

of the Oosterweel-link in 2024 (Flemish Government, 2010).

2030 R2 mobility plan

Figure 2.6

Drawing of the different plans of the

R2 and the current mobility plan,

and the plan for the second railway

connection through the harbour (Wegen-Routes.be,

2016; Google, 2020).

As mentioned in previous chapters, the construction of the Oosterweel-link will

disconnect Linkeroever from the highway, with the main intent being to solve

the congestion problems on Linkeroever. For the main route for through traffic

of both cars and freight trains, we see that the track currently put forward in

the mobility plan follows the trace of the historic R2 plans. The reason for this

is quite simple; the route of the 1973 plan is still reserved for this function in

the Gewestplan 21 of Flanders. A plan now replaced by Ruimtelijke Uitvoeringsplannen

(RUPs) (spatial implementation plans). Both of these plans follow

the same principles; they denote certain functions to a specific area, and to a

limited extend give spatial explanation to the structural vision of government of

Flanders or the province. The current RUP does just this; try to anchor existing

structures with limited expansion.

The original idea in the vision statement for 2030 was to extend the

A102 tunnel to the E19 highway, via the R11 (the Krijgsbaan), and extend the

second railway connection (also as a tunnel) to the railway near the airport,

going to Lier (Flemish Government, 2018). Both of these extensions failed

however, due to major protests from the adjacent municipalities (Flemish Gov-

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A12 to

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E34 to

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And Gent's

harbour

Potential industrial radial.

Sint-Niklaas

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left The the brialmont intersect a

and bank forts forts

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few large industrial areas around the city.

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and fortification belt

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the and highway, railway, channel (, and g hi hway) bicycle form an industrial important tangential corr i dor.


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Industrial areas vs. fortification

spiral

Existing and potential industrial

clusters

ernment, 2018; Lantis, n.d.). The current plan for the highway is to expand the

capacity of the capped south-eastern part of the ring (R1), making it the only

section of the ring to cater to through traffic (Lantis, n.d.).

The definitive route of the second rail connection is still unclear. There

are currently two routes in consideration; the first (1) is an extension of the

A102 tunnel going all the way past Lier; the second (2) is an above ground

extension parallel to the E313 to Maastricht, and then either using the R2

reservation to connect to Lier, or extending the line along the highway and

connecting to the railway to Germany (coming from Lier) some kilometres

later. The role of Lier in this plan is not entirely clear, some older routes specifically

connected to Lier but this seems to have been let go in the current routes.

The main incentives behind the railway connection seem to be to increase the

accessibility to the harbour, freeing up capacity for passenger transport on the

city railways; the other incentive is to improve the connection to the railway to

Germany, the Iron Rhine (IJzeren Rijn) (Zeuwts, 2012; Poort Oost Antwerpen,

n.d.; Ademloos.be, 2012).

20. - previous page

An association of municipalities,

provinces, and the ministry of public

works that determined the construction

of highways (Wegen-Routes.be, 2016).

21. - previous page

A Gewestplan is a structural plan that

Flanders used pre-2000 to define

certain functions to a specific area. It

also, although in limit form, gave spatial

explanation to the structural vision

of the government of Flanders. The

plans have since 2000 been replaced

by Ruimtelijke Uitvoeringplannen

(RUPs) (spatial implementation plans)

(Directie Gebiedsontwikkeling, 2018).

Figure 2.7

Drawing of Antwerp’s infrastructure in

relation to its industrial areas Google,

2020).

For the strategy development part of this chapter, the current highway track for

through traffic will be used. According to the latest plans, this route will mainly

run underground, thus keeping noise and air pollution to a minimum. This

track also fits in the narrative of stimulating more freight traffic via de current

waterways and railways; adding more roads would perhaps communicate the

opposite. A decision regarding the second railway connection falls outside of

the scope of the strategy, as this would require it to look beyond the scale of

the metropolitan region, and because there still is a lot of ambiguity regarding

the motives of this railway connection.

Antwerp’s infrastructure in relation to industry

The map to the left shows the larger industrial areas in Antwerp’s metropolitan

region. Immediately evident from this map is that these areas follow a similar

linear development structure as the housing areas of Antwerp. Railways,

highways, and waterways are important carriers of the radial system. The most

dominant radials are centred around the Albert Canal going from the harbour

to Liège, the A12 to Brussels, and the Scheldt with the harbour to the north of

Antwerp and some larger industry going to the south.

Besides these radial axes, we see that the collection of highways,

railways, and waterways between Sint-Niklaas, Mechelen, and Lier form an important

concentric concentration of industrial zones, connecting to the junction

of the Albert Canal with the E313. We see a potential concentric connection

in the suburban region of Antwerp in the form of the Krijgsbaan on both the

left and right bank. This corridor intersects a couple of large industrial areas

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around the city, including Antwerp’s International Airport, and ends at the

harbour at both ends. In extension of this, we see a potential radial in the form

of the chaussee to Ghent and the railway parallel to it, creating a link between

the peripheral semi-circle and the Krijgsbaan semi-circle; effectively mirroring

the radial of the canal on the east side of the city.

Comparing the radial concentric system of industrial areas, we see an indirect

link to the fortification spiral. The concentric connections the spiral made use

of – the Krijgsbaan, and the railway and river valley of the Rupel, Nete, and

Dijle – have retained their infrastructural importance over time, albeit with a

different motive.

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2.2

A Spatial Strategy for the

Metropolitan Region

On the interplay between the rampart, the traffic artery,

and the park

This chapter set out to analyse the historic structure of Antwerp’s defence

system during its time as Belgium’s National Redoubt, on a systems level, and

subsequently trace the relationship between the remnants of this system along

the major structures of Antwerp’s metropolitan region. It did so to try to answer

the following two sub-questions:






The following pages will present the main findings of the analysis as an answer

to these sub-questions, and subsequently try to design a strategy that attempts

to translate these findings into a spatial strategy for Antwerp’s metropolitan

region.

Antwerp’s National Redoubt

Antwerp’s defence system consisted out of three parts; (1) the Grote Omwalling,

an extensive rampart that replaced the Spaanse Omwalling and increased

the city’s surface by a factor of five; (2) two main fortification belts, the Brialmont

and left bank belt at 4 kilometres from the city, and a second belt at 10

to 12 kilometres from the city; inspired by the firing range of long-range artillery;

(3) an extensive inundation system based on natural occurring waterways

that had a large influence on the design of the Omwalling and inner fort belts,

but which was let go for the design of the peripheral forts.

The defence system consisted out of concentric rings that were accessible via

radial roads or railways; a system still present in Antwerp today. Interestingly

we can distinguish a third structuring element; a spiral that traces all elements

of the fortification system from the inner-city to the periphery, ending at the

chausse to Ghent near the city of Sint-Niklaas.

116

Much of this system has survived till this day. The peripheral forts, the belt on

the left bank and the Brialmont belt are, with a few exceptions, all preserved;

this then also holds up for the observed fortification spiral. Going into Linkeroever

and the city, we see that almost all of the historic defence structure has

disappeared; effectively breaking the spiral.

Relationship between the defence system and Antwerp’s

major structures

In terms of ecology we see that almost all forts have been marked as ecologically

valuable for flora and fauna, and that the historic inundation areas

coincide with the current flood areas, which are also marked as ecologically

valuable. We can establish a system of radial and concentric ecological zones

that run from the periphery to the inner-city. Extending the defining aspect of

the future ring park we can establish two more potential green rings that can

define a city region: the Brialmont belt, and the semicircle of that the river valleys

of the Scheldt’s tributaries (concentric) and the Northern Parks (concentric)

describe.

Regarding morphology we have seen that the fortification spiral has a certain

structuring quality; while spiraling toward the periphery it encompasses

the three elements of Antwerp’s metropole: the inner-city, the suburbs, and

the low-density villages surround Antwerp. It concludes with Antwerp’s three

neighbouring cities: Lier, Mechelen, and Sint-Niklaas. This combined with the

ecological findings could provide a defining structure and connection in the

region. However, this also adds some difficulty, as the remnants of the National

Redoubt span 23 municipalities and 2 provinces.

In relation to infrastructure we see that Antwerp is based predominantly on a

radial system of highways, railways, and waterways, with two main concentric

connections, the Krijgsbaan in the suburban region, and the highway, railway,

and waterway connection on the periphery. This also roughly outlines the dominant

industrial radial in the metropole; the Albert Canal, the A12 to Brussels,

and the Scheldt to the Harbour, and the concentric link between Sint-Niklaas

and the canal on the periphery. The Krijgsbaan and chaussee to Ghent show

potential as a concentric and radial economical link, respectively.

Regarding reachability of the forts, we see the forts near the city are

more easily reached than the forts at the periphery. A combination of radial

and concentric connections can be used to reach the forts in the suburban

region. Radials become more important toward the periphery; concentric connections

are present but not continuous. This also means the fortification spiral

can at the moment not be fully used for recreational purposes.

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Sint-Niklaas

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Scheldt Estuary

Bicycle highway and

public transport route

establishing a link

between the

Brialmont belt and the

industrial areas there,

and closing the

fortification spiral for

recreational purposes.


The Brialmont belt will

become a public tranport

and cycle boulevard

linking the different

industrial and cultural

activities on the left and

right bank; stimulating

desification.

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The new industrial

axis here will also

loop the fortification

spiral back to

Antwerp via the

Chaussee to Ghent,

ending in Linkeroever

with a line of sight to

the Cathedral.

Agricultural radial to forest

Industrial development will

remain along the important

infrastructural arteries in the

final section of the spiral. The

areas will be connected to

Antwerp via three radials: the

canal to the east, the chaussee

to Linkeroever to the west, and

the A12 (to the right)


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This bicycle highway

will connect the

Brialmont belt to the

harbour and anti-tank

belt.

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Green chamb

The

Agricultural radial

Incorporating elements of

the defence system in the

ring development to

accentuate the spiral

in the city. The water

element could solve

contemporary

issues.

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Green ring the around city

around the

ring around the

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++++++++++++++++++++++

Bicycle highway along the

anti-tank ditch for recreational

purposes and forming a

tangential connection between

the villages.

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Green radial to the un


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suburban


metro p region

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Mechelen


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Rupel, Nete, and Dijle

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Added public transport

and bicycle highway

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industrial corridors

River valley

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Lier

rivers

The Fortification spiral as

the third structuring

element, mediating

between the radial and

concentric system.

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Each of element of Antwerp is

defined by a green ring or

belt; the inner-city by the Ring

Park, the suburban region by

the Brialmont fortification

belt, and the metropolitan

region by the river valley of

the Rupel, Nete, and Dijle, and

the Northern Parks.


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Inner-city fabric

Suburban region

Low density linear

development

Industrial areas

Forest or

agricultural area

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Bicycle highway on the

other side of the river

valley providing better

access to the industrial

areas and fortification

belt.

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Low density region

Low density region

Suburban region

Suburban region

Sururban

Sururban

Low density region

Low density region

region

City

region

City

Low density region

Low density region

City

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Low Low density density region

region

Green belts Green around belts the around city regions the city regions

Green radials Green connecting radials connecting the green the belts green belts

The fo

eleme

Figure 2.8 - left

Drawing of the green belts in the

metropolitan region.

Figure 2.9 - right

Drawing of the green radials in the

metropolitan region connecting the

green belts.

Spatial strategy for the metropolitan region

The drawing on the adjacent page shows a cumulation of all the components

of the spatial strategy that tries to give concrete definition to the metropolitan

region of Antwerp, and reengage it with the remnants of the historic defence

system, thereby establishing a link to the set of the rampart, the traffic artery,

and the park. The following elements will reflect per component of the strategy.

Figure 2.10

Drawing of the spatial strategy for the

metropolitan region (Google, 2020).

Green belts as defining elements of the city’s regions

The defining elements of the three city regions – the green belts – are an

intricate play between the set of the rampart, traffic artery, and park discussed

in the previous sections. For the largest belt, the one around the metropolitan

region, the first and second paradigm share a historic symbiotic relationship.

This belt is a combination of the river valley of the tributaries of the Scheldt

and the Northern Parks, both are large ecological structures that once shared

a role as inundation areas in the defence system, and both to this day hold

access to the peripheral forts. In terms of infrastructure, the river valley already

had a pre-established function as traffic artery; the river itself functions as a

waterway for the local industry, with the concentric highways and trainways

sharing this function. Added in this strategy is a bicycle highway spanning the

entirety of the belt. Through the Northern Parks this road runs along the track

119

of the anti-tank ditch, for the river valley a rough connection is made between

the three cities of Lier, Mechelen, and Sint-Niklaas, and the forts in this region.

This creates a historical and recreational link at the edge of the metropolitan

region, next to the economical one that was already present. And it creates a

concentric bicycle connection to main traffic radials leading to Antwerp.

For the belt around the suburban region, the Brialmont belt, the traffic

artery and the fortification history share a strong connection. Krijgsbaan in

this strategy will become an important concentric public transport and bicycle

boulevard, linking the different suburbs, forts and industrial areas on both

the right and left bank of the Scheldt together. The link to the park paradigm

will here be made through the boulevard itself; by lining it with trees, and by

the individual forts whom over time have become green, ecological hubs that

are important breeding grounds for the local bat and bird population. The

Krijgsbaan will therewith function as a pearl necklace; a concentric corridor

that links the various economic, cultural, recreational and ecological zones in

the area together. Stimulating densification and the creation of a defined edge

to the suburban region.

Regarding the final belt around the inner-city of Antwerp the park and

traffic artery paradigm will be the same as what is currently planned; a green

ring around the city, and a concentric bicycle and public transport connection

on top of it. However, this will be extended to go around the entirety of the

ring park, this time including the section around Linkeroever to stimulate its

transition to becoming part of the inner-city of Antwerp. For the link to the rampart

paradigm, a thematic connection will be made to the water element of the

Grote Omwalling on both the left and right bank – the wet moat around the

city, and the inundation system on Linkeroever. To attain a more direct link to

this part of the city’s history for cultural and recreational purposes, but to also

help resolve some of the city’s contemporary problems relating to climate adaptation.

The water element could be useful to handle the city’s waters system.

Green radials mediating between the defining belts

The system of green radials extending from the periphery into the city fabric will

be expanded. The main motives behind this lie in the creation of more recreational

corridors between the three green belts, while at the same time defining

areas that limit the growth of the low-density settlements in the region between

the second and third green belt. Next to the already established Peerdsbos,

Schijn river valley, and university radial, an agricultural radial is added that

connects the suburban region to Lier and the Scheldt’s tributary via the open

structure of Antwerp’s airport. This area is perfectly suited for this as building is

prohibited here due to the flight path of landing planes. The Peerdsbos radial

is extended with an agricultural radial along the eastern section of the harbour

120

Low

density region

Sururban

region

Suburban region

Low density region

density region

Low

Low

density

region

City

City

fortification spiral as the third structuring

ent

Industrial corridors; the Brialmont belt as connecting corridor

The fortification spiral as cultur

Figure 2.11

Drawing of the industrial corridors in

the metropolitan region, with the Brialmont

belt as the connecting corridor.

on the right bank to connect to the northern edge of the peripheral green

belt, and two other green forest chambers are added to limit the growth of the

low-density settlements. On the left bank two radials are added to the north

and south of Zwijndrecht, and further to the south a larger agricultural radial

to connect the forts to Sint-Niklaas and a nearby forest area.

Industrial corridors

The existing industrial corridors along the Albert Canal, the A12, and the river

valley of the Scheldt’s tributaries will remain there and can be expanded in

this area. In addition to this, the Brialmont belt will act as a connecting belt

between the various industrial areas in the suburban region, and connect to

the harbour on both sides of the Scheldt. Whether industrial areas can expand

here, and to where, will be determined in the next chapter. An additional

industrial corridor on the left bank in the form of the chaussee to Ghent, and

its adjacent railway will be made to bind the larger industrial entities along this

road to the Brialmont belt on one side, and the industrial belt on the periphery.

121

City

Low

density region

Sururban

region

Suburban region

Low density region

density region

Low

Low

density

region

City

City

The fortification spiral as the third structuring

Industrial corridors; elementthe Brialmont belt as connecting corridor

Industrial corridors; the Brialmont belt as connecting corridor

The fortification spiral as cultural, economic, recreational, and ecological carrier

The for

The fortification spiral as the third structuring element and cultural, eco-

nomic, recreational, and ecological carrier

The fortification spiral will be established as the third structuring element,

mediating between Antwerp’s radial and concentric system. By improving the

infrastructural facilities along this spiral, a better cohesion between the different

city regions and neighbouring cities can be made on a cultural, economic,

ecological, and recreational level. These motives can overlap, as illustrated in

the new harbour connection; a public transport and bicycle corridor that serves

as an economic connection to the harbour, but also as a recreational and ecological

connection to the Scheldt Estuary. Another example is the new industrial

corridor on the chaussee to Ghent, this creates an economic stimulus while

simultaneously establishing a loop at the end of the fortification spiral back to

the city, ending at Linkeroever with a visual axis to the cathedral.

Figure 2.12 - left

Drawing of the fortification spiral as

the third structuring element in the

metropolitan region.

Figure 2.13 - right

the fortification spiral as cultural, economic,

recreational, and ecological

carrier.

122

123

III

The Suburban Region

3.1 The Suburban Fortification Belt

3.2 A Polycentric Strategy for the Suburban Region

126



suburban region (Google, 2020).

3.1

The Suburban

Fortification Belt

On the potential role of the inner fortification belts in

Antwerp's upcoming polycentric city

The inner two fortification belts perhaps had a difficult start. Almost as soon as

they were constructed between 1859 and 1885 they were deemed obsolete

due to the advances in the firing range of long-range artillery. Fortification

belts that once laid some distance from the city, currently find themselves surrounded

or at the periphery, of the suburban region of Antwerp.

Arguably the most famous of the two belts; the Brialmont belt, and its

accompanying Krijgsbaan has now become a semi-important concentric car

and bicycle corridor. As a result of its location and the potential connecting

quality it can bring to the suburban region, Antwerp has long loomed over

the boulevard as a way to increase the connectivity of the city. As already

discussed in previous chapters, the Krijgsbaan, or R11 as it is now called, has

been part of a few plans of the years. Starting out as a small section of the

1960s plan for the R2, and in recent years as part of the A102 and second

railway connection to the harbour. Both of these plans were in effort to alleviate

some of the traffic congestion of the ring, the R1. However, both of these

plans were to no avail, as the local municipalities would have none of it, not

even when both the highway and the railway were to be put completely underground.

This immediately shows the difficulty of devising an overarching plan

for these belts; its splintering in as much as seven municipalities.

The following chapter will explore the composition of the inner fortification

belts and trace the remnants of these structures to present-day Antwerp in relation

to function, ecology, morphology, accessibility and economy. This chapter

will conclude with a polycentric strategy for the suburban region of Antwerp;

leaning on the positioning of the inner fortification belt as a pearl necklace of

the previous chapter that links the various economic, cultural, recreational and

ecological zones in the suburban area together.

127

Fort de

Perel

The inundation

The Defensive Dyke

Lunette

Halve

Maan

area was

Fort St. Marie

Fort St. Philippe

Linkeroever was the weakest point of

the defence system of Antwerp.

Therefore the city started to construct

the Left Bank of the Scheldt River

Fortification Belt in 1980. This included the

construction of the Fort van Kruibeke and the

Fort van Zwijndrecht, and further to the north

Lunette Halve Maan and The Defensive Dyke,

which connected to Fort St. Marie. This fort was

older and part of the Scheldt fortification, with

the construction of the new belt, it received

a refurbishment and enlargement.

T he Rot

level with the positioning of the Defensive Dyke.

Blokkersdijk

This was the northern inundation area.

Wa t er could enter through her e.

The Rotbeek.

The inundation had an a verage depth of 3 to 4 metres

De

Borgerweertpolder

Fort

Calloo

Fort Vlaamsch

Hoofd

.

Fort

Isabelle

River fortification belt (1870-1885)

The Laar b eek

Ruin of

Fort Laar

Suikerdijk

The forts of the left bank were also

connected with their own 'Krijgsbaan'.

Fort van

Zwijndrecht

The water co

Lunet

Hoboken

The water could get al the way to here.

Left Bank of the Scheldt

Fort

Burcht

Fort van

Kruibeke

uld enter th rough her

The water could get al the way to here.

e

.

4 kilometre

This is the Brialm

The fortification belt could not be positioned further than

4 kilometr es from the ramparts because of the maximum fire

range of artillery.

The area

Brialmon

troops in

2 kilometre

2 kilometre

Fort 8

Fort 7

128

Fort 8 had to be

positioned right next

to the river to stop

enemy ships.

The water could

go u n der

t h e tracks.

Fort

Merxem

The water could go al the way to here.

3 kilometre

Scho oten

b eek

This area was clled the Schijn inundatie area.

Kleine

Schijn

Fort 1 was built between the

inundation areas of the Grote and

Kleine Schijn, on 1,5 kilometres

from Wijnegem.

Fort 1

3 kilometre

(1887-1914)

The stream valleys of the Kleine and

Grote Schijn ensured that the northern part

of Antwerp could inundate.

Fort

Deurne

The stream "Grote

Schijn”.

2 kilometre

Fort 2

Grote Omw alling

Lunette

Deurne

between the Grote Omwalling and the

t belt could also be used to position

case of an impending attack.

ont Fortification

Fort 6

2 kilometre

3 kilometre

Belt

Fort 5

2 kilometre

(1859-1865)

2 kilometre

Fort 4

Fortification

this is because

belts

a fort is

2 kilo metre

Fort 3

always need to follow a straight or curved line,

most vulnerable when attacked from the sides.

The Brialmont belt was built only to

the south side of the city because the

landscape could no be inundated here.

When the plans were drawn-up,

the position of Fort 4 was decided

first. Along with forts 1 and 8, Fort

4 held important positions in the

fortification belt.

129

Influence of the inundation areas on the design of the ramparts and fortification belts.

The Brialmont belt and the belt of the left bank of the

Scheldt

The map on the previous spread gives a more detailed view of the three components

of Antwerp’s National Redoubt defence system: the Grote Omwalling,

several fortification belts, and inundation areas. It should be noted that the

version of the Grote Omwalling visible on this map is the second iteration of

the rampart, see chapter 4.1 for further information on the different iterations.

On the map we clearly see the initial influence of the option to

inundate a certain area on the level of reinforcement. As the maps shows, the

northern part of the Grote Omwalling is significantly less reinforced than its

southern counterpart. The only real defensive structure on the north side is the

Noordkasteel (North castle), a structure built for the purposes of defending the

bent of the Scheldt river, and as a last point of retreat for times when the city

itself had already fallen. A similar role as the citadel in the southern part of the

Spaanse Omwalling (Fortengordels, a). The influence of the inundation area

is also visible in the positioning of the Brialmont belt and fort Merxem, both of

these defend the areas that cannot be inundated.

Linkeroever’s – or the Borgerweertpolder’s – position in this defence

system was still mainly through use of its inundation system, which is visible in

the three kolks (Weelen) that were made by dyke breaches. Even though, we

Figure 3.2

Drawing of the influence of the

inundation areas on the design of the

ramparts and fortification belts.

130

Figure 3.1 - previous page

Drawing of defence system of the

inner fortification belts. The map used

in this drawing is from Topotijdreis

(Topotijdreis, n.d.).

do see several forts on the polder, these were not built as a result of the city’s

role as National Redoubt. The wet moat and defensive dyke are the remnants

of a strategy of Napoleon during the French occupation of Antwerp, who

wanted to develop an entirely new city on the polder. It even seems that with

the coming of the train station in 1844 parts of the moat were already starting

to decay. (Schoofs, 2003a)

The Brialmont forts defended the none inundable parts between the canal and

the Scheldt. As mentioned before, the forts were placed 2 kilometres apart,

and at roughly 4 kilometres from the city to avoid bombing from long-range

artillery, and to have a place to position a field army. Three additional conditions

had to be met; the forts needed to follow a straight or convex line to

avoid attacks from the side; the forts needed to be autonomous because of

their solitary position; and they had to be connected by a military road that

intersected the different access roads to the city (Nagels, 2012, pp. 50-51).

The forts were planned out on site in 1859. The position of forts 1,

4, and 8 held key position in the design of the belt. Fort 1 had to be positioned

between the inundation areas of the Grote and Kleine Schijn. Fort 4

was important because it defended the railway structures leading to Antwerp.

The final fort, fort 8, needed to be placed right next to the Scheldt, to defend

against enemy ships (Nagels, 2012, p. 51). Interestingly enough, these three

forts were not the first to be built; fort 3, near the current airport, was the first

to be built. This is evident from its richer natural stone ornaments, and because

it is the only fort to be build according to the original design (Fortengordels, b).

The final

Once the Brialmont belt was completed, the notion started to rise that the

Borgerweertpolder was the weakest point in Antwerp’s defence system. It is

unclear exactly as to why this notion started to rise, this was probably due to

an increase in firing range of long-range artillery. The city therefore expanded

the Brialmont belt to the left side of the Scheldt. Two additional forts, one

lunette, and a defensive dyke were built to connect to Fort Sint-Marie, a 16th

century fort of the Scheldt’s defensive structure, that received a refurbishment.

As a final addition to the right bank, Fort Merxem was built between 1871 and

1882 to defend Deurne, and the plateau between the inundation areas on the

north side of the city. Both of these belts were made possible by the selling of

the Citadel of Antwerp (or Zuidkasteel; South Castle), which was to become a

new city district (Nagels, 2012, p. 29).

The Brialmont belt and the belt of the left bank of the Scheldt

The map on the previous spread gives a more detailed view of the three components

of Antwerp’s National Redoubt defence system: the Grote Omwalling,

131

several fortification belts, and inundation areas. It should be noted that the

version of the Grote Omwalling visible on this map is the second iteration of

the rampart, see chapter 4.1 for further information on the different iterations.

On the map we clearly see the initial influence of the option to

inundate a certain area on the level of reinforcement. As the maps shows, the

northern part of the Grote Omwalling is significantly less reinforced than its

southern counterpart. The only real defensive structure on the north side is the

Noordkasteel (North castle), a structure built for the purposes of defending the

bent of the Scheldt river, and as a last point of retreat for times when the city

itself had already fallen. A similar role as the citadel in the southern part of the

Spaanse Omwalling (Fortengordels, a). The influence of the inundation area is

also visible

132

133

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I

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The dyke also doubled as a road.

De

Borgerweertpolder

Blokkersdijk

The Langen Gaan Weg predecessor of the Tunnellaan

Melsele

Zwijndrecht

St. Anna

Beveren

I I I I I I I

Chaussee

to Ghent

I

Railway to Ghent

This road has followed the sa me tracé for ages.

The forts of the left bank were also

connected with their own 'Krijgsbaan'.

Suikerdijk

To

Burcht

Burcht


The ferry to the train station.

St. Michielsgate

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gate

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(1887

IJzerenweg - zuid

gate

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A few years after the construction of the supply roa

The supply road intersects

the most important access r

to the city.

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134

To Temse

Railway to

Brussels

I I I I I I I

I I I

Chaussee

to Brussels Chaussee

to Brussels

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I I I I I I I I I

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Railway to Roosendaal.

Merksem

Chaussee to

Bergen op Zoom

Chaussee

to Breda

The connecting canal between the Scheldt and the Meuse.

The current Albert Canal

Schoten

Canal of Antwerp to Turnhout.

Richting

Brecht.

I I I

Bredagate

I I I I I I I I

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Wijnegem

Chaussee

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Vrouwekathedraal

Omwalling

-1914)

Sint Laurents

gate

Wilrijkse

gate

Berchem

Edegemse

gate

Berchemse

gate

Mechelse

gate

I I I I

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Spoorbaan

gate

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Leopold

gate

Louisa

gate

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Borsbeekse

gate

Turnhoutse

gate

Herentalse

gate

I I I I I I I I I

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Borgerhout

I I

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I I I

I I I I I I I I

I I I I I I I

Deurne

18 monumental, Neo-Baroque

gates were constructed to

allow entrance to the city. None

of these gates were preserved

when the ring road was constructed.

Borsbeek

Supply road

To Nijlen

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

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I I I I I

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d, a railway and telegraph line were also added.

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

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the

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Supply road

Also called the Militaire Baan,

Route Militaire of Krijgsbaan.


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I I I I

I I I I




Railway to Lier

Chaussee

to Mechelen

Railway to

Mechelen

and Brussels

Chaussee

to Lier

135

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System of chaussees and railways.

The infrastructure of the inner belts

The map on the previous spread shows the relation of the inner fortification

belts to Antwerp’s infrastructure system. It shows the two military roads, the

Krijgsbanen, linking the forts on the left and right bank, respectively. The forts

4 through 8 were also accessible via train, and a telegraph line; an idea

implemented by Henri Alexis Brialmont (Nagels, 2012, p. 51). Why only these

four forts received this infrastructure is not clear. On the left bank, only the Fort

of Zwijndrecht is accessible via train.

The concentric roads connecting the different forts together intersect

with the most important access roads to the city; the chaussees. These roads

led to the Grote Omwalling where eighteen monumental Neo-Baroque gates

were constructed to allow entrance to the city (Nagels, 2012, p. 34). Access

from the Waasland, the other side of the Scheldt, was done by ferry. The

two main approaches were via the Chaussee to Ghent or the railway, both

of which held a visual axis with the cathedral. We see another road on the

Borgerweertpolder – the Langen Gaan Weg – a road that was called ‘Grote

Groene Weghe’ in the 17th century. Further specifics on this road are missing,

other than that it was supposed to give access to the northern section of the

polder in case of an inundation (Antrop, De Maeyer, & Vandermotten, 2006,

p. 19).

Figure 3.4

The system of chaussees and railways.

136


Drawing of the system of chaussees

and railways. The map used in this

drawing is from Topotijdreis (Topotijdreis,

n.d.).

137

The forts also have an

important ecological

value, as they have

become home to lots of

different kinds of bats.

Oost-Vlaanderen

Fort St. Marie

Antwerp - province

This fort still has a

military function. Since

1961, this fort is home

to the Belgium navy.

Antwerp - municipality

Zwijndrecht

Herover de Fortengordel!

There have been many plans for the forts of Antwerp

over the years. A strategy from 2000 called 'Herover de

Fortengordel' (Recapture the Fortress Belt), tried to

create an overarching plan to increase the cohesion

between the forts and rebrand them with a certain

(functional) theme, like museum fort, or youth fort.

Another study from 2012 mapped the current state of

the entire system on a micro level. Both of these

studies or proposals did not get a follow up. The

difficulty of the situation is increase because the forts

are situated in different municipalities, all of whom own

their fort. This is probably why an overarching strategy

for the forts, and how the belt can be used in the

spatial developeent of the agglomeration is missing.

The

The Grote Omwallin

subtle way in the sh

highway. All exits an

are located on the s

lunettes.

Noordkasteel

will conclude th

green ring on

the right bank.

se t hin lines trace t h e contours

Lunette

Halve

Maan

The defensive dyke is

well preserved; the ditch

and height difference is

still noticeable.

This lunette

has several

dwellings on it.

The forts on the left bank

here are part of the

municipality of Zwijndrecht.

The old dyke structure is

still visible in the

morphology Burcht and

Zwijndrecht, and the

industrial area north of it.

The dyke will be raised by 2

This part of the Scheldt

river valley will become a

part of the green ring of

Antwerp, although in a

different role. The ring

on the right caters

solely to the city,

while the left also

has a certain

ecological role.

All the nature of Linkerover,

some more than others, is

valuable in the ecological

corridor of the Scheldt river

valley.

metres here.

T

m

ha

quay

public

the ba

1 metre

same lev

Chaussee

to Ghent

The left bank forts are largely still

intact, most of them also still have a

certain military function (mostly

training). Lunette Halve Maan has

become home to several dwellings.

This fort is

currently in

use by the

military.

Fort van

Zwijndrecht

Zwijndrecht

Antwerp - municipality

Fort

Burcht

This fort is now

home to several

sailing associations.

The Lei

The gree

ring are

the valua

structure

patches

This is going to be the green rin

This fort was cut

in half due to clay

mining by Argex.

The other half is

used by the

military.

Fort van

Cruybeke

Antwerp currently uses the

radial chaussee system as

public transport corridors

(trams) to the city. Most of

these connect to P+Rs, which

the city wants to use to relieve

the congestion on the ring.

This lunette

is now home

to a primary

school.

The train track that was

here to supply the forts

was removed sometime

during the construction

of the R1 in the 1960s.

138

Since 2004, Flanders is actively working on a

plan that is supposed to protect the villages

and cities along the Scheldt and its tributaries

from flooding. The Flamish Waterway nv

(Vlaamse Waterweg nv ) is executing this plan

by raising and stabalising the dykes along the

river, and by appointing controlled flooding

zones. Like the one next to Kruibeke.

To

Temse

Oost-Vlaanderen

Antwerp - province

This fort hosts all kinds

of activities, like

parties, seminars,

team building

activities, and other

cultural events.

One of

the best

preserved

forts.

Chaussee

to Brussels

Fort 8

The Krijgsbaan is now a spacious boulevard, and is now called the

This is the Schoonselhof

cemetery.

Fort 7

This fort is only

accessible via a

guided tour by

Natuurpunt Zuidrand.

The above ground

parts are freely

accessible, the un

ground parts are

limited.

F

This fort is pa

Drie Eiken of

University. Lo

fields, classro

housing, and (

associations a

g lives on in a very

ape of the ring

d major intersections

pots of the larger

of th e Grote Omwalling

e

Chaussee to

Ekeren

Chaussee to

Bergen op Zoom

Fort

Merxem

Fort Merxem is

home to several

associations, a

recreational

complex, and

allotment gardens.

This fort lies

in Antwerp.

Chaussee

to Breda

Here ends the Northern Park, a park that extends all the way to the Netherlands. With the Ring Project, this is going to be one of three green radials.

to Brecht

The Northern Park

This body of water is all

that is left of Noordkasteel,

the rest has become part of

the harbour. The remnants

have high historic and

ecological value. The body of

water is popular among

swimmers in the summer,

however, due to health risks

this is prohibited.

This fort lies

in Wijnegem.

Fort 1

This fort is almost entirely

gone; only recognisable in

the contours of the road.

Wijnegem Shopping Center

now occupies the area.

Chaussee

to turnhout

he quays are are being

ade future proof. The city

s stabalised and raised the

s, and turned them into

space. On the left,

nks are raised by

, putting them on the

el as the city.

important traffic artery.

The Lunette of

Herentals is still

used as a city park.

used as a city park.

en still is an

Antwerp wants to

create a more robust

connection between

city and suburb, by

making green

corridors.

This is going to be the green ring of

Antwerp

This fort lies

in Wommelgem

The Schijn River Valley

This is one of the green radials,

Antwerp wants to connect to

with the Ring Project.

n areas along the

also included in

ble ecological

s, even the

of grass.

Municipal bord

e r of Antwerp

Fort 2

This fort is home to five museums,

among others, the Brialmontmuseum,

the Provinciaal Politiemuseum, the

Muziekinstrumentenmuseum, and the

WO1 and WO2 museum.

g of Antwerp

R11. There were

der

Middelheim

ort 6

rt of Campus

Antwerp

ts of sports

oms, student

student)

re located here.

This is Middelheim,

a park known for its

many sculptures.

There is a subtle

connection here.

Fort 5

This section

of the lunette

was preserved,

it is now a park.

plans to create a second highway ring here, but this was met

This fort lies

in Edegem.

This is the

previously

mentioned

campus radial,

also called the

Struisbeek valley.

This fort is home to the

'Bolwerk'; a co-working

space where entrepreneurs,

self-employed, and

creatives can work and

meet.

Fort 5 and Hof ter Linden

together form a 90

hectares large green

area.

Fort 3 is used for

organising parties and

festivals. It is also home to

many associations and it

holds the Gemeentelijke

Kunstschool Academia.

Chaussee

to Mechelen

by heavy

This section goes under the airport.

Fort 4

resistance.

This fort lies

in Mortsel.

This fort is a park

area where you can

walk and play. You

can also take a

guided tour.

This fort lies

in Borsbeek.

Fort 3

This fort is important cultural

heritage; this was the first

built Brialmont fort. This is

evident in the building

materials used; it has more

natural stone ornamentation,

and it is the only fort using

the original design.

Chaussee

to Lier

Legend

Chaussee road

Tram system with

two stations

To Nijlen

Important ecological

areas

Flood risk area

139

province

Antwerp

-

Zwijndrecht

Zwijndrecht

province

Antwerp Antwerp's tram system and the chaussee roads.

Antwerp's tram system and the chaussee roads.

Oost-Vlaanderen

Province

Oost-Vlaanderen

Province

fort belt

fort belt

Follows Follows

Follows old

Follows

dyke

old dyke

Antwerp

municipality

Antwerp

municipality

Wijnegem

Wijnegem

Wommelgem

Wommelgem

Borsbeek

Borsbeek

All

All

municipalities

municipalities

here

here

are

are part

part of of the the province of province of

Antwerp.

Antwerp.

Edegem

Edegem

Mortsel

Mortsel

140

Provincial and municipal borders.

Provincial and municipal borders.


Drawing of the remnants of the

defence system, the large ecological

structures and flooding areas, and

the municipal and provincial borders

of the suburban region. Google

maps was used for this map (Google,

2020).

Remnants of the inner fortification belts and the Grote

Omwalling

The map on the previous spread shows the remnants of the Redoubt system in

present-day Antwerp, including a zoom of the designated flooding areas and

valuable ecological zones from the previous chapter. In addition to this the

relationship between the historic chaussee roads and the current tram network

has been visualised on the map.

Figure 3.6 - top

Antwerp’s tram system in relation to its

historic chaussee roads.

As was already mention in the previous chapter, much of the inner fortification

belt has survived. It is only when we look to Linkeroever and the inner-city

that we notice that most of the defence structures have been demolished. For

Linkeroever only Fort Burcht remains in the Galgeweel, the rest has vanished

under a couple of metres of Scheldt sand. The historic dyke bordering Linkeroever

has been petrified in the morphology of Zwijndrecht and Burcht, and is

traceable along the edge of industrial area. This perhaps should not come as

a surprise, as this is also the municipal border of Antwerp. In the city, the ring

has taken over the place of the Grote Omwalling. Two of the lunettes have

been preserved, as well as a section of the wet moat around Noordkasteel.

The contours of the Omwalling live on in a very subtle way in the structure of

Large natural the ring; stuctures all the and major green exits corridors. and intersections are located on the locations of

the larger lunettes.

Large natural stuctures All of the and forts green are corridors. still occupied, the once on the left bank even still

hold their military function, albeit as education institutions. As mentioned in

the previous chapter, there was a plan developed to increase the cohesion

between the forts on both the left and right bank called Herover de fortengordel

(Recapture the fortification belt). It seems that the actual masterplan is no

longer available through desk research. A general introduction to the plan

tells us that the main goals were to give concrete direction to the programme

of the individual forts, and to contribute to the development of a concrete

demarcation concept for the urban region of Antwerp (Province of Antwerp &

Stramien, 2002). Judging from experiences from a third-party source, mainly

the first goal was achieved; all the forts receive either a cultural or recreational

programme, and the Krijgsbanen are treated as green corridors on both the

left and right bank to bind the belts together. Fort Merxem is connected to the

belts via a recreational bicycle route (Nagels, 2012, p. 39). It seems there is

still a need for a plan that uses a wider scope.

Figure 3.7 - bottom

The municipal and provincial borders

in the suburban region.

141

Figure 3.8

The masterplan from the study

Herover de fortengordel (Recapture

the fortification belt) with an overview

of the programme for each fort, with

the exception of fort 1 and 3 (Nagels,

2012, p. 38).

Again, the complicated jurisdictional borders might be what throws a spanner

into the works. As mentioned in the previous chapter, the municipalities in

which the forts are located are the owners of those particular forts, and they

have been since 1977 (Nagels, 2012, p. 35). A lack of an overarching vision

for the forts, means that each individual municipality is now making decisions

for their forts without considering the effect it has on the larger scale.

Another more subtle reference to, not necessarily the Redoubt, but to the 19th

century, is the relationship between the chaussee road system and the current

tram network. As de map shows, the tram network almost perfectly overlays

with the historic road system. A system that, as mentioned in previous chapters,

is now being upgraded with P+R hubs and increased public transport. There

are currently two new P+R structures planned; one near the edge of Linkeroever,

the other at the edge of Luchtbal (Municipality of Antwerp, 2020).

The map also shows the larger ecological ‘fingers’ entering the city at various

angles; the Peerdsbos radial, The Schijn river valley, and Middelheim; and

the green radials Antwerp is planning on extending inward (The Intendant for

the liveability measures in Antwerp’s ring zone, 2016a). We see here that the

green structures on Linkeroever are also part of the ecological structure that

is the Scheldt river valley, and as such will have to cater to two overarching

themes in the future; becoming part of the ring park, and maintaining (and

improving) the ecological connection and function to the river valley. Since

142

Large natural stuctures and green corridors.

Figure 3.9

The ring park in relation to the larger

ecological structures in the suburban

region, and the green radials entering

the suburbs.

2004, Flanders is also actively working on a plan – the Sigmaplan – that is

supposed to protect the villages and cities along the Scheldt and its tributaries

from flooding. The Flamish Waterwaynv (Vlaamse Waterwegnv) is executing

this plan by raising and stabilising the dykes along the river, and by appointing

controlled flooding zones. While simultaneously improving the ecological value

of the Scheldt river valley (De Vlaamse Waterweg nv, 2005). In Antwerp the

quays have already been raised and refurbished; on Linkeroever, the dykes are

going to be raised by one or two metres depending on the location. It would

seem that there is an opportunity to use the development of the ring park

and the Sigmaplan as a way to improve the ecological value of the nature on

Linkeroever, while simultaneously strengthening the relationship it has to the

larger ecological structure of the Scheldt. Thus, creating a similar link as the

green radials on the right side of the river.

Figure 3.10 - next spread

The drawing shows all the major changes

to Antwerp’s infrastructural system

after the ring project is complete, and it

shows the distance one can travel in 30

minutes with public transport. Google

maps was used for this map, and

TravelTime (Google, 2020; TravelTime,

2020).

143

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A12 to Berg

op Zoom.

To the Liefkenshoektunnel

To the

harbour.

multiple

To the

harbour

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The E34

Knokke-Heist

and Ghent's harbour

Especially here on the left

bank we see that 30-minute

accessibility only extends to

the inner-city of Antwerp,

getting anywhere else in the

city takes more time.


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The bicycle highway system,

in constrast to the PT

system, is going to

becompleted in the current

plans. A current pedestrian

trail is used to bridge the

distance between the

Blancefloerlaan and the

Charles de Costerlaan.

The Charles de Costerlaan will be

disconnected from the highway,

which raises the question which

type of road this should become,

and what the role of the Waaslandtunnel

will be.

The public transport

ring is not finished,

but instead

connects to the

tramline on the

Blancefloerlaan.

This dotted line

represents the

cycling highway

parallel to the ring.

The Waaslandtunne

Chaussee

to Ghent


To Ghent

Legend

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Highway

Tram system with

two stations

Planned tram

in Ring Park

Main bus routes

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E17 to

Ghent

I I I

The potential role for a public

transport connection, with whatever

transport mode, is not mentioned in

the city's mobility plan. This could be a

way to alleviate the pressure on the

public tranport at Linkeroever, as all

commuters have to handled by two

tram lines. On the long run, in the

polycentric development of the city, a

connection between left and right

would be crucial for the development

of the left bank.

I II

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Existing bicycle

highway

Planned bicycle

highway

Train

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Chaussee

to Brussels


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The new Scheldt

bridge will come here.

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This dash-dot line represents the route of

the tramline that is going to be installed once

the Ring Project is finished. This will increase

the accessibility of the city from the

different radials entering the city, and

increase the reach of especially the tramline

coming from the Waasland. However, it will

probably not be enough to facilitate a shift to

a polycentric city.

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The Kennedytunnel

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Sint Annatunnel


The mo

plan me

a possi

P+R he

Industrial areas

Sports areas

Shopping centres

Cultural activities

144

Higher education

Health care

Business parks

Military

To

Temse


I I

to Brussels

Chaussee

to Brussels

A12 to

Brussels.

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en

To the

harbour

and Luchtbal.

To

Roosendaal


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To the

harbour


Chaussee to

Bergen op Zoom

I

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Chaussee

to Breda


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This is the route of the planned

A102, the tunnel that is going to

lead the through traffic around

the city. The tunnel is also going

to include the new railway con

nectiong to the harbour. This

route was originally part of the

R2.

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E19 to

Breda.

There is also no mention

of a possible role for the

(underground part) of the

planned A102 in the

polycentric plans of the

city.

To

Breda

(railway)

to Brecht

This is a proposed route for a tramline on top

of the Krijgsbaan, part of a long-term study plan

of Antwerp. There are no concrete plans as of

yet; the mobility plan of Antwerp simply

mentions that they are going to look into it at

some point in the future as it would lower the

pressure on the public transport in the city

centre.

It is unclear whether the city want to use the

road as a way to cater to their plan to become

a more polycentric city. The city's mobility plan

(2015) for 2030 predates the new Strategic

Spatial Structure Plan of 2018. And as we have

seen in the earlier drawings, the whole

operation is quite politically charged as the

road runs through multiple municipalities. Not to

mention the strong emotional reactions to

earlier plans for an underground highway

and/or railway under the Krijgsbaan.


Chaussee

to turnhout

l

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There were plans of a

connection with the

dropped due to protests

and capacity issues.

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The new tramline along

the ring here will greatly

increase the accessibility of

the amenities along the ring.

To Nijlen

These dots represent

the three different

variants for the second

harbour railway.

the E34 to

Eindhoven

and Maastricht.

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E19 to

Brussels.

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bility

ntions

ble new

re.

To Nijlen

The mobility

plan mentions

a possible new

P+R here.

The travel time visualisations show the

clear monocentric structure of Antwerp.

The public transport system of trams and

buses, and even the system of bicycle

highways are designed to get commuters

to and from the city, getting to other parts

of the suburbs, or to other economical focal

points, takes longer then 30 minutes.


Chaussee

to Mechelen

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Chaussee

to Lier

I I I

Chaussee

to Mechelen

To Mechelen

and Brussels

To Lier

Chaussee

to Lier

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Public transport - train and ferry

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Public transport - Tram train and ferry

Public transport - Tram

146


Highways and main Highways bus routes and main bus routes



Highways Bicycle highways and main Highways Bicycle bus routes highways and main bus routes

Bicycle highwaysBicycle

highways

Figure 3.10


modes and their infrastructure. The

bicycle network is from (Fietssnelwegen.be,

n.d.). The new tram line

from (The Intendant for the liveability

measures in Antwerp’s ring zone,

2016a). The remaining infrastructure

from (OpenStreetMap, n.d.).

147

Bicycle highwaysBicycle highways

148

Potential for polycentric development

30-minute radials

transport

Planned

concentric

public

studied.

to be

Concentric connection that is going

Public transport system of Antwerp.

Figure 3.12

Abstract representation of Antwerp’s

public transport system and planned

and potential concentric connections.

Figure 3.13 - left

These drawings show the travel distance

with public transport and bicycle

in 30 minutes. These maps were

generated by the website TravelTime,

which makes an actual rending of a

travel time map. It should be noted

that these maps might not show a

representative image of the distance

travelled in 30 minutes, as the maps

were made during the Covid-19

pandemic, on the 8th of June 2020.

Meaning that the timetable of the public

transport might have varied from

that of an average day. It is however,

unlikely that this would have resulted

in substantial changes to the overall

shape of the map.

Legend

30 minute bicycle reach

30 minute public transport

reach

Departure point

(P+R structure)

Antwerp’s infrastructure in relation to travel time

The map on the previous spread shows all the major changes to Antwerp’s

infrastructural system after the ring project is complete. It shows the new public

transport line in the ring zone that spans the length of Luchtbal to Linkeroever,

not going fully round. We also see the improved bicycle highway network, that

covers all the important radials, and does go fully round the inner-city. And it

shows us the route of the Oosterweel-link and the A102.

The dashed rectangles give an abstract indication of the where 30 minutes of

travel time via public transport will get you taken from all the P+R structures

in Antwerp. The abstraction was made based on the travel time maps on

the page to the left, which also show the distance covered in 30 minutes by

bicycle. In terms of public transport, we can clearly see the radial monocentric

structure of Antwerp’s mobility system. The system is designed to get commuters

to and from the inner-city, getting to other parts of the suburbs – to other

economic focal points – is much more time consuming. This is especially true

for the commuters coming from the Waasland, as there is currently only one

public transport line crossing the Scheldt.

The public transport planned along the ring – the tram and bus lines – and the

149

added bicycle ring around the inner-city will most definitely increase the reachability

of Linkeroever and the areas of the suburbs closest to the city. However,

to truly stimulate a modal shift, a polycentric development of the suburban

region, and lower the pressure on the public transport system of the city centre,

a concentric connection some distance into the suburbs is probably needed.

Antwerp’s mobility plan discusses the possibility of developing a tram

line on the Krijgsbaan (Municipality of Antwerp, 2015). It is part of a long-term

study plan, meaning that nothing is certain as of yet. The municipality is going

to look into it at some point in the future, as it would lower the pressure on the

public transport system in the city centre. It is unclear whether the city want to

use the road as a way to cater to their plan to become a more polycentric city.

The city’s mobility plan (2015) for 2030 predates the new Strategic Spatial

Structure Plan of 2018. And as we have seen in the earlier drawings, the

whole operation is quite politically charged as the road runs through multiple

municipalities. Not to mention the strong emotional reactions to earlier plans

for an underground highway and/or railway under the Krijgsbaan. While a

connection along the Krijgsbaan would be beneficial to the southern part of

the suburban region, the northern part of the region – Merksem – would still

not be accessible. The mobility plan also does not mention a potential role for

the Krijgsbaan on the left bank, neither does it mention a role for the Oosterweel-link

in the public transport system. This could be a way to alleviate the

pressure on the public transport at Linkeroever, as all commuters have to be

handled by two tram lines (once the ring is finished). On the long run, in the

polycentric development of the city, a stronger connection between left and

right might be crucial for the development of the left bank.

There has been one plan that researched the possibility of a concentric public

transport connection in the suburban region. Between 2012 and 2014, a

research collective called Labo XX analysed the part of the suburbs within

the municipal border of Antwerp, and subsequently developed a plan that

proposed a concentric tram line that intersected all of the radials leading to

the city, and appointed these locations as placed to densify. The main goal

was to make the suburban region less dependent on the city centre, and create

a better connection between the different suburbs. The main incentive was an

increase of 100.000 inhabitants by 2030. Figure 3.14 shows this master plan.

The proposed concentric connection expands on the already present connection

between Deurne and Borgerhout, going north to Merksem, and south via

Berchem, to the University of Antwerp, and then connecting to the part of the

Krijgsbaan going to fort 8. The strategy subsequently zooms in to show mass

models of the proposed densification hubs on the intersections of the radials

(Labo XX, 2014a). It is unclear whether the plan is receiving a follow-up. The

150

Figure 3.14

A plan developed by Labo XX between

2012 and 2014. The strategy proposed

concentric public transport line

that intersected all the radials of the

city, and designated these locations

for densification. Its main goal was to

make the suburbs more autonomous

and better interconnected. The dots on

this map show transport hub, not all of

these are densification locations (Labo

XX, 2014b).

municipalities website mentions that they have started partnership between

several other European cities in 2015 to “reinvent the fringe”. There is however,

no further mentioning of what the status of that is (Municipality of Antwerp,

n.d.).

What is striking about the proposal is that the role of Linkeroever, like

in the plan for the ring, is almost left out, while it is in fact part of the suburban

region. Another thing that stands out is the absence of role for the P+R

system of Antwerp. Only the P+Rs of Luchtbal to the north and Linkeroever

are visualised, and therefore only seems to cater to the transport needs of the

inhabitants of the suburbs themselves.

151

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E

A12 to Berg

op Zoom.

Antwerp's Harbour

Antwerp has the second largest seaport of

Europe, right after Rotterdam. In 2014, the

harbour handle a total transhipment of 199

million tons. Antwerp is the largest port for

general or break bulk cargo in Europe.


To the

harbour.

To the

harbour

I

I

I

I

I

I

Fort

St. Marie

The E34

Knokke-Heist

and Ghent's harbour

I I I I I I I

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I I


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I I

I I I

I

I


I I I I I

Lunette

Halve

Maan

Industrial corridor

at

here opening The an is there tunneled, Oosterweel completely tunnel not is will road start The here.

disconnected.

be will The Costerlaan Charles de

Recreational corridor

The Waaslandtunne

I I

I I I

Chaussee

to Ghent


To Ghent

I I I I I I I


I I I

The Krijgsbaan on the left bank is

more rural than its right bank

counterpart. A car and bicycle road

extends from the P+R to the fort of

Cruybeke, connecting two large

industrial areas along the highway

and Scheldt. North from the P+R the

dimensions of the road are

deminished, and at some point

continues as a hiking trail up to the

highway.

I I

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I I I I I I

I

I

Fort van

Zwijndrecht

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I I

Industrial corridor

I I

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I I I

I I

Theres a railway tu nel here.

I I

I I I

I I

I I I I I

The new Scheldt


I I I I I I

The Kennedytunnel

I I I I

I I

I I I

I

I

Sint Annatunnel


Fort van

Cruybeke


Industrial

corridor

E17 to

Ghent


Bus accessibility

For

I I

Fort 7

Fort 8

152

To

Temse


I I

to Brussels

Chaussee

to Brussels

A12 to

Brussels.

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I

en

Noordkasteel.

Industrial corridor

To the

harbour

and Luchtbal.

To

Roosendaal


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I I I

I I I

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I I

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To the

harbour


Shopping corridor

Chaussee to

Bergen op Zoom

I

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I I I I I I

Chaussee

to Breda


Fort

Merxem

I I I I I I I

I I I

I I I

I I I I I I I

This is the route of the planned

A102, the tunnel that is going to

lead the through traffic around

the city. The tunnel is also going

to include the new railway con

nectiong to the harbour. This

route was originally part of the

R2.

I I I I I I I

E19 to

Breda.

Will the A102 increase

the accessibility of the

industry here?

To

Breda

(railway)

to Brecht

Legend

Highway

Tram system with

two stations

Planned tram

in Ring Park

Main bus routes

Industrial areas

Shopping centres

Higher education

I II

I I

Existing bicycle

highway

Planned bicycle

highway

Train

Sports areas

Cultural activities

Business parks


Industrial corridor

Health care

Military


Chaussee

to turnhout

l

I I I I I I I

Fort 1

There were plans of a

connection with the

dropped due to protests

and capacity issues.

I I I

I I I

Recreational corridor

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I I I I I I I I I

I I


This will be the

route of the ring

tram line that will

be installed after

the Ring Project.


Shopping

corridor

This is Antwerpen International Airport, used for charter and business flights

Bus accessibility

Fort 2


the three different


harbour railway.

the E34 to

Eindhoven

and Maastricht.

To Nijlen

alt h corridor

t 6 Fort 5

ducation and he

The Krijgsbaan is now a

spacious boulevard, and

is called the R11. There

were plans to create a

second highway ring here,

but this was met with

heavy resistance.

E19 to

Brussels.

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I


I I I

I I I

I I I

I I I



Chaussee

to Mechelen

Airport

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Fort 4

I

I I I

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I

I I I I I I I I I I

I

I

I I I


To Mechelen

and Brussels

I

Fort 3

This section goes

under the airport. This

allowed the airport to

meet certain EU

requirements.


The R11 (Krijgsbaan) and the A102

tunnel intersect some of the larger

amenities corridors of Antwerp; two

large industrial areas along the canal

and river, two large recreational and

nature radials, two shopping areas, and

the university and health care radial,

and of course, Antwerp International

Airport. Dispite of this however, there

is no major public transport corridor on

the R11. Two sectioned area covered

by a regulare bus; between the airport

and the Schijn valley, and fort 8 and 7.

To Lier

Chaussee

to Lier

153

Industry

Car and train

Shops

Long term connection.

Industry

Industry

Industry

Car and bicycle connection

Sports

Car, bicycle and

public transport co n nection.

Shops

Airport

through

Industry

Potential link.

traffic.

Sports

health, and ecology.

Mostly car and

Potential concentric link to

Education & He alth

bicycle access.

industry, recreation, education,

Amenities corridors and potential concentric links

Major economic amenities in the suburban region

The map on the previous spread shows the larger economic zones in the

suburban region of Antwerp in relation to the infrastructural network. Like every

other structure in Antwerp, these economic zones also adhere to a radial pattern.

All of these zones extend from the ring area to the edge of the suburban

zone, or even beyond it.

There are a few large-scale industrial zones throughout the suburban

belt (as we have also seen in the previous chapter), mainly among the large

water structures – the canal and the Scheldt – on the left and right bank. Two

of the economic radials coincide with the green finger entering the city, the

Schijn river valley and Middelheim, with major recreational and educational/

health care facilities respectively. There are several larger shopping centres

in the suburban region; Merxem and Borgerhout. Linkeroever, with its nature,

sailing activities, and its annual festivals, is another recreational corridor in

Antwerp.

Figure 3.16

Abstraction of the economic hubs, and

potential concentric links.

As the map shows, the Krijgsbaan (or R11) and the upcoming A102 intersect

all of these economic corridors, in addition to Antwerp’s international airport.

However, as we have seen in the subchapter about travel time, no major public

transport connections are on (or are planned on) either of these concentric

154


The larger economic zones in the

suburban region of Antwerp in relation

to the infrastructural network

(Google, 2020).

roads. Meaning that much of the transport to and from these corridors goes

through the city centre, or via car. The same goes for the Krijgsbaan on the left

bank of the Scheldt; there is no public transport between the current P+R and

the major industrial hubs there.

The intersection of the Krijgsbanen with all these different economic

hubs, not to mention the airport and the various cultural and business activities

in the forts, could make a good argument as to why these roads should

become the dominant concentric connections in the suburban region.

155

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A12 to Berg

op Zoom.


To the

harbour.

Fort

St. Marie

Municipal border of Antwerp

People with higher income tend to

live outside of the city or suburban region.

To the

harbour

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I I I I I

Will this remain part of the harbour

once the Oosterweel is finished?

The ring pa

defined by

morphology

I I


I I I

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I

I I

The E34

Knokke-Heist

and Ghent's harbour

Chaussee

to Ghent


Beveren

To Ghent

I I I I I I I

E17 to

Ghent


Including the north part of

the Krijgsbaan here, can be

the final piece in the

urbanisation of the

Brialmont belt. On the

long-term it can form the

edge of the suburban

region; short-term it can

create a connection to the

industrial area and harbour.

Melsele

I

I


The Krijgsbaan on the

left bank can become a

structuring element in

the urban fabric of the

suburban region in the

long-term.



I I I

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I I

I I I

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I I I

I I I I I

I I

I I I I I I

I I I

Lunette

Halve

Maan

I

I

Fort van

Zwijndrecht

I

I

I

I I

The section to the south of

the P+R can be the first

phase of the urbanisation

here, as developement in

terms of density and

amenities is further along

here.

Kruibeke

Fort van

Cruybeke

Zwijndrecht's and Burcht's

density is comparable to that

of the villages surrounding the

suburban region.

The city is

thinking about

redeveloping

these industrial

areas after the

rin Ring project.

Zwijndrecht


I I

Burcht


Fort 8

I I

I I

Hoboken

I I I

I I

I I

I I I

I I

I I

I I I I I

I I I I I I

I I I I

Fort 7

I I

Nieuw Zuid is

being built here.

I I I

I

I

Kiel

W

For

156


These two sectors hold the highest

number of social rent dwellings in all

of Antwerp, around 3300 units. All of

these dwellings are contained with

the high-rise slabs, most of which

are two room apartments.

A high concentration

of social housing in

this section of the

suburban region.

There is a

large contrast

between rich

and poor here

in Linkeroever.

The new Scheldt


The ring park is not

defined by

morphology here.

The Kennedytunnel

High concentration of

social rent dwellings

in the high-rise here

as well.

The Waaslandtunne

Sint Annatunnel


T

t

W

a

d

l

r

A

There is room

the higher seg

To

Temse

I I

to Brussels

Chaussee

to Brussels

A12 to

Brussels.

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en

Ekeren

To

Roosendaal

I

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I I I

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I I

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To the

harbour


Chaussee to

Bergen op Zoom

I

I I I I I I I I I I

Ekeren

I I I I I I

Chaussee

to Breda


Fort

Merxem

I I I I I I I

I I I

I I I

I I I I I I I

I I I I I I I

E19 to

Breda.

To

Breda

(railway)

to Brecht

To the

harbour

and Luchtbal.

Luchtbal has

the second

highest amount

of social

dwellings,

spread out

over its entire

length.

Luchtbal


I I I I I I I

Merksem

The Krijgsbaan could

function as a defining

edge for the suburbs

of Merksem and

Deurne.

The low-density regions in the forest here contain a lot of high income inhabitants.

Schoten

People with higher

income tend to live

outside of the city or

suburban region.

rk is not

here.

I I I I I I I


This area along the canal is also very

valuable. The data stops at the municipal

border, but probably extends all the way

to the bridge to the east.

Chaussee

to turnhout

l

he area defined by

he Leien and the

aaslandtunnel on

verage holds

wellings with the

east amount of

ooms in

ntwerp.

I I I I I

I I I

I I I I



I

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I I I I I

I I I I I I I

There

are some

sections in the

city that have

social housing.

The entire city is

rather dense,

however, this broad

section around the

park, till the ring is

the densest.

I

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I I I I I I I I I

I I I I I

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I I I

Borgerhout

Deurne

This hatch represents

the densification

planned along the ring

road.

Fort 2

Wijnegem

All the suburbs, except for the more

expensive strip going south from

Fort 1

Middelheim, have a rather high

density. Deurne and Morkhoven

have the highest density on

average. This can probably be

explained by the accessibility

created by the tram line that loops

between the city and these two

suburbs.

The density is highest near the ring,

and diminishes further to the

periphery.

the E34 to

Eindhoven

and Maastricht.


the three different


harbour railway.

Wommelgem

Borsbeek

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Berchem

I

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Groenenhoek

Fort 3

The radial development that is

so characteristic for Belgium is

clearly visible in the morphology

of Antwerp's suburbs.

ilrijk


I I I I

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I

I

I I I

Eisdonk

t 6 Fort 5



The Krijgsbaan

could be a

catalyst for the

urbanisation of

Borsbeek.

To Nijlen

I

I

Middelheim

This area has the

highest average of

number of rooms

per dwelling.

I I I

I I I

I I I

I I I



I I

I

Low density

housing along

this section of

the Krijgsbaan

for densification here in

ment of the market.

Edegem

This area has the highest

property value in Antwerp.

There is a difference

however, between inner-city

and suburb in terms of density.

Higher density can be found in

the city, and lower in the

suburbs. Especially the area

around Middelheim has a low

density.

E19 to

Brussels.

Chaussee

to Mechelen

I

I

I I

I

Fort 4

I

I I I

I I I I I I I I I I


To Mechelen

and Brussels


Mortsel



To Lier

Chaussee

to Lier

Legend

Social housing

High property value

high income

High density

Few or many

rooms per dwelling

Morphology

157

Population density - agglomeration 2019 Average number of rooms - Antwerp 2019

250 < 3.500

3500 < 7.000

7.000 < 10.500

10.500 < 14.000

> 14.000

< 3

3

4

5

> 6

Average income per inhabitant - agglomeration 2017

Property value - Antwerp 2014

< 15.000

15.000 < 20.000

20.000 < 25.000

25.000 < 30.000

> 30.000

< 125.000

125.000 < 175.000

175.000 < 225.000

225.000 < 275.000

> 275.000

Amount of social rent dwellings - agglomeration 2019

Average rent private sector - Antwerp 2019

1 < 200

200 < 400

400 < 600

600 < 800

> 800

< 600

600 < 700

700 < 800

800 < 900

> 900

158

High density

social housing

High

density

Defining edge

Industrail connection

long-term urban edge

Density resembles

villages around

suburban region.

Catalyst for

urbanisation

High density

social housing

Low income

medium density

Expensive

high density

Expensive

low density

High

density

Low

income

High

density

High

density

Catalyst for urbanisation

Densification higher segment

Potential role of the Krijgsbaan in the suburban region.


Antwerp’s property value, density, income

distribution, dwelling size, social

housing, and average private rent in

relation to its morphological structure.

(Google, 2020).

Figure 3.18

Abstraction of figure 3.17 with potential

role for Krijgsbaan in the suburban

region.

Density, property value, and income in Antwerp’s

metropolitan region

The map on the previous spread shows Antwerp’s property value, density,

income distribution, dwelling size, social housing, and average private rent

in relation to its morphological structure. In addition to this, the cross hatch

shows the planned densification along the ring zone. The larger map presents

a summary of the smaller maps to the left of this page.

Regarding social housing we see large concentrations in Luchtbal, to the

south of the spaghetti junction, and in Linkeroever. Linkeroever has the largest

concentration of social housing, with a total of around 3300 dwellings. These

large concentrations also reflect in the city’s dwelling density; most of these

areas have a density of around 9000 people per km2.

Figure 3.19 - left

The maps to the left were used to

create the drawing of the previous

spread, and show the various

socio-economic components in more

detail (Provinces of Flanders, n.d.)

(Municipality of Antwerp, n.d.).

Looking at income and property value we see that the high incomes (above

30.000) mainly situate themselves in the belt beyond the suburbs. In the linear

development belt or the forest dwellings in the Northern Park. The income in

the city and suburbs is more or less the same, on average between <15.000

till 20.000. One area in the suburban region holds some of the more valuable

property – the area around Middelheim continuing down to the fort and

159

beyond. Both of these areas have low density and poor(er) access to public

transport in common in relation to other areas in the suburban belt. A probable

reason for the concentration of higher property values along the strip going

south from Middelheim is the combination of green, and the university and

hospital, two amenities that attract high income inhabitants. The whole area

is roughly defined by the green radial entering the city here and the railway

running along the east side;

For the remainder of the suburbs we see a lower density in the south

western region of the suburban belt, near Fort 7. This could be explained by

the lack of a main public transport line; the tram does not go here. The suburbs

to the north and south of the Schijn river valley, Deurne and Borgerhout,

show a relative high density. These areas have a good connection to the tram

system and main bus lines. And, like Middelheim also lie in close proximity to

one of the larger green structure in Antwerp. However, in contrast to Middelheim

these areas do not have a high property value. Further densely populated

areas are the zones closest to the city, in the ring zone. An area that the city

has appoint as a densification zone, once the ring project has freed up some

space here.

In the city itself we see that it is rather densely populated, however, a very

broad strip at the periphery going around the city park is especially dense.

The south-western section of this strip is populated with high incomes, the

north-eastern section with low incomes. In fact, the lowest incomes in the inner

city. As mentioned in previous chapters, there is a trend of small dwelling sizes

in the inner-city of Antwerp. This is specifically the case fort the area defined

by the Leien and the Waaslandtunnel on average holds dwellings with the least

amount of rooms in Antwerp.

On the left bank, we see that Linkeroever contains quite a bit of contrast. There

is a high density, low income section, right next to area with very low density,

high income dwellings. Further into the Waasland we find that Zwijndrecht

and Burcht have a lower average density than the suburbs. This should come

to no surprise as these villages are not suburbs of Antwerp. However, they

are within the same distance of the city, but much more difficult to reach with

(public) transport. Looking at the densification plans here, we see that Antwerp

is planning to redevelop some sections of industry next to the highway between

Zwijndrecht and Burcht. It should further be noted that Antwerp does not seem

to connect the left and right bank through morphology; the defined edge that

is going to run along the built area on the right side of the river is not continued

on the left side. This is to some degree understandable in the northern

160

section, since this area is mostly industry. However, the southern section, with

the new bridge, could have been better connected.

Looking at the position of the Krijgsbanen on both the left and right side of

the Scheldt, we can distinguish five sections. Going around Antwerp starting

from the northeast, we find a section that does not actually go through existing

morphology, as is goes in between Deurne and Merksem on one side, and

Schoten on the other, and through a protected castle domain. Developing this

section could bring a defined edge to Deurne and Merksem, however it could

also reevaluate the role of Schoten in the city region of Antwerp. Judging by

how Antwerp want to get a grip on the growth of the periphery, this should

probably be avoided. Further down, the sections to the southeast and south,

show potential for densification. Through the low-density part of Borsbeek and

the low density, but priced area of the radial of Middelheim.

Continuing to the other side of the river, we can distinguish the fourth

section going from Fort van Cruybeke to the P+R at the border of Zwijndrecht.

Since its proximity to both dwellings and economic activity, and its potential

role as a concentric link to the suburban region on the other side of the river,

this section could be used as the first phase of the urbanisation of the left

bank. Further to the north to the last section, we see a section that is much

more rural that its counterparts. Connections from the P+R at Zwijndrecht

to Fort Sint-Marie and the industrial area there are rudimentary at best, and

non-existent past the highway. On the long term, this link could very well be

used as an edge for the suburban region of Antwerp on the left bank, but for

the short-term a simple connection with public transport and a bicycle path to

give access to the fort and industry would suit the area better.

161

3.2

A Polycentric Strategy

for the Suburban Region

On the potential role of the inner fortification belts in

Antwerp's upcoming polycentric city

This chapter set out to analyse the composition of the inner fortification belts

and trace the remnants of these structures to present-day Antwerp in relation to

function, ecology, accessibility, economy, and morphology. It did so to answer

the following two sub-questions:

1. What was the composition of the inner fortification belts in Antwerp’s

suburban region?



suburban region?

The following pages will present the main findings of the analysis as an answer

to these sub-questions, and subsequently try to design a strategy that attempts

to translate these findings into a polycentric strategy for Antwerp’s suburban

region. A strategy that allows the suburbs to gain a higher level of autonomy,

while keeping a relationship with the city centre. While building the strategy,

this chapter will lean on the positioning of the inner fortification belt as a pearl

necklace of the previous chapter that links the various economic, cultural,

recreational and ecological zones in the suburban area together.

The inner fortification belts

The option to inundate an area had large influence on the design of the fortification

system. The northern parts of the Grote Omwalling and inner fortification

belts are significantly less fortified. The former is reduced to a simple

rampart, although with a castle as its closing piece – Noordkasteel (North

castle) – to retreat to should the city be overrun; the latter was not even present

on the parts that could be inundated. Linkeroever, although equipped with a

fortified wet moat, its main defence strategy was still the inundation system.

The fortifications belts were placed roughly 4 kilometres from the city,

and 2 kilometres apart. They also followed a curved line to avoid attacks from

the side, and were connected to each other, and the main access roads to the

city, via a concentric road: the Krijgsbaan.

162

As was already mentioned in the previous chapter, much of the inner fortification

belt has survived. Of the inner belts, only Fort 1 was demolished and

replaced by a shopping centre. All other forts are still present and occupied.

The once on the left bank hold a military educational function, while the ones

on the right hold various recreational, cultural, or business functions. There

was a masterplan made for the forts in 2002, one that focused primarily on

the forts in a cultural and ecological sense. This masterplan has, as it seems,

not been executed. It seems there is still a need for a plan that considers the

belts as economic carriers and as entities that could define the suburban

region. The complicated jurisdictional borders might be what throws a spanner

into the works.

For Linkeroever only Fort Burcht remains in the Galgeweel. The historic dyke

– and municipal border – bordering Linkeroever has been petrified in the

morphology of Zwijndrecht and Burcht, and is traceable along the edge of industrial

area. In the city only two of the lunettes of the southern ramparts, and

a section of the wet moat around Noordkasteel were preserved.

In a subtler way the Omwalling lives on in the structure of the ring; all

the major exits and intersections are located on the locations of the larger lunettes.

Another subtle reference to the 19th century is the current tram network;

it almost perfectly overlays with the historic chaussee road system. A system

now being upgraded with adding P+R hubs.

Ecology

Regarding ecology we see that the green structures on Linkeroever are also

part of the ecological structure that is the Scheldt river valley, and as such will

have to cater to two overarching themes in the future; becoming part of the

ring park, and maintaining (and improving) the ecological connection and

function to the river valley. Since 2004, Flanders is working on the Sigmaplan;

a plan that is improving the Scheldt’s environment from flooding. As a result,

the quays on the right and the dykes on the left are going to be raised by one

or two metres.

Accessibility

Travel time maps have shown the radial monocentric structure of Antwerp’s

public transport system. The system is designed to get commuters to and from

the inner-city, getting to other parts of the suburbs is much more time consuming.

This is especially true for the commuters coming from the Waasland, as

there is currently only one public transport line crossing the Scheldt. There is no

mentioning of a public transport connection through the Oosterweel-link, while

there is one planned on the to-be-build Scheldt bridge. A concentric connection

is needed to stimulate the modal shift and polycentric development.

163

Antwerp’s mobility plan discusses the possibility of developing a tram line on

the Krijgsbaan as a long-term study plan, however, no concrete plans have

been made. There is no mentioning of a role for the Krijgsbaan on the left

bank, nor a concentric connection to the northern suburbs.

A strategy was developed for a concentric connection in the suburban region

on the right bank by Labo XX in 2014, that extended the concentric tram line in

the suburban. This plan seems to no longer be in consideration. There were a

few things that were left out of this plan, like a role for Linkeroever, or the link

to the P+R structures and thus the approach of the city by car.

Economy

Antwerp has several economic hubs in the suburban region, spanning from

shopping, industry, recreation, to education and health care. Like every other

structure in Antwerp, these economic zones also adhere to a radial pattern.

All of these zones extend from the ring area to the edge of the suburban zone,

or even beyond it. Linkeroever with its nature, sailing activities, and its annual

festivals, seems to fit in the recreational category.

The intersection of the Krijgsbanen on both the left and right bank

with all these different economic hubs, the airport and the various cultural and

business activities in the forts, could make a good argument as to why these

roads should become the dominant concentric connections in the suburban

region.

Morphology

Dwelling density is generally high in the city centre, and in the area around the

ring zone, radiating outward to Merksem, Deurne, and Borgerhout to the north

and east. The latter two could be higher in density due to the good connection

to the tram system and main bus lines. There is a low density but high-income

zone going south, through Middelheim and the university and hospital area,

an area also harder to reach with public transport. There is a medium density

low income zone to the southwest, next to the Scheldt, which could be due to

an absence of a public transport line.

Linkeroever holds the highest percentage of social housing in Antwerp

in very high density, with Luchtbal to the north in second place. However,

Linkeroever also holds very high incomes, in low density areas. Further into the

Waasland we find that Zwijndrecht and Burcht have a lower average density

than the suburbs. While these villages are not part of the suburbs of Antwerp,

they are within the same distance from the city. Looking at the densification, it

should be noted that Antwerp does not seem to connect the left and right bank

through morphology; the defined edge that is going to run along the built area

on the right side of the river is not continued on the left side.

164

We can distinguish five sections for developing the Krijgsbaan in relation to the

suburban region on the left and right. Starting from the northeast, we find a

section that could shape a defining edge along Merksem and Deurne. Caution

should be taken here not to include Schoten too directly in this development,

as Antwerp want to get a grip on the growth of the periphery. Further south

we have two sections that could be a catalyst for urbanisation. On the left

bank, the section from the fort to the P+R, with its proximity to dwellings

and economic activity, and its potential role as a concentric link to the right

bank, could make it the first phase in the urbanisation of the left bank. The

last section is much more rural than its other counterparts, it could become a

long-term edge of the suburban region, for the short-term a simple connection

with public transport and a bicycle path to give access to the fort and industry

would suit the area better.

Figure 3.20 - following spread

Drawing that shows all the components

of the polycentric strategy for the

suburban region.

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This bus line and bicycle

highway go through the

harbour, establishing a link

between the Brialmont belt

and closing the fortification

spiral for recreational

purposes.

A bus line and the

bicycle highway will

extend till Fort Sint

Marie.

The Ring Park

The Ring Park will make a connection to the

water element of the Grote omwalling on both the

left and right side of the Scheldt. On the right, the

wet moat around the ramparts will be reflected in

the park; on the left, the larger inundation area

will link back to the Borgerweertpolder. Creating

this historical link can help solve contemporary

problems relating to climate adaptation - using

the Ring Park for the city’s water system - and

restore a link to the historic fortification spiral.

The Krijg

here and

structure

Luchtba

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The development of the

Krijgsbaan and the water

element present in the

Ring Park restores the

fortification spiral found

on the regional scale.

The forts and lunettes

along the Krijgsbaan

will become cultural,

ecological, and

recreative hubs along

the Krijgsbaan.


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Industrial

centre

This could also be

one of the final

stages of the Ring

Park developments.

Agricultural radial

The inundation area here

will also maintain and

improve Linkeroever’s

role in the ecological

radial that is the Scheldt

River Valley.

Recreational

centre

This area in the harbour can be developed as

the final stage of the Ring Project. This will

define the Ring Park al around the city.

The tram line of

the left bank will

extend till the P+R

at the border of

Zwijndrecht.

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Densification of Zwijndrecht and

Burcht will initially take place at

the sections bordering the Ring

Park and the Krijgsbaan.


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Shopping

centre.

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new tunnel.

A

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The design of the

Krijgsbaan on this side of

the river will be less

monumental in cross section

and architecture than its

(sub)urban counterpart;

more fitting to the rural

character of the left bank.

Industrial

centre

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sub

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fun


The Brialmont Belt as the

defining structure of Antwerp's

suburban region on the left and

right side of the Scheldt.

Creating a stronger link with

heritage, culture, recreation,

ecology, and economy.

Legend

I II

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Highway

Existing tram system

with two stations

Existing bicycle

highway

Existing main

bus routes

Train

New tram line

New bicycle

highway

New main

bus routes

industrial

corridors

A new ferry line is added

here to connect the

Krijgsbaan of the right

bank to the one on the

left bank. Once

urbanisation of the

suburbs on the left had

started a more permanent

connection can be

researched.


I I


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Industrial

centre

Industrial areas

Business parks

Shopping centres

River valley

Forest or

Higher education

agricultural area

166 This is the end

Recreational area

Densification area

of a green

chamber meant

to limit growth


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sbaan will end

the P+R

in northern

l.

Industrial

centre,

catering to

the harbour.


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This area next to the

fort could be

developed as a result

of the Krijgsbaan.

Large scale

shopping

centre.

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Industrial centre

and end point of

the canal industrial

radial.

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The larger dots, like

the one here, indicate

access to a P+R

structure.

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Here the bicycle highway

and tram line will be

separated to go around a

protected heritage site. The tram

line will go through the urban area of

Deurne and Merksem; the bicycle

highway will connect Schoten to the

Krijgsbaan. Extending the tram line

through Deurne and Merksem will

also prevent the urbanisation of

Schoten.

This is the Peerbos radial going

to the Northern forest parks.

Industrial

area, and end

point of the canal

industrial radial.

The radial here will limit

the growth of the low

density development

here.

The linear shape of the

economic carriers will be fixed

by adding multimodal hubs at

both ends - at the Ring Park

and the Krijgsbaan - allowing

the economic radial to mediate

between the two.


These dots

represent

mulitmodal hubs.

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The Leien will be connected

to the Charles de Costerlaan

and the Halewijnlaan to

establish a better link

between the two parts of

the city, and efectively

create a final ring around

the (historic) centres.

The Schijn River Valley

e economic centres of the

urban region connect to the

jgsbaan as well as the ring area.

is will maintain a certain serving

ction towards the inner-city.

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Recreational centre

with shopping, sports, and

culture.

The Krijgsbaan wil

become a lush

boulevard lined

with trees.


The cultural activities

in the forts will play

an active part in the

development of this

area.

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The second railway

connection to the

port will run next to

the highway here.

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The polycentric

development of the

suburban region will be

carried by the major

economic activity already

present there.

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Business centre

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Due to the relative

low-density of

Borskbeek, a larger

area can be

densified here.


University &

Health care centre

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The Krijgsbaan will become a

concentric connection through the

different radials of the suburban

region. A tram line and bicycle

highway will runs on its entire

length on the right side of the river,

thereby stimulating the

development of multimodal hubs.


This is a green

radial going to

Middelheim.

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The improved mobility and

the multimodal hubs are used

as a means to stimulate

densification along the

Krijgsbaan, catering to those

that cannot find a dwelling in

the inner-city.

This is the new agricultural

radial going to the airport. This

radial will limit the growth of

the linear villages.

167

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Public Public transport transport - train - and Tram ferry


Figure 3.21


modes and their infrastructure, with the

new infrastructure in bold black. The

bicycle network is from (Fietssnelwegen.be,

n.d.). The new tram line

from (The Intendant for the liveability

measures in Antwerp’s ring zone,

2016a). The remaining infrastructure

from (OpenStreetMap, n.d.).

168


Highways and main bus routes



Highways Bicycle and highways main bus routes

Bicycle highways

169

Bicycle highways

Green rings as The the drawing defining on element the previous of the spreads city regions shows and a cumulation link to the of fortification all the components

spiral. Figure 3.22

of the spatial strategy that tries to give concrete direction to Antwerp’s

The two green rings around the suburban

and metropolitan region, and the

polycentric development. A strategy that could allow the suburbs to gain a

link to the fortification spiral.

higher level of autonomy, while maintaining a relationship to the city centre.

Green belts as defining elements of the suburban region and inner-city

In the previous chapter the inner fortification belt was established as a green

pearl necklace, an important public transport and cycling boulevard that

links the various economic, cultural, recreational, and ecological zones in the

suburban region together. Thereby positioning the set of the rampart, the traffic

artery, and the park as the defining edge of Antwerp’s city region.

The strategy of this chapter will establish the Krijgsbanen on both

the left and the right side of the Scheldt as hosts to a concentric tram line

and bicycle highway. On the right bank the tram will start at the P+R structure

at Luchtbal near the harbour to the north, connecting to the tram radial

going to the city centre. It will continue to the east, going through Merksem

and Deurne. Here the bicycle highway and tram line will be separated to

go around a protected heritage site; a castle domain. The tram line will go

through the urban area of Deurne and Merksem; the bicycle highway will connect

Schoten to the Krijgsbaan. Allowing the tram line to go through Merksem

170

and Deurne could prevent the urbanisation of Schoten. Thereby catering to

Antwerp’s wish to get a hold on the growth of the periphery. The tram line and

bicycle highway will be joined after the industrial area at the Albert Canal,

where it will continue on the track of the Krijgsbaan. Near the Scheldt both of

these will loop back to the city centre, to the junction of the Kennedytunnel and

the new Scheldt bridge. Half way to the city, the tram line and bicycle highway

will branch off to the connection to the left bank. On the short term this

can be a ferry connection, on the long term, once the left bank has started to

urbanise, a more permanent connection might be appropriate, like a bridge or

tunnel.

On the left bank the tram line will continue till the P+R structure

at the edge of Zwijndrecht. A subsequent bus line will pick up the trajectory

further to the north, to the industrial area at fort Sint-Marie and the harbour

beyond. This will reflect the more rural character of the Krijgsbaan on this side.

The entirety of the Krijgsbanen on the left and right bank will become a bicycle

highway. In design, both of these roads will become boulevards lined with

trees to establish the pearl necklace with the green areas of the forts. In cross

section, the boulevard on the left will be less monumental than its right bank

counterpart, meaning a lower maximum building height and street width. This

is to reflect the roads more rural setting.

For the green belt around the city, the existing infrastructural plans will be

scaled up. The public transport and bicycle highway will be extended to go

around the entirety of the ring park, including the section on the north side

of Linkeroever to stimulate its transition to part of Antwerp’s inner-city. The

current end of the public transport infrastructure at the Blancefloerlaan – the

old chaussee to Ghent with the visual axis to the cathedral – will be extended

to the north, to join the already planned bicycle highway. A similar bridge as

the one from the south, one for public transport and cyclists/pedestrians, will

be constructed on the northern side of Linkeroever, to visually connect the

left and the right. The continuation of this transport line will be used as the

defining edge of the densification of Linkeroever, leaving a broad strip between

it and Zwijndrecht and Burcht for the ring park (more on this in chapter X).

Linkeroever’s direct connections to the inner-city of Antwerp will be improved

as well. The Charles de Costerlaan, the boulevard that is disconnected from

the highway, will be reconnected to its historic counterpart; the Dwarslaan,

to give the boulevard a proper ‘end’ and to create another public transport

corridor into Linkeroever and Antwerp. An additional tunnel for cars and public

transport, tram and bus (and possibly cyclists), will be added to the east of the

Galgeweel, connecting to the southern part of the Leien. This will relieve the

Waaslandtunnel, which does not meet current safety regulations. As a result of

171

this, the Waaslandtunnel will become a bicycle and public transport connection.

Creating this new tunnel will establish a connection between the northern

and the southern part of the Leien, thereby establishing a better link between

the two parts of the city, and effectively create a(nother) ring around the city.

This time around its historic centres.

The Ring Park will make a connection to the water element of the

Grote Omwalling on both the left and right side of the Scheldt. On the right,

the wet moat around the ramparts will be reflected in the park; on the left,

the larger inundation area will link back to the Borgerweertpolder. Creating

this historical link can help solve contemporary problems relating to climate

adaptation - using the Ring Park for the city’s water system - and restore a link

to the historic fortification spiral. In addition, the link to the historic inundation

area will also maintain and improve Linkeroever’s role in the ecological radial

that is the Scheldt river valley.

On the left, two agricultural radials will be established on the capped

highway sections to maintain a separation between the villages, and to mirror

Antwerp’s radial green structure; establishing familiar characteristics on the

other side of the river. On the right bank, the Peerdsbos radial and Luchtbal

will be used to continue the fortification spiral into the city, where the ring park

will pick it up with its link to the water in the Grote Omwalling.

172

Industry

Shops

Industry

Industry

Shops

Sports

Industry

Industry

Business

Education & He alth

Figure The 3.23 amenities corridors as carriers Polycentric of polycentric development development, mediating between the ring and the Krijgsbaan.

Conceptual drawing of the amenities

corridors as carriers of the polycentric The polycentric development of the suburban region will be carried by the

development, connecting the suburbs

major economic functions observed in the analysis part of this chapter. The

to the ring zone.

linear shape of these carriers will be fixed in place by adding multimodal hubs

at either end; the ring zone at the edge of the city, and the inner fortification

belts at the edge of the suburban region. By using the entirety of the economic

radial for the polycentric development, a certain serving function to the

inner-city is maintained. Each of these economic zones will have a minimal

of two multimodal hubs at either end, and depending on the location and

existing connections, another multimodal hub half way into the zone. Several

new radial public transport connections will be established between the ring

zone and the Krijgsbanen on the left and right side of the river, to cater to the

development of the economic hubs. Like two public transport connections at

the university/health care centre, and the economic zones on Linkeroever.

On the right side of the city, two economic hubs will have to be

further developed. The recreational hub with shopping, sports, and culture

near the Schijn valley at Borgerhout, will be extended via the Krijgsbaan to

the cultural activities in the forts (museums and associations), and connected

to the shopping radial. Further to the south, the position of the airport will be

used to extend the business parks at the ring zone to the Krijgsbaan. The main

173

goal here is to serve as a catalyst for the urbanisation of the low-density part of

Borgerhout.

On the left side of the river, the industrial radials will be used as economic

carriers, as well as the rural shopping centre of Zwijndrecht. All of these

economic radials have the potential to form the same connection to the city, as

the right side does. In the initial phases, the main connection to the industrial

hub at the northern end of the Krijgbaan will be via the P+R structure near

Zwijndrecht.

Linkeroever’s current main economic carrier, its diverse recreational

activities, will be expanded to attract other amenities to the district and make it

a fully functioning part of the city.

Order of development

Sections 1

For quick wins the bicycle highway and ferry connection on the Krijgsbanen

between left and right should be constructed first. This will quickly increase the

reachability of the economic zones in the suburban region, and establish a

recreational and cultural link to the different ecological areas in and around

Antwerp, and the fortification spiral observed in the previous chapter.

Section 2 & 3

Directly after the completion of the ring, the development and densification of

Linkeroever and the ring zone can start. As well as the instalment of the tram

lines and the densification of the section from the junction of the Kennedytunnel

and the new Scheldt bridge, to the P+R at the Schijn River valley, since

this is the most urban part of the suburbs. Followed by the section to the north

(section 3).

Section 4

The final piece is the left bank track going from the peripheral Scheldt crossing

to the P+R structure at Zwijndrecht, to subsequently be continued as a bus

route to the harbour.

174

II

III

I

I

Development order.

Figure 3.24

Conceptual representation of the

development order of the Krijgsbaan.

175

IV

The City Region

4.1 The Green City Ring

4.2 A Densification Strategy for the Ring Zone

4.1

The Green City Ring

On the role of the green ring as a densifying strategy for

Antwerp's ring zone

The ring project of Antwerp; a project with which Antwerp wants to put their

city on the map. In the next ten to fifteen years, Antwerp is going to rebuilt its

entire highway, in a multi-million-euro project. A project with which Antwerp

wants to tackle the large congestion problem that plagues the city, and the

several climate and health related issues that come with it. The project is going

to become the driving force for Antwerp’s planned modal shift to more sustainable

sources of transport. The ring project is going to complete the final section

of the ring, with the controversial and politically charged Oosterweel-Link

on the left bank of the city. On the long-term, the ambition is to cover most of

the ring under a green canopy. A canopy that should significantly increase the

air quality and climate resilience of the city, and reconnect the several loose

green patches along the route of the highway. Additionally, the capping of the

ring should facilitate a refocus of the urban development from the peripheral

areas of the metropole to the area in the ring zone, thereby creating a defined

façade for the city as well as the suburban region. With this densification strategy

the city wants to change the relationship between the inner-city and the

suburbs, two areas that now, due to the ring, are mostly facing inwards.

What is odd, however, is that it seems that the extensive plans for the ring project

on the right side of the river are not applied on the left side. Here the ring

is left above ground, albeit it with less complicated junctions, however, no real

direction is given to the large-scale nature areas on the left bank. Several links

between the different natural zones are made, but with the highway remaining

in place, these areas are still very much segregated. Which is a missed opportunity,

since due to its scale, the area has the potential to be the culmination of

the Ring Park. Another unclear topic, is the development of the city district Linkeroever,

or the role of Zwijndrecht and Burcht. The municipality mentions that

there are currently no densification plans, but that the trend of making master

plans for Linkeroever will continue. While, at the same time, the plans that are

available show that Linkeroever might become part of the inner-city of Antwerp

with the completion of the ring. A new P+R at the periphery of Linkeroever, the

instalment of a low-emission zone that is only applied to the inner-city, and

perhaps most importantly, the creation of a defined edge for the district, all

might be indicators of big changes to come.

178


Aerial photograph of Antwerp’s city

region (Google, 2020).

Looking at the current population projections, it seems that Antwerp will have

enough dwellings to keep up with population growth at least until 2030. However,

it might be right to conclude that the city is to some extend underestimating

the effect the capping of almost the entire ring will have on the popularity

of the city. A cap with this length is unpreceded, and the effect it has on the

liveability of the city can be enormous, which might attract more migration

(both foreign and domestic) to the city than currently expected. In the extension

of this, the city is actively trying to attract more families back to the city with

the ring project. Families that, due to increasingly shrinking apartment sizes

and rising property prices, have left the city in recent years. Reading success

stories of other city that have capped their highway; the property values along

those areas have all skyrocketed as a result. Meaning that the ring zone, might

not be the best location to house families that left the city because they could

not afford its larger dwellings. A problem that could have a potential role for

Linkeroever.

The following chapter will shortly recap on the composition of the

defence structure of the inner-city and Linkeroever, and on the congestion, climate,

and health related issues surrounding the ring zone. Since the previous

chapter has established a potential polycentric structure for the suburban region

of Antwerp and its ring zone; this chapter will focus on the densification of

the ring zone and Linkeroever, and the conceptual design of the ring park. The

densification plan presented here, positions itself as an extreme scenario that

examines the maximum densification possible should the entirety of the ring

be capped. Exploring what the city could become when population growth,

and climate and health issues are used as its primary drivers. The subsequent

pages will analyse the effect of the ring on the spatial and morphological

structure of the inner-city and suburbs. After which a more thorough morphological

analysis of the areas along the ring will deduce the basic characteristics

of its urban tissue. These findings will be used to develop a densification plan

that expands the city’s current urban fabric for the ring and Linkeroever as part

of the inner-city, and Zwijndrecht and Burcht as part of the suburban region of

Antwerp.

179

This is Noordkasteel; the

culmination of the Grote

Omwalling. The citadel was

built in 1862 and was

meant to defend "The

Bend of Oosterweel”.

Due to the inundations,

the northern part of the

ramparts could be

built lighter.

Eekerse

gate

St. Michielsgate

Boomse

gate

IJzerenweg - zuid

gate

Amerikalei

Kielse gate

ing, incorporat ed into the cit y as a spacious boulevard.

Traces of the Spaanse Omwall

Sint Laurents

gate

The Lunette of Herentals

beautifully incorporated

into the city fabric as a

park.

The city increased

by a factor of 5.

Wilrijkse

gate

Edegemse

gate

Berchemse

gate

Mechelse

gate

Spoorbaan

gate

Bredagate

Schijngate

Leopold

gate

Louisa

gate

Borsbeekse

gate

Because this area could not be inundated, the ramparts to the so uth were heavily

Italiëlei

Frankrijklei

The city increased

by a factor of 5.

This meant that the harbour,

Borgerhout, and Berchem were

annexed to the city.

Turnhoutse

gate

Herentalse

gate

The ramparts were

built using earth and

were approximately

9,5 metres high.

foritified with

lunettes.

18 monumental,

Neo-Baroque gates

were constructed to

allow entrance to the

city. None of these

gates were preserved

when the ring road was

constructed.

180

1859-1887

1859-1887

1859-1887 The Grote Omwalling

The page on the left shows a recap of the Grote Omwalling as it was during

1887-1914

1887-1914

1887-1914

the period between 1887 and 1914. This defence structure increased the city’s

surface by a factor of five, giving much needed space to a very populous city.

It thereby also enclosed several neighbouring villages like Borgerhout and Berchem,

and parts of the harbour (Verboven, 2018b). The rampart consisted out

of a 9,5-metre-high earthen wall, with a total section of 230 metres, which extended

to 820 at the heavily fortified sections in the south (Verboven, 2018a).

The Omwalling was accessible via eighteen monumental Neo-Baroque gates

(Nagels, 2012, p. 34).

The Spaanse Omwalling, here marked with a dotted line, was incorporated

into the city as the Leien and the city park. The grey areas show the inundation

areas around the city. The average submersion depth was estimated to be

around 3 or 4 metres. As a result of these areas, the ramparts on the north

side of the city were significantly less fortified then its southern counterparts.

The only defence structure on the north was the Noordkasteel (North castle),

a structure built for the purposes of defending the bent of the Scheldt river,

and as a last point of retreat for times when the city itself had already fallen.

A similar role as the citadel in the southern part of the Spaanse Omwalling

(Fortengordels, a).

1914-1930/68

1914-1930/68

1914-1930/68

When the rampart was first built, the southern part of the rampart was attached

to the Citadel of Antwerp, or Zuidkasteel (South castle), a part of the Spaanse

Omwalling. A pentagonal bastion fort constructed in the early days of the

Dutch Revolt between 1567 and 1572 by the Duke of Alva, to defend and

quell any resistance from Antwerp’s inhabitants (Michielsen, 2016; Military

Heritage Antwerp, n.d.). Around 1880, the land under the Citadel was sold

Figure 4.1

Detailed drawing of the different

iterations of the Grote Omwalling


Figure 4.2

An image of the Grote Omwalling

near the Turnhoutse and Herentalse

Gates (Antwerpen stad, n.d.).

181

I

I

This was th

The inundation had an a ver


Linkeroever had an extensive

irrigationsystem to drain the

water.

nsive Dyke.

Blokkersdijk

Long direer road

Cattle used

to graze

here.

Fort

Calloo

Fort Vlaamsch

Hoofd

This was a

star fort.

Fort

Isabelle

The Onze Lieve

Vrouwekathedraal

Short direer road

Wa t er could enter through here.

Direction of flow

The Rotbeek.

The Langen Gaan Weg predecessor of the Tunnellaan

Laar Road

Geuzen

Weel

Schelde Road

The Watergang

St. Anna

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I II


This road has

followed the

same tracé

for ages.

The L aar

beek

Ruin of

Fort Laar

Suikerdijk

To

Burcht

Burcht

Contou rs of fort S

tengel

Burchtse

Weel

Oud path

Galgen

weel

Fort

Burcht


The ferry to the train station.

visual axis

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I

uld enter th rough her e

The water co

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I

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182

.

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.

Dyke breaches

Dyke breaches

Dyke breaches

Direction of water flow

to finance the construction of the fortification belt on the left bank. The vacant

land was redeveloped to the district t’ Zuid, and a train station that gave

access to a ferry to the Borgerweertpolder (Nagels, 2012, p. 29). This development

gave the Omwalling the form on the left page.

Around the Interbellum, when the military advantage of a rampart

was fading into the background, the section around the Noordkasteel was

refurbished and demolished to house an extension of Antwerp’s growing harbour.

The other parts of the Omwalling were subsequently demolished to make

way for the highway ring in the 1960s. Today, only three parts of the rampart

remain; a section of Noordkasteel, and two small sections of the wet moats of

the lunettes in the southern part of the city.



Visual axis to the Cathedral



Figure 4.3

Detailed drawing of the Borgerweertpolder


The Borgerweertpolder

The adjacent page shows the situation of the Borgerweertpolder during its

period as inundation area. On the drawing we see three locations where dyke

breaches were made when the area was inundated. As far as the literature

covers it, the dykes were breached for military reasons (meaning not due to

a heavy storm) on six occasions, in 1576, 1584, 1591, 1678, 1745, and

1794. The result of these inundations is visible in the landscape of the polder

in the form of the Geuzeweel, the Galgeweel, and the Burchtse weel, which all

formed due to the massive force of the breaching water. We also, very subtlety

see Linkeroever’s extensive irrigation system which was used to transport water

out of the polder in case of an inundation, but it also made the land highly

suitable as pasture land. Due to the polder’s soil composition pre-heightening

with Scheldt Sand, the polder was not suitable for the growing of crops, so it

was therefore used to raise cattle. The area was leased or sold to butchers or

livestock traders, the ditch structure was used to sell individual plots. Contrary

to what might seem logical, the draining water did not run to the north like the

Scheldt does, but rather to the south. The level of the polder was around 4,5

metres lower than that of the fortifications or the town of Sint-Anna. The polder

itself was between 0,7 and 1,5 metres about sea level (Verbeeck, 1944, pp.

165-166).

We see several forts on the polder, as mentioned before, these were

not built as a direct result of the city’s role as National Redoubt. The wet moat

and defensive structure are the of a strategy of Napoleon during the French

occupation of Antwerp, who wanted to turn Fort Vlaamsch Hoofd and the town

Sint-Anna into a new city district. A shifting economy from textile to trading was

to thank for this. The new city was to receive the name Ville Marie-Louise, and

would get an arsenal, shipyards, and residential barracks. A temporary pontoon

bridge was supposed to connected the two sides of the river. However,

with the defeat of Napoleon, the city remained unbuilt (Schoofs, 2003a).

183

Figure 4.4

Fort Vlaamsch Hoofd and the town

Sint-Anna or Sint-Anneke around the

turn of the 20th (Dresselaers, 2016)

Two access roads can be seen on the polder; the chaussee to Ghent (black

line) which ended at Sint-Anna and held a visual axis with the cathedral. We

also see the Langen Gaan road, the predecessor of the Tunnellaan that would

give access to the Waaslandtunnel after 1933. There were several other roads,

that gave access to different parts of the polder. Finally, a railway enters the

polder parallel to the chaussee, and stopping at Sint-Anna. The town at the

edge of the Borgerweertpolder gave access to a ferry service that would bring

you to Het Steen (The Stone; a medieval fortress) or the train station on the

right bank (Antrop, De Maeyer, & Vandermotten, 2006, p. 19).

184

185

I I

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The Grote Omwalling lives on in a very

subtle way in the shape of the ring

highway. All exits and major intersections

are located on the spots of the larger

lunettes.

se t hin lines trace t h e contours

The

Here the highway is level to the ground.

The E34

Knokke-Heist

and Ghent's harbour


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I I

I I

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I I

To Ghent

I I

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To the

harbour

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Also stealth traffic here.

The Ring Project has the

ambition to counter the

stealth traffic here.

on Linkeroever

The ring

divides the nature areas

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This junction will become much more compact in the new ring.

Here the ring lies on a

2 metre high dyke.

This is the Charles de Costerlaan, a monumental boulevard,

currently completely congested due to traffic to the Waasladtunnel

Linkeroever is completely congested in

Theres a railway tunnel here.

I I

I I I I I

the morning

The

Also called

opened in 1

of the oldes

And becaus

dimensions

most dange

currently co

ring.

Lots of stealth traffic here in the morning.

The Kennedytunnel

the

This

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I

E17 to

Ghent

186

This tunnel was opened by King

Boudewijn on May 31, 1969. Every

day, about 160.000 vehicles go

underneath the Scheldt. Sadly

however, most of it at a walking

pace. the tunnel is one of the most

congested and dangerous roads in

Flanders It has been often

debated to start charging toll here.

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

to Brussels

I I

I I I I I I


Railway parallel to the ring here.

This section

of the lunette

was preserved.

A12 to

Brussels.

Spaghettiknoop

junction is popularly called

I

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I

I I

I I

I I

I

of th e Grote Omwalling

highway here.


I I I I

E19 to

Breda.

Cars enter the


This body of water is

all that is left of

Noordkasteel, the rest

has become part of

the harbour.

I I


Waaslandtunnel

the Konijnenpijp, was

933 and is therefore one

t car tunnels in Belgium.

e of its modest

, it is also one of the

rous. The tunnel

mpletes the highway

The Leie n still is an import ant traffic ar

tery.

Congestio n in front of the tunnel.

I I I I I

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The railway


I I

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Zurenborg wordt in tweeën gesneden door het spoor.

I

The train entres the city on a raised platform

delimits the city, especially here.

I I

I I

I I I

I I I

I I

The ring goes underneath all the

intersections, this is possible because it

is situated in the moat of the Grote

Omwalling. However, this also means

that it needs to be permanently

dewatered.

T his junction is popularly called t he Hollandse Knoop.

The grey in the highway illustrates the

daily congestion. This is a problem throughout

the entirety of the day, especially at the

intersections and tunnels. One of the reasons

for the problems is the dangerous weaving

movements that happen when changing lanes.

The Ring Project is going to solve this.

the E34 to

Eindhoven

and Maastricht.

I

I I I

I I I I

I

I I I I I

I

I

I I I

I

I I I

I I

I I I I I I I I

This section

of the lunette

was preserved.


e Craeybeckxtunnel from 1981

mit noise pollution for the hospital.

E19 to

Brussels.

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I I I

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To Mechelen

and Brussels

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To Lier

187

31 - 35

ug/m 3

36 - 4 0 ug/m 3

31 - 35 ug/m 3

188

36 - 40 ug/m

31 - 35 ug/m

6 - 40 ug/m 3

31 - 35 ug/m3

36 - 4 0

ug/m 3

31 - 35 ug/m 3

36 - 40 ug/m 3

3 6 - 40 ug/m3

36 - 40 ug/m 3

31 - 3 5 ug/m 3

The entire city has an average of 31 - 35

ug/m 3 of nitrogen dioxide in the air. The

European limit is 40 ug/m 3 , however,

negative effects have been observed with

lower quantities - like respiratory

complaints and asthma attacks, and an

increased susceptibility to infections.

189

s better a

55 - 59 dB

The birds here suffer from ear pain.

60 - 64 dB

6 0

- 64 dB

You can he ar the ri n g in all nature areas ofLinkeroever.

B55 - 59 d

In Zwijndrecht no

i

se poll

ution is an is

s ue.

60 - 64 dB

55 - 59 dB

55 - 59 dB

55 - 59

dB

60 - 64 dB

The denser c

i ty

i

6 0 - 6 4 dB

- 59 dB

55

60 - 64 dB

190

55 - 59

d B

60 -

64 dB

55 - 59 dB

60 - 64 dB

60 - 64 dB

55 - 59 dB

55 - 59 dB

60 - 64 dB

Noise

of th

e

ring travels far

into

the rive

r

valley

t keeping the noise out.

55 - 59 dB

60 - 6 4 dB

The suburbs are more

susceptible to noise

pollution due to their

lower density.

Constantly being exposed to 50dB (or

more) is not healthy for humans. The noise

measurement drawn here is from the

Geluidsactieplan 2019-2023 for the

Antwerp agglomeration. the measurement

itself was performed in February of 2018.

191

4 o C

4 o C

2,5 o C

3 o C

3,5 o C

3,5 o C

3,5 o C

2 o C

192

2 o C

3,5 o C

3 o C

3,5 o C

4 o C

2,5 o C

2 o C

3 o C

The map clearly

shows the cooling

effect the green

radials have on

the city.

2 o C

3 o C

2,5 o C

On average the inner-city of Antwerp is 4 o C

hotter than the rural areas around it. With climate

change and heat waves becoming more and more

frequent, this will increasingly become a problem.

The heat island effect is created by a lot of

factors. Cities retain more heat partly due to their

increased density and building height; heat

cannot escape at night as easily as it does in the

countryside. Cities also have a lot more

movement that generates heat (mainly cars) and

often less vegetation that could provide cooling.

This drawing shows the first four layers of a heat

island projection performed by the Flamish 193

Institute of Technological Research in 2015

The dyke will be raised by 2

metres here.

T

m

ha

quay

public

the ba

1 metre

same lev

Since 2004, Flanders is actively working on a

plan that is supposed to protect the villages

and cities along the Scheldt and its tributaries

from flooding. The Flamish Waterway nv

(Vlaamse Waterweg nv ) is executing this plan

by raising and stabalising the dykes along the

river, and by appointing controlled flooding

zones. Like the one at Linkeroever.

194

he quays are are being

ade future proof. The city

s stabalised and raised the

s, and turned them into

space. On the left,

nks are raised by

, putting them on the

el as the city.

Due to increasing extremes in weather,

leading to heatwaves, heavier droughts, but

also increases in the frequency and severi

ty of rainfalls and floods, cities around the

world will have to make the city’s water

system more climate resilient. To combat

Antwerp’s problems with water, the city

made a water plan in 2019. The plan tries to

make the city more climate resilient and at

the same time increase the liveability of

the public domain by adding more greenery.

195

The completion and capping of Antwerp’s ring

On the first spread the congestion problems of the city are visualised. It

shows structural congestion present in the ring of Antwerp taken from a study

conducted in 2015 by the Vlaams Verkeerscentrum (Flemish Traffic Institute,

2015, p. 42). From this map we can see that the entirety of the ring is congested

for several hours every day (morning and evening), and that the much of

Linkeroever; both the Charles de Costerlaan and the Blancefloerlaan, and the

connecting Halewijnlaan are also influenced by this.

The two spreads following the congestion show the resulting air

(NO2) and noise pollution in the ring zone. We see that, because of its lower

density, particularly the suburbs are affected. These two maps were made by

using measurements from the Geluidsactieplan 2019-2023, in 2015 by the

Flemish Government (Department Agentschap Omgeving Wegen & Verkeer,

2019, p. 87), and the Vlaamse Milieumaatschappij (Flemish Environmental

Company, 2018, p. 28), respectively.

The final two spreads show the heat island effect in Antwerp and the

flood risks around the city, and a short summary of the water plan of Antwerp.

From the former we see that the city is in average 4 ºC warmer than the rural

areas around it, and 0,5 to 1 ºC warmer than the suburban region. The map

also clearly shows the cooling effect of the green radials entering the city. This

map was made from a heat island projection performed by the Flemish Institute

of Technological Research in 2015, and shows the first four layers (each

layer is 0,5 ºC) (Flemish Institute of Techonological Research, 2015). The flood

risks around the city are a zoom from previous maps, and was taken from the

Flemish Hydrographical Atlas (Flemish Goverment, 2017). The water plan of

Antwerp discusses its plans to reduce the cities exposure to extreme rainfall or

drought by increasing its above ground water storage and adding more green

in the streets. The ring zone is one of the larger potential water storage zones

that the city is going to research (De Urbanisten; Witteveen+Bos; Common

Ground, 2019).

Figure 4.5 - previous spreads

Drawing of the congestion of the ring

(Flemish Traffic Institute, 2015, p. 42).


Drawing of the air pollution caused by

the ring highway (Flemish Environmental

Company, 2018, p. 28).


Drawing of the noise pollution caused

by the ring highway (Flemish Environmental

Company, 2018, p. 28).


Drawing of the heat island effect in

Antwerp (Flemish Institute of Techonological

Research, 2015).


Drawing of flood areas and flood risk

in the city (De Urbanisten; Witteveen-

+Bos; Common Ground, 2019;

Flemish Goverment, 2017).

196

197

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Pidp


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The ring divides

the nature areas

on Linkeroever.

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Zwijndrecht and Burcht

also have a buffer.

Red Cross

reception

centre

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Palace of

justice

Here in th

Antwerp

ring. How

mostly co

zone of t

private/p

I I I I I I

198

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

Lots of industry

or large scale

amenities have

settled around

the ring.

I I

Mainly highrise


towards the ring

.

here


Delen Private

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I

I

I

I I

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Theatre

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Sportpaleis


The railway delimits the city, especially here.

The suburbs often have a buf fer of t rees.

I I I I I I I I

Federal

police

There is a whole strip of rear facades here.

I I I I I

The city, due to the buffer

zones, mainly directs its

focus inwards. The Ring

mainly caters to the

regional scale.

I I I

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School

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mostly fronts to the

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ublic amenities.

a

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I

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Several

companies

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This is a

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Plantin

Moretus

Hotel

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ICZO school

Erasmus

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Antwerp

This area has a lot of highrise apartme nts towads the ring.

The suburbs also seem to

direct their focus inwards,

although to a lesser extend,

due to the incidental highrise

that overlooks Antwerp.

I I I

International

art campus

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swimming

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This is also a

business park.

This is Antwerp's airport. Planes land and take off here.

Antwerp

Expo

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ZNA Middelheim

University of

Antwerpen

I I I I

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University of

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The suburbs often have a buf fer of t rees.

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There is a whole strip of rear facades here.

Federal

police

The city, due to the buffer

zones, mainly directs its


I I I

201

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Red Cross

reception

centre

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Palace of

justice

Here in the southern

Antwerp mostly fron

ring. However, these

mostly covered with

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private/public ameni

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202

I

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mainly caters to the

regional scale.

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School

part of

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are

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ties.

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This area has a lot of highrise apartme nts towads the ring.

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dir

alt

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Olympic

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Large offices

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This is also a

business park.

This is An


School complex

I

I

I I I

I I I

I I I

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ZNA Middelheim

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University of

Antwerpen

University of

Antwerpen

203

Front facades with buffer zone towards the ring.

Back facades towards the ring.



Loose objects with or without buffer zone towards the ring.


Front Loose facades objects with buffer or without zone buffer towards zone the towards ring. the ring.

Industrial buildings towards the ring.


Back Industrial facades buildings towards towards the ring. the ring.





The effect of the ring on the spatial characteristics of the

ring zone

The previous spread shows the effect that the ring has on its surrounding area;

the inner-city and suburbs. We can conclude that the city and suburbs, as

discussed in previous chapters, is not only turning away from the highway ring,

but also a railway that runs along its entire track. There are in general four

types that can be distinguished of how the adjacent built environment reacts to

the ring.

The first (1) is with front facades with a green buffer zone towards the ring.

This type is the most common; the green buffer is often a row of trees and/or

shrubbery. The second (2) type is loose objects, either with or without a green

buffer, towards the ring. These can be either residential high-rise or largescale

amenities that have found their home along the ring. With the latter the

buffer zone is often missing. The residential high-rise is mainly located on the

edge of the suburban region. The third (3) type is back facades towards the

ring; an uncompleted building block. This is a less common type that mainly

shows itself in the north-eastern section of the inner-city, where there is also

a marshalling yard alongside the ring. The fourth type (4) is industry alongside

or in the ring area. This is again less common; a type we only see in the

north-eastern section of the inner-city, between the marshalling yard and the

Figure 4.11

The type of responses to the presence

of the ring in the built environment.

204


Drawing of the immediate surroundings

of the highway ring (Google,

2020).

ring, in close proximity to the canal; and near the Kennedytunnel and Scheldt

to the southwest.

Coming back to the city’s wish to use the ring project as a means to improve

the connection between the inner-city and suburbs by creating a quality ring

park with a defined edge on both sides; we find that the most important aspect

here will be the breaking of the green buffer zone that can currently be found

at either side of the ring. In especially the north-eastern side near the marshalling

yard – the area with lots of unfinished building blocks and industry in

or towards the ring – special care will have to be taken to establish the ring

park and defined edge here. Potentially the city should think about relocating

the industry present here to other areas in the suburban region, as this would

free up quite some area for redevelopment. This would be in line with some

of Antwerp’s plans to redevelop the industrial areas north of Sportpaleis (also

north-eastern section).

Linkeroever’s response to the ring

The drawing on the following page shows the effect the ring has on Linkeroever.

Here the situation differs quite from the one of the right side of the Scheldt;

where the highway ring almost goes through the urban fabric. Here on the

left, the ring cuts through all the large-scale ecological zones, segregating the

landscape.

Looking at where the Oosterweel-link is going to be constructed, we

see that this segregating quality of the ring is only going to increase. The current

plan tries to increase the connectivity between these different zones, and

does indeed manage to do so slightly with the construction of three wildlife

crossings; one connecting the Blokkersdijk with the Sint Annabos (north), the

other connecting Vlietbos with the Rot (middle). However, there is still a long

way to go if these zones are to become a coherent whole in the ring park.

The landscape of Linkeroever can roughly be divided into two types of nature:

ecological nature to the east at the edge of Linkeroever, and functional nature

to the east towards the built-up area.

In the ecological category we find on the northern side the Blokkersdijk;

a body of water that was created by a dyke breach somewhere in the

1960s. The lake is a protected breeding area for birds and is, among other,

home to the Little grebe (Dodaars), the Gadwell (Krakeend), and the Great

crested grebe (Fuut). The water is now brackish due to seep, and can, during

mating season, be home to several thousands of birds. Parts of the lake are

accessible for pedestrains and cyclists (Natuurpunt Waasland, a). In the middle

section further south, we see the Vlietbos. A forest that is partially of natural

205

This is the Oosterweel tunnel.

The road is not completely

tunneled, there is an opening

here at Noordkasteel. The

Charles de Costerlaan will be

disconnected from the ring.

This is Blokkersdijk, a

classified breeding area for

birds originating from the

70s, when Linkeroever was

raised with sand from the

Scheldt. The lake is filled with

brackish water, and has rich

biodiversity.

This is the Sint Annabos.

A planted forest from

after WOII. The forest is

currently neglected and

not taken care of. The

forest has low ecological

value.

Wildlife

crossing

This is the Esmoreitpark;

a buffer between

Linkeroever and the haven.

This is used as a beach during the summer.


The ring is level to

the ground here.

The Vlietbos. Partially

from natural origin,

partially planted. It

is classified as

protected since

the 80s.

This is the Rot; one of the

more valuable natural areas

of Linkeroever. It is

classified as a breeding zone

for birds and is, among

others, home to a colony of

blue herons.

on Linkeroever


The ring

I I

I I

I I I

I I

I I

I I I

This barren plain is called

Middenvijver, an area that

hosts several festivals each

year. The heather is also

very suitable for walking

your dog.


also have a buffer.

The Burchtse Weel was also created

by a dyke breach. The Weel is currently

in permanent connection with the

Scheldt and subject to tidal

changes. This weel is supposed to

compensate for nature damages

because of the Ring Project.

a

on lies ring the Here

dyke.

high metre 2

Red Cross

reception

centre

I I

I I I I I

The Galgeweel is known for its

sailing and fishing. The weel

was created by a dyke breach. It

is currently connect to the Scheldt

via a lock. The water is brackish.

I

I I I I

206

Ecological vs. functional nature

Ecological vs. functional nature

Ecological

nature

Ecological

nature

Functional

nature

Functional

nature

Segregated landscape

Segregated landscape

origin and partially planted, and currently also protected as a bird area (Natuurpunt

Waasland, b). Next to it is the Rot, an ecological zone that is a remnant

of the stream the Rot from the 16th century. This area is also a bird breeding

ground and is, in anticipation of the Oosterweel-Link going to be upgraded

and enlarged (Natuurpunt Waasland, c). Concluding to the south, we find the

Burchtse weel. A body of water also created by a dyke breach. This weel is still

connected to the Scheldt, and currently functions as inundation area and bird

habitat (Beheersmaatschappij Antwerpen Mobiel, 2006). Striking is that all of

these ecological areas are breeding grounds for birds, this is something the

municipality want to maintain and strengthen, by forming stronger connections

between the zones (Municipality of Antwerp, 2013, p. 42).

The functional nature – nature with a function for the city – consists

out of the Galgeweel, Middenvijver, and the Sint Anna beach (north east of

Linkeroever). The former was created by a dyke breach, and is now home to

several sailing clubs and fish clubs. The kolk is still connected to the Scheldt

via a lock (Sint-Anneke, n.d.). Middenvijver is a large meadow-like plain in the

middle of Linkeroever, created when the area was raised with sand. It is currently

marked as park and recreation area (Municipality of Antwerp, n.d.), and

is host to several annual festivals, like Laundry Day Festival, Elrow Town Festival

Antwerpen, and Fire is Gold festival (Festival fans, 2020). The Sint Anna beach

is a popular recreational spot during the summer months with lots of cafes.

The is a remnant of the Linkeroever pre-development; the beach has been a

popular recreational destination since roughly the 1920s (Schoofs, 2003a).

In the north, we find two forests that do not fit into any of the two

categories; the Sint Annabos and the Esmoreitpark. Both consist mainly out of

populous. Their ecological value is debatable; research states that their value

is limited, and would require large investment to make them more valuable

(Michiels, 2016, p. 67). While they on the other hand have a lot of valuable

fauna (Natuurpunt Waasland, d). they were marked to be cut down, however,

(another) protest group managed to prevent this. Although the forests are

currently in very bad shape and severely neglected (Ademloos.be, 2016).

Figure 4.12

Drawing of Linkeroever with the highway

and the different ecological areas

(Google, 2020).

207

This is the Oosterweel tunnel.

The road is not completely

tunneled, there is an opening

here at Noordkasteel. The

Charles de Costerlaan will be

disconnected from the ring.

The ring is level to

the ground here.

The old dyke structure is still

visible in the morphology Burcht

and Zwijndrecht, and the

industrial area north of it.

on Linkeroever

This is the former

Tunnellaan, in the

30s this road

connected

to the Waaslandtunnel.


This line will be

picked-up as a

bicycle highway

after the ring works

are complete

The Blancefloerlaan

The Blancefloerlaan

holds Linkeroever's tram

line. Via the Brabotunnel

(1990), the tram dives

under the Scheldt.

These are the contours of

Camp Tophat, an

American repatriation

camp. Traces of the grid

structure of the camp are

still visible in the

Sint-Annabos.

The Charles de Costerlaan

The Waaslandtunnel

Also called the Konijnenpijp, was

opened in 1933 and is therefore

one of the oldest car tunnels in

Belgium. And because of its modest

dimensions, it is also one of the

most dangerous. The tunnel

currently completes the highway

ring. Pre-ring this tunnel was

connected to the Tunnellaan going

east.

The visual axis

still holds an

important place in

the urban fabric

The Onze Lieve

Vrouwekathedraal

The ring

a

on lies ring the Here

dyke.

high metre 2

Fort

Burcht

This fort is now

home to several

sailing associations.

The Sint-Annatunnel, a

bicycle and pedestrian

tunnel that opened in

1933. It is the little sister

of the Waaslandtunnel.

The Kennedytunnel

This tunnel was opened by King

Boudewijn on May 31, 1969.

Every day, about 160.000

vehicles go underneath the

Scheldt. Sadly however, most of

it at a walking pace. the tunnel is

one of the most congested and

dangerous roads in Flanders It

has been often debated to start

charging toll here.

208

Palimpsest

Palimpsest

Palimpsest

Main access roads and grid



Leftover structures on Linkeroever

The adjacent drawing shows the ring and other defining structures in Linkeroever.

We see several palimpsest-like structure in the landscape of Linkeroever,

the most prominent being the leftover grid of Camp Tophat; also visible in the

Sint Anna forest of the previous drawing. This camp was used by the US forces

during repatriation after World War 2. The camp hosted several recreational

activities like movie theatres, men’s clubs, and an ice-cream bar. Camp

Tophat also extended some distance into Middenvijver, and along the Charles

de Costerlaan (then the Tunnellaan) to the east, to the section connecting to

the Blancefloerlaan (Mundi, n.d.). This also leads us to the second palimpsest

structure; the diagonal section of the Tunnellaan connecting to the Blancefloerlaan

at the border of Zwijndrecht. The section until the highway is still in use as

access road to the sports amenities there, the section at the end of the Charles

de Costerlaan has been removed. With the disconnection of the Charles de

Costerlaan, a reconnection to its historic counterpart might be a fitting end for

the boulevard. The third structure is the historic dyke structure which has now

been petrified in the morphology of Zwijndrecht, Burcht, and the industrial

area. Coming to the final structure; the visual axis to the cathedral still holds

an important position in the urban fabric, and can be viewed all the way from

Zwijndrecht.

For the remaining structures, we find that Linkeroever is an extensive

grid structure that is partially the result of subsequent developments. This is the

case for both primary access roads; the Blancefloerlaan – the first chaussee




Figure 4.13

Drawing of the (leftover) structures of

Linkeroever (Google, 2020).

Figure 4.14

Old map of Camp Tophat (Willaert,

2014).

209

road – and the Tunnellaan – the car adaptation to the chaussee road system

of Linkeroever. Both of these east-west oriented roads were used as the basis

of Linkeroever’s current grid structure. And as we go further to the east, we

see that this grid structure also starts to become visible in the landscape, in the

earlier mentioned grid of Tophat, and the north-south axis extending from the

ring exit on Linkeroever, that is going to be picked-up as a bicycle highway in

the ring project. When looking for a border for the development of Linkeroever,

this axis might be a suitable candidate, as a, perhaps natural extension of

Linkeroever’s grid structure, combined with it being the divider of the ecological/functional

nature from the previous section.

210

211

Legend

Front facades

Rear facades

Industry

Legend

Front facades

Rear facades

Industry

Legend

Front facades

Rear facades

Industry

Block configuration - city

Organic

Orthogonal (angular)

Radial

Orthogonal

Squares - city

Convergence of streets or morphological patterns

Absence of building block

Defined around iconic building

218


Morphology of Antwerp. The drawing

also shows the industrial buildings and

whether or not front facades are facing

the ring.

Morphology of the city districts along the ring

The previous and the following pages show a summary of the morphological

analysis done on the city districts along the ring area. The full analysis with

drawings from the individual districts can be found in appendix II.

The goal of the morphological analysis was to find the basic characteristics

of Antwerp’s morphology; its configuration of building blocks, how

squares are formed, and which proportions are used in the cross sections of

its main streets: the average street, the chaussee, the park front, and quay.

These characteristics will be used to bring a familiar quality, natural extension,

and more human-scale aspect to the subsequent densification plans of the

inner-city and suburban region along the ring zone, and the expansion of

Linkeroever, and Zwijndrecht and Burcht as part of the inner-city and suburban

region, respectively.

Figure 4.16

Conclusion of the block configurations

and the formation of squares of the

morphological analysis of the inner-city

of Antwerp.

For block configuration, we find a mixed use of four types of configurations;

organic, radial, and two types of orthogonal, one with a grid structure, and

the other with angular sides. All of these are closed building block structures,

with long narrow parcels that extend to the middle of the block, in a fashion

perpendicular to the edge of the block. Corners are solved by shortening the

parcels in an overlapping fashion.

For squares, we find three types. The first is a square formed by a

convergence of streets or different morphological patterns in which built-up

area would cause spatial or infrastructural issues. The second is a square

formed by the absence of a building block. And the third is squares defined

around an iconic building, often housing certain amenities.

Regarding sections we find that street width and building height are very closely

related to each other. For the smaller streets, like the average streets or the

small chaussee road, we find ratios of either 1 to 1 or 1 to 1,5. The building

heights along the larger roads, like the large chaussee road and the Leien, are

more often related to half the width of the street. For the park front and quay

– the sections with high-rise - we find that building heights are again related

directly related in a 1 to 1 ratio to the street width. The buildings along the

sections have an average of four to five floors, except for the high-rise along

the park and quay.

Figure 4.17

Conclusion of the sections of the


of Antwerp.

219

Sections - city

Average street

Street width

=

building height

Street width

=

building height

1,5 x Street width

=

building height

1,5 x Street width

=

building height

Small and large chaussee

Street width = building height

Half street width = building height

Park front

220


Sections - city

Quay


2,5 x building width = quay width

Quay width = building height

The Leien


221

Morphology Linkeroever

Combination of facades, and loose objects towards ring road.

Sector 4

Here the grid structure

of Linkeroever that

underlies the sector

policy of I.M.A.L.S.O is

visible. This pragmatism

created a sort of fusion

between the organic

structure of the

agglomeration and the

ordered structure of

city expansions.

Low-density, free standing

villas in this area.

Sector 3

Every sector seems

like a different world

with its own type of

architecture, desity,

and accessibility.

This secor holds

semi-detached

houses.

Sector 1

semi-detached

villas here.

Sector 3

mostly

amenities

with some

high-rise

housing.

Sector 4

This is Europark; a

plain with monumental

high rise flats. A final

effort to give

Linkeroever a

cityscape. Sector 4 is currently part

of a densification strategy

called InterGenerationeel

project LinkerOever (IGLO).

Purposed with bringing

more diversity to Linkeroever.

Sector 2

This sector has mostly

semi-detached or row

houses.

Sector Galgenweel

A new residential area

is being built here: Regatta.

A neighbourhood mostly

designed for families.

Sectors of Linkeroever

222

Block configuration - city

Orthogonal

Organic

Squares - city

Convergence of streets, or inside building blocks

Figure 4.18

Conclusion of the block configurations

and the formation of squares of the

morphological analysis of Linkeroever.

Morphology of Linkeroever

The drawings on this spread show the block structure of Linkeroever, how

squares are formed, and its basic cross sections. Additionally, the drawing to

the left gives an indication of the sector division of Linkeroever, and a summary

of the basic components of each sector. The heavy line shows the response to

the ring highway, that currently informally goes through Linkeroever.

Linkeroever consists out of a mix of orthogonal and organic building block

compositions. Parcels are again long and narrow and extend to the middle of

the block perpendicular to the edge of the block, with a few exceptions when

the interior of the block is shared or public space. Corners are often left open,

in which the side of the building and back garden is visible along the edge of

the block.

Squares are made by converging street patterns, or inside building blocks.

Figure 4.19

Morphology of Linkeroever with explanation

per sector.

223

Parcel structure Linkeroever

Bl

okkersdijk

Ditches

inundation area

Long direer road

Ditches inundation area

S cheldt dyke

S c

The

Geuzen

Weel

heldt ro a d

The Rotbeek

Ditches inundation area

langen gaan weg

Short direer road

Dwarslaan

langen gaan weg

Laar road

at

Monumental axis of plan De Heem and Vanaverbeke

Traces of w et mo

224

The drawing to the left shows the parcel structure of the whole of Linkeroever.

In this structure we find remnants of the Borgerweertpolder. Most notably the

extensive ditch structure visible in the middle and top section of the district,

and the many roads that go through it. The northeast orientation of this ditch

structure could potentially be used to direct the ring park back to the east side

of the city, over the Scheldt; thereby mirroring the direction of the ring on the

south. While simultaneously bringing back a piece of Linkeroever’s history in

the shape of morphology.

In the middle section we find a remnant of the 1930s expansion plans

for Linkeroever, something that bears testament to the semi-executed plans of

the time. A broad empty strip going from the shore to the edge of Middenvijver

shows the contours of what would become a monumental axis from the plan of

De Heem and Vanaverbeke of 1933.

Figure 4.20

Parcel structure of Linkeroever with

remnants of old structures.

225

Sections Linkeroever

Blancefloerlaan - chaussee


Street width

=

building height

Charles de Costerlaan - chaussee

Average street

front garden + pavement

=

roughly building height

Halewijnlaan

226


Looking at the sections of Linkeroever, we can conclude that the immense

scale that is present in the nature zones of Linkeroever, can also be found in

its cross sections. Building heights are still related to the width of the street,

or street width and front garden, however most cross sections have an added

green middle section that sometimes doubles as a traffic corridor. The buildings

along the sections have an average of three to four floors, except for the

high-rise.

Figure 4.21

Conclusion of the sections of the


of Antwerp.

227

4.2

A densification strategy

for the ring zone

On the role of the green ring as a densifying strategy for

Antwerp's ring zone

This chapter set out to analyse the composition of the defensive structure of

the inner-city and Linkeroever and its remnants. It subsequently analysed the

spatial response of the area adjacent to the ring inner-city and suburban region.

And continued with a morphological analysis of the basic morphological

characteristics of the city districts along the ring, including Linkeroever. It did so

to answer the following three sub-questions:


Linkeroever?




the ring?

The following pages will present the main findings of these analyses as an

answer to the sub-questions, and subsequently design a plan that gives conceptual

direction to the green city ring and the densification of the city and

suburban districts along the ring, and Linkeroever as part of the inner-city of

Antwerp. While designing the plan, this chapter will lean on the findings of

the polycentric strategy of the previous chapter in which the ring park made

a connection to the water element of the Grote Omwalling of the right side

of the Scheldt and the inundation area on the left, to establish a historical,

ecological, and climatic link. This chapter also positioned Linkeroever’s diverse

recreational activities as its main economic carrier, which will be extended to

attract other amenities to the district, and give shape to Linkeroever as part of

Antwerp’s inner city.

Defensive structure of the inner-city and Linkeroever

The defence system consisted out of the Grote Omwalling on the right side of

the Scheldt, and an inundation that encompassed the north of the Omwalling

and Linkeroever. The inundation had large effect on the fortification of

the Omwalling, as the only major defence structure here was Noordkasteel,

a structure built for the purposes of defending the bent of the Scheldt river,

228

and as a last point of retreat for times when the city itself had already fallen.

Today, only a section of Noordkasteel and two small sections of lunettes are

preserved.

Linkeroever was characterised by an extensive irrigation system that

was used to transport water out of the polder when it was inundated, but it

also made the land suitable as pasture. The land was used to raise cattle. The

inundations have shaped Linkeroever’s landscape; the three large bodies of

water – the Geuzeweel, the Galgeweel, and the Burchtse weel – are the result

of dyke breaches. The later of the two are still present to day. We further see

one leftover fort at Galgeweel.

Linkeroever has two main access roads; the chaussee to Ghent, the

current Blancefloerlaan; and the Langen Gaan road, the predecessor of the

Tunnellaan giving access to the Waaslandtunnnel.

Effects of the ring on health and climate

The highway ring is crippled by congestion. Most of the highway is congested

for several hours in the morning and evening. With this congestion comes air

and noise pollution. We see that the suburbs are more susceptible for this,

because of their lower density.

On average the inner-city is 4 ºC warmer than the rural areas around

it, and 0,5 to 1 ºC warmer than the suburban region. We see that the green

radials entering the city have significant (1 or 2 ºC) effect on the temperature

of the neighbouring districts. So, the to-be-built ring park could have a positive

effect on the temperature of the city.

The city wants to increase its climate resilience by increasing its above

ground water storage and adding more green in the streets (also cooling). The

ring zone is one of the larger potential water storage zones the city is going to

research.

Spatial effect of the ring

There are four types of how the area along the ring responds to the highway.

From most to least common: the first (1) is with front facades with a green

buffer zone towards the ring. The second (2) type is loose objects, either with

or without a green buffer, towards the ring. Either residential high-rise or

large-scale amenities. The third (3) type is back facades towards the ring; an

uncompleted building block. The fourth type (4) is industry alongside or in the

ring area.

A key component of the design of the ring park should be the breaking

of the green buffer. In addition, the north-eastern side near the marshalling

yard – an area with lots of unfinished building blocks and industry in or

towards the ring – should receive special care. Relocating the industry here to

229

the suburban region and reducing the marshalling yard, would free up space

for redevelopment, and would be in line with current plans.

At Linkeroever the highway cuts through the large-scale ecological zones; resulting

in a segregated landscape. With the Oosterweel-link this seems to only

increase, with the exception of three wildlife crossings, meaning there is still a

long way to go if these different nature areas are to become a coherent whole

in the ring park. The landscape of Linkeroever can roughly be divided into two

types of nature: ecological nature to the east at the edge of Linkeroever, and

functional nature to the east towards the built-up area (nature with a function

for the city, like sailing or as a festival terrain). All of these ecological areas are

breeding grounds for birds, this is something the municipality want to maintain

and strengthen, by forming stronger connections between the zones.

Linkeroever is home to several palimpsest-like structures, the most

prominent being the leftover grid of the US repatriation camp; Camp Tophat.

We further see the diagonal end of the Tunnellaan, once connected to the

Charles de Costerlaan; the historic dyke structure in the edge of the morphology

of Zwijndrecht, Burcht, and the industrial area; and the visual axis to the

cathedral from the Blancefloerlaan.

Linkeroever is an extensive grid structure that is partially the result of subsequent

developments due to the two main east-west access roads (Blancefloerlaan

and Charles de Costerlaan). The grid is also visible in the landscape,

in the grid op Tophat, but also a north-south axis extending from the ring exit,

which is going to be a bicycle highway in the ring project. This, combined

with the divide between the two types of nature might be a natural end to the

development of Linkeroever.

Morphology of the districts along the ring

There are four types of block configurations used: (1) organic, (2) radial, and

two types of orthogonal, one with (3) a grid structure, and (4) orthogonal with

angular sides. All of these are closed building block structures, with long narrow

parcels that extend to the middle of the block.

For squares we find three types; (1) created by a convergence of

streets or different morphological patterns; (2) formed by the absence of a

building block; or (3) around an iconic building.

Regarding sections we see a 1 to 1 or 1,5 ratio (street width & building height)

for narrow streets. Building heights on wider streets, like larger chaussees or

the Leien, are often related to half the width of the street. High-rise can be

found along the parks or quays, here the building heights are again related in

a 1 to 1 ratio to the width of the street. The buildings along the sections have

230

an average of four to five floors, except for the high-rise along the park and

quay.

Linkeroever consists out of orthogonal grid and organic building

blocks. Parcels are again long and narrow and extend to the middle of the

block, when the interior is private. The corners are often open, showing the

side of the back garden. Squares are a convergence of street patterns, or

inside building blocks.

In the parcel structure we find remnants of the ditch structure of the

Borgerweertpolder, in the middle and top section of the district. The northeast

orientation of this ditch structure could be used to direct the ring park back to

the right side of the Scheldt, while simultaneously bringing back a piece of Linkeroever’s

history in the shape of morphology. We also find a remnant of the

1933 plan of De Heem and Vanaverbeke in the shape of a monumental axis

extending from the shore in the middle section to the edge of Middenvijver.

This axis could be a way to bind the middle section together in the extension

plan.

The immense scale of the nature areas is also present in the cross

sections. Building heights are still related to the width of the street, or street

width and front garden, however most cross sections have a green middle

section that sometimes doubles as a traffic corridor. The buildings along the

sections have an average of three to four floors, except for the high-rise.

Figure 4.22 - next four spreads

The densification plan for the ring

zone and Linkeroever.

231

I I

I

I

I

I

I I

In extreme weather conditions, the Scheldt

can inundate on Linkeroever. This wi l cater to a

rising water level and the Sigmaplan.

Hier volgt de morfologie de oriëntatie van het Vijfde Havendok.


I I I I I

I I

I I

The historical route along the Scheldt is restored here.

Hier begeleidt de bebouwing de ringweg.

Here another public transport

and bicycle bridge will

connect left with right.

The inundation area of

Linkeroever will be used in the

water system of the neighbouring

villages, and it will be used to give

the birds living here a better living

environment. This helps to resolve

a contemporary issue, and

improves the areas position in the

ecological zone of the Scheldt

river valley.

The historic dyke of the

Borgerweertpolder will be

petrified in the borders of

the villages here.

T= 50-1000

T= 1-50

0-1

T =

The Dwarslaan is connected to the Charles de Costerlaan

to give the boulevard a proper end.

Follows the ditches of Borgerweertpolder.

This is the

grid of

Tophat.

The morphology is guiding the important axes here.

The monumental axis of De Heem and Vanaverbeke

Middenvijver will become

an urban park for events.

The Esmoreitpark wi l get a

This zone will become car-free

The beach will get a bit larger.

bit bigger.

The Waasl

cycle and

Linkeroever will also get a quay however, denser than right side.

The quays sto

here; left and

This respond

he

I I

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I I

I I I

I I I

I I I

I I I I I I

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

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The train will go under ground here.

The borders of Zijndrecht and

Burcht will under go a

typological and morphological

transition, from semi-detached

or free standing dwellings, to

more closed building blocks and

appartment buildings,. This will

create a more urban edge.


T= 0-1

T= 1-50

T= 50-1000

I

I

These axes will get you to

all the large recreation zones

of Linkoever.

Here the train also goes underground.

This will to respond

to the buildings of Nieuw Zuid.

This is the planned

public transport and

bicycle bridge.

Nieuw Zuid is going to get a bit bigger.

T= 50-1000

The morphology is guiding the ring boulevard here.

T=

1-50

T= 0-1

The St-Annatunnel

will still bring cyclists

and pedestrian

from left to right.

A new tunnel will connect

linkeroever, together

with the Waaslandtunnel,

to the Leien. Creating a

ring around the historic

centres.

These axes are extended

in the new morphology.

Th

vi

ca

its

in

The cit

Most o

new se

to the l

Here the high rise corner will be finished.

I I I I I I I


I I I I

The two remaining

lunettes will also

receive a function in

the water system.

232

I I I I I I I I I

Hier gaat de trein

weer onder.

I

I

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I

I I I


Here the Straatsburgdok is leading.

s to t

p

right.

high rise of Eilandje.

The Kattendeijkdok is determining the direction.

andtunnel will become a

public transport tunnel.

The Onze Lieve

Vrouwekathedraal

e centuries old

sual axis to the

thedral will keep

important position

the urban fabric.

Following the Houtdok.

I I I I I


I I I I I I I

The relationship between the city

and its suburbs is going to

change when the green ring is

complete. From turning their

backs to each other, they are

now going to face one another.

This shift is facilitated by the

ring boulevards, the parks and

green corridors, the

polycentric plan from the

previous chapter, the front

facades to the ring park, by

breaking the green buffer

zones, and the relation to the

water system. The ring zone is

now also going to serve the local

scale.

The morphology follows the canal here.

Now that that the

second railway

connection keeps the

freight trains out of

the city, the marshal

ling yard can be

reduced in size, and

the building blocks

here van be finished.

I I I I

I I I

I I

T=

50-1000

get a nice urban facade.

The rainwater of the city and suburbs

will be guided to the green ring, either

above or underground. This will restore

the connection to the historic wet moat,

and cater to the contemporary issue of

climate change.

All large moments of the

Grote Omwalling and the

ring will return in the ring

park. These moments will

become larger parks in the

ring, that explicitly show

the relationship to water.

I I I

y will get a ring boulevard.

f this is already in place, the

ctions connect the right bank

eft bank.

I I I I


I

I

I

I

I

I


I

I

I

I I

I I I I I


Zurenborg can

expand nicely

here.

I I I I I I I I I

I I

I I

Morkhoven will

The suburbs will also get a ring boulevard.

The one on this side follows the track of

the planned bicycle highway. With this

boulevard, the suburbs will be better

connected to the green ring and the city.




The radial type morphology

is extended in the new

neighbourhood.

I

I

I I I

I I I

I I I

I I I



I I I I

I I

I I I I I

I

I

I

I

I

I

233

I I I I I I I I

I I I I I I I

I I I

I I

lgt de morfologie de oriëntatie van het Vijfde Havendok.


Here the Stra

llows the ditches of Borgerweertpolder.

This is the

grid of

Tophat.

Here another public transport

and bicycle bridge will

connect left with right.





The Esmoreitpark will get a



bit bigger.


The quays stop

here; left and right.

This responds to the high rise of Eilandje.


The Waaslandtunnel will become a

cycle and public transport tunnel.

The Onze Lieve

Vrouwekathedraal

Following the Ho

234

u to

nes

This will t

ll connect

her

nnel,

The St-Annatunnel


and pedestrian

from left to right.

a

The centuries old

visual axis to the

cathedral will keep

its important position


Hier gaat de trein

weer onder.

atsburgdok is leading.

utdok.



The relationship between the city


change when the green ring is

complete. From turning their

backs to each other, they are

now going to face one another.

This shift is facilitated by the

ring boulevards, the parks and


polycentric plan from the

previous chapter, the front

facades to the ring park, by

breaking the green buffer

zones, and the relation to the

water system. The ring zone is


I I I I I I I

Now that that the

second railway




ling yard can be


the building blocks


I I I I

T=

50-1000

The rainwater of the city and suburb

will be guided to the green ring, eith

above or underground. This will res

the connection to the historic wet

and cater to the contemporary iss

climate change.

All large momen

Grote Omwalling

ring will return in

park. These mom

become larger p

ring, that explici

the relationship

235

I I



of Linkoever.

his will to respond

A new tunnel will con





centres.

its important po

in the urban fab


T= 0-1

T= 1-50

T= 50-1000

I

I

Here the train also goes underground.

This is the planned

public transport and

bicycle bridge.


T= 50-1000


T=

1-50

T= 0-1



The city will get a r

Most of this is alrea

new sections conne

to the left bank.



I I I

The two remaining

lunettes will also

receive a function in

the water system.

The

is e

neig

236

I

I

sition

ric.


scale.

I I I I I

I I I

I I

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T=


I I

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ing boulevard.

dy in place, the

ct the right bank

I I I I


I

I

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I

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I

I

I

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I I I I I

Zurenborg can

expand nicely

here.

I I

I I

Morkhoven will

The suburbs will als

The one on this sid

the planned bicycle

boulevard, the subu

connected to the gr


I I I I I I




radial type morphology

xtended in the new

hbourhood.

I

I

I I I

I I I

I I I

I I I

I I I I I I

237

Here another

and bicycle b

connect left

ute along the Scheldt is restored here.




the villages here.

T= 50-1000

T= 1-50

0-1

T =


This is the

grid of

Tophat.

d in the

ighbouring

sed to give

etter living

s to resolve

and

sition in the

Scheldt

The Dwarslaan is connected to the Charles de Costerlaan

to give the boulevard a proper end.

The morphology is guiding the important axes

The monumental axis of De Heem



e train will go under ground here.










T= 0-1

T= 1-50



of Linkoever.

This w

T= 50-1000

This is the plan

public transp

bicycle brid

238

I

es underground.

Th

public transport

ridge will

with right.

ill to respond

here.

ned

ort and

ge.


and Vanaverbeke



bit bigger.

The St-Annatunnel


and pedestrian

from left to right.

A new tunnel will connect





centres.


The quays stop

here; left and right.


The Kattendeijkdok is determining the directio

The Waaslandtunnel will become a

cycle and public transport tunnel.

The Onze Lieve

Vrouwekathedraal

The centuries old

visual axis to the

cathedral will keep

its important position

in the urban fabric.


I I I I I

I I I

I I I I


I I I I I I I I I

The relationship between t


change when the green ri

complete. From turning th

backs to each other, they

now going to face one a

This shift is facilitated b

ring boulevards, the pa


polycentric plan from

previous chapter, the f

facades to the ring par

breaking the green buffe

zones, and the relation to

water system. The ring zo

now also going to serve the

scale.



T= 50-1000

e morphology is guiding the ring boulevard h

T=

1-50

T= 0-1



The city will get a ring boulevard.

Most of this is already in place, the

new sections connect the right bank

to the left bank.


I

239

I

I

I







the villages here.


This is the

grid of

Tophat.


bit bigger.

This respond

he
















of Linkoever.










s to t

high rise of Eilandje.



Now that that the

second railway




ling yard can be


the building blocks



Morkhoven will

Zurenborg can

expand nicely

here.



Legend



neighbourhood.


New morphology

Front facades

Rear facades


Industry

ditches of Borgerweertpolder.



bit bigger.





lgt de morfologie de oriëntatie van het Vijfde Havendok.


Here the Stra

llows the ditches of Borgerweertpolder.



bit bigger.



Following the Ho

This is the

grid of

Tophat.






u to

nes

This will t


Legend


New morphology

Front facades

Rear facades


Industry


This is the

grid of

Tophat.



bit bigger.





atsburgdok is leading.



utdok.





Now that that the

second railway




ling yard can be


the building blocks




of Linkoever.


get a nice urban facade


Morkhoven will




Zurenborg can

expand nicely

here.




Now that that the

second railway




ling yard can be


the building blocks




neighbourhood.

The

is e

neig



of Linkoever.

his will to respond








Morkhoven will

Zurenborg can

expand nicely

here.


radial type morphology

xtended in the new

hbourhood.


Legend


New morphology

Front facades

Rear facades


Industry

ditches of Borgerweertpolder.



bit bigger.





Current highway ring

New highway

246

Figure 4.23 - previous three spreads

Drawings of the current and new

morphology along the ring zone and

Linkeroever.

Densification plan for the ring area

The drawings of the previous spreads show a cumulation of all the components

of the densification plan for the that gives conceptual direction to the

green city ring and the densification of the city and suburban districts along the

ring, and Linkeroever as part of the inner-city of Antwerp. The plan presented

here, positions itself as an extreme scenario that examines the maximum densification

possible should the entirety of the ring be capped. Exploring what the

city could become when population growth, and climate and health issues are

used as its primary drivers. The following pages elaborate on the plan’s basic

components. The final pages of the chapter will go into more detail about the

urban plan developed for Linkeroever.

Fully capped ring

Because this urban plan is positioned as an extreme scenario, the highway ring

will be put underground in its entirety. The railway section from Zwijndrecht till

the turn inward to the city will also be put underground, as this section runs on

the same level as the ring. The drawing to the left shows the current and new

ring. All the exits have been kept, with two additions; a new exit at Linkeroever

near the new P+R structure, and an exit on the north side of the Scheldt near

the remnant of Noordkasteel (an exit currently planned), to make this area

accessibly once urbanisation starts taking place here.

The plan deliberately puts the ring underground for one main reason;

to not have to go too deep into which parts of the ring stays exposed, and

which will not. This allows us to shift our entire focus on designing the ring

park to its fullest potential; as a structure around the city that helps alleviate

some of the effects of climate change, resolves most of the air and noise pollution

caused by the ring, and gives a significant region of the inner-city and

suburbs a quality green park for recreation. Which at the same time can be

used as a catalyst for urban development, and establish Antwerp as a modern

metropole that values its inhabitant’s health, thereby serving as a magnet to

attract foreign and domestic talent to the city.

Figure 4.24

Comparison of the current (top) and

new (bottom) highway ring.

247

The ring park; a system of spatious boulevards and large parks.

The green ring as the city's water system.

248

Figure 4.25

The ring park; a system of spatious

boulevards and large parks.

The green ring

With the entirety of the ring put underground, the right as well as the left side

of the river can be developed into a quality green environment. Depending

on the side of the river, the appearance of the ring park changes. On the

right, the ring park is much more imbedded into the urban fabric of the city

and suburban region. Here the ring park will become a system of spacious

boulevards and large parks. Creating this distinction will prevent the ring park

from becoming a large ambiguous zone, and it helps to increase the connection

between city and suburb. The large parks are located on the locations

of the major moments of the Grote Omwalling and thus also the located on

the junctions of the current ring. This creates a historic link, and helps to solve

a practical problem; building on top of highways, or their junctions is much

more difficult and expensive.

On the left, the ring park will be much larger in scale. This section of

the ring park will serve as the culmination of the entire green ring, and serve

as a link to the ecological radial that is the Scheldt river valley. Establishing a

similar link as the green radials on the right side of the river.

Figure 4.26

The ring park as the city’s water

system.

As positioned in the previous chapter, the ring park will make a connection to

the water element of the Grote Omwalling and inundation area of Linkeroever.

On the right side, the wet moat of the ramparts will trace the entire length of

the park, attaching to the leftover lunettes. This will create a historic link, as

well as a functional one, as the new moat is used in the water system of the

districts bordering the ring.

On the left, a large inundation area will be made by connecting the three

large ecological bodies of water with each other, and to the Scheldt; the

Blokkersdijk, the Rot, and the Burchtse Weel. The motives for doing this are

threefold; the first reason is to improve the living environment of the birds

inhabiting the zones, and to create a more robust connection between these

three breeding grounds; something that Antwerp is very keen on doing. The

second reason has to do with climate change. Not only will the Scheldt have

a location to overflow its banks; the water system of Linkeroever and the

suburban villages of Zwijndrecht and Burcht will also be connected to it. Which

helps cater to a contemporary problem, and give the large-scale ecological

zone a functional characteristic as well; anchoring the zone in the city fabric

as green (unbuildable) area. Both of these reasons underpin the third, which

is that the constant connection between the three bodies of water and the

Scheldt, and the connection of the water systems of the neighbouring districts

will help to create an ever-changing landscape on Linkeroever. A landscape

that can sometimes be quite wet, and very clearly attached to the Scheldt river

valley; and more marshy, with a diverse range of flora (and fauna), at other

249

250

Figure 4.27

The concept of the inundation area on

the left bank.

times. This ever-changing inundation landscape can be a driver, and thus help

sell, the densification plans of Linkeroever.

To achieve this, the inundation area is divided into three main zones that correspond

to a certain storm intensity and frequency. The drawing on the left gives

a rough indication of these zones; the darker the colour, the more frequent

the area is covered with water. Designing the system in such a way insures

that visitors of the area experience the workings of it throughout the year, and

not just once every fifty or hundred years. Creating a landscape that changes

depending on the storm intensity, can also improve (if only slightly) the visitor’s

perception of the effects of climate change. The connection to the inundation

area from the city districts, and the connection to and from the Scheldt will be

regulated via a system of locks. A similar system, but compacter is used in the

water system of the green ring on the right side of the Scheldt.

Legend

Legend


T= 0,1 - 1

T= 1 - 50

T= 0,1 - 1

T= 51 - 1000

T= 1 - 50

The totality of this inundation area as described in the previous sections, will

thus create several links. A historic link to the Borgerweertpolder, a climatic

link by using it as a water system, a recreation link due to its ever-changing

appearance, and an ecological link by improving the bird habitats and connection

to the Scheldt river valley.


Two ring boulevards

The inner-city as well as the suburban region will both receive a boulevard that

traces the contours of the ring park on the left and right side of the Scheldt. At

the suburbs, this boulevard will create a better connection between the various

districts, the green ring, and the city. Here the boulevard will have to be built

almost in its entirety. The plan expands the planned bicycle highway into a

boulevard fit for cars and public transport (bus), and will result in a road that

traces contours of the ring park; with buildings on one side, and the ring park

on the other.

For the inner-city most of the boulevard is already in place, and

due to the densification along the ring zone, is also mostly imbedded in the

urban fabric of the city districts. This is the boulevard that in the current plans

receives a concentric tramline, that extends to the left bank via a new-to-bebuilt

Scheldt bridge that will function as a public transport link and bicycle

highway. These existing plans will be scaled-up in the new urban plan. The

public transport and bicycle highway will be extended to go around the entirety

of the inner-city on the left and right. The current end of the public transport

infrastructure at the Blancefloerlaan – the old chaussee to Ghent with the

visual axis to the cathedral – will be extended to the north, to join the already

planned bicycle highway. The continuation of this transport line will be used as

T= 51 - 1000

251

Connecting the centres of left and right.

Ring boulevards along the inner-city and suburbs.

Connecting the centres of left and right.

252

Figure 4.28

Two ring boulevards along the edges

of the ring park.

the defining edge of the urban plan for Linkeroever; leaving plenty of space

for the inundation area. At the northern shore, a bridge similar to the one in

the south will be constructed to visually connect the left and right side of the

river. This is done to increase accessibility to and from Linkeroever and the

Waasland, and to stimulate Linkeroever’s transition to becoming part of the

inner-city of Antwerp. In addition, this bridge can drive the development of one

of the final phases in the densification of Antwerp; the area to the west of the

remnants of Noordkasteel, at the start of the harbour. Which would be the final

step in creating a defined urban edge on both sides of the ring park.

These two concentric boulevards are intersected on multiple occasions

on both the left and right side of the Scheldt. Each of these radial intersections

is connected to one of the polycentric hubs described in the previous

chapter.

To further drive the integration of Linkeroever as part of the inner-city of Antwerp,

the direct connections to it will be improved as well. As already mentioned

in the previous chapter, the Charles de Costerlaan will be disconnected

from the ring, and reconnected to its historic counterpart; the Dwarslaan. This

will give the boulevard a proper ‘end’, create the possibility of another public

transport corridor into Linkeroever and Antwerp, and reconnect the city district

to a part of its history. At the Scheldt side of Linkeroever, an additional tunnel

for cars and public transport (tram and bus, and potentially cyclists), will be

added to the east of Galgeweel, connecting to the southern end of the Leien.

Improving the connection between left and right, and, relieving the severely

congested Waaslandtunnel, which does not meet current safety regulations.

This tunnel will in turn become a bicycle and public transport connection.

Creating the new tunnel connection between the Galgeweel and the southern

end of the Leien, will create a continues connection between the Leien, and its

counterpart in Linkeroever; via the Charles de Costerlaan and the north-south

axis the Halewijnlaan. Creating a(nother) ring around two parts of the city, this

time around its historic centres.

For a more detailed overview of the new infrastructural system see the conclusion

of the polycentric strategy of chapter 3.2.

Figure 4.29

Connecting the centres of left and

right.

253

Finishing building blocks, creating a defined city edge.

Moving industrial buildings to other areas.

Breaking the buffer zone.

254

The morphology of the ring zone

The new morphology; the new built-up area, along the ring zone on the right

side of the Scheldt was drawn by using the conclusions of the morphological

analysis as input. The main two motives were the contextual expansion of the

already existing urban fabric, and creating a defined urban edge along the

two ring boulevards. The morphology drawings a few pages back show the

more detailed considerations that went into the design of the ring area.

In general, three types of interventions have taken shape in the area around

the ring zone. The first (1) is the breaking of the buffer zone that is currently

abundantly present along either side of the ring. The second (2) is the finishing

of building blocks that currently have their back façade towards the ring, which

will cater to the defined urban edge that Antwerp want to create along the ring

park. This intervention mainly takes place along the north-eastern section of

the ring, near the marshalling yard, and parts of the suburban area. The third

(3) intervention is the relocation of several industrial buildings in and around

the ring area (possibly to the one of the industrial radials of the polycentric

strategy). This takes place starting from the marshalling yard to the north-east,

going to the west through Eilandje and the southern section of the harbour.

This continues the green ring on the northern side, and plays to one of Antwerp

current development plans for Eilandje (Municipality of Antwerp, 2000).

Figure 4.30

Concept of the morphological interventions

along the ring.

255

Here, the start of Antwerp's harbour, can,

on the long-term also be densified. The

buildings can then respond to the

high-rise of the Geuzen weel, and guide

the traffic along the new Scheldt bridge.

This is part of the

long-term development

plan for the suburban

belt of Antwerp.

This green radial can also get a lovely defined edge

This dyke structure also defines the long-term expansion plans of this neighbourhood.

In this neighbourhood - Geuzen weel - the

historic ditch structure of the

Borgerweertpolder is beautifully interwoven

with the orthogonal structure of Camp Tophat,

still visible in the structure of the old

Sint-Annebos. This blend caters to creating the

round shape to guide the ring park back to the

other side of the Scheldt, as well as

connecting to the orthogonal structure of the

existing morphology of Linkeroever.

This is the course of

the historic Rot beek.

Along the border of the inundation area the

buildings get a little bit higher. This section is

similar to the section along the quays. Here

the buildings also react to a larger scale.

The building gradually start

to get higher past the yacht club.

This is the ditch structure of the Borgerweertpolder.

A higher end to the

yacht club.

This is the grid of

Camp Tophat.

Here at Geuzen

weel the high-rise

responds to the

high-rise across the

river, and the large

scale of the harbour.

This shape is based on

an old bent in the Scheldt

dyke.

The villas will get

a defined border,

allowing its unique

spatial planning to

persist.

.

This section will also receive the

same typological transition that will

give Zwijndrecht a more urban

front.

Buildings

are a bit

higher here.

The access roads are guided by the building blocks.

The agricultural

structure here can

be used as

inspiration for the

expasion plans.

This was the old access road to

Antwerp before the chaussee roads

were straightened. At the end of this

road the buildings are a little bit

higher.

In this neighbourhood - Middenvijver -

the orthogonal structure of Camp

Tophat and the monumental axis from

De Heem and Vanaverbeke still

present in the parcel structure of

Linkeroever are blended together.

This allows the middle section to

connect to the Geuzen weel and

Galgeweel, and simultaneously

connect to Europark.

Buildings also get a

bit higher here to

mark the entrance

of the park.

The horizontal

orientation of the

blocks creates a link

between the park

and inundation area.

Here the

park border

extends to

guide de

recreational

axis.

In the park the buildings are quite tall, about

35 metres. Which is customary in Antwerp,

however, it also serves to frame the park,

and give it a certain monumentality.

The monumental axis from the plan of

De Heem and Vanaverbeke is used to

connect the middle part of Linkeroever.

The axis ends before it gets to the

edge to not interfere with the system

of the quay or inundation area.

This monumentality is increase by the addition

of a lower strip of buildings. Champ de Mars in

Paris, was used as reference for this.


Buildings are a

bit higher along

the axis.

Zwijndrecht en Burcht are

morphologically and typologically

different from the suburbs on the right

bank. In the latter you mainly find

closed (radial or orthogonal) building

blocks with row houses or apartment

complexes. Zwijndrecht, and Burcht as

well, are more rural. Meaning that

there are a lot of semi-detached or

free-standing dwellings. But also, that

the block configuration is much more

organic; the linear development of

these two villages is much more

visible.

Here the buildings can be more beautiful.

With the highway cap building can also be build here.

Because of the green radials scale, this can be a bit higher.

Here at the entrance of

Zwijndrecht the buildings

get a bit higher to create

clear entrance.

The new border that will be built along Burcht and Zwijndrecht roughly fo lows the contours of the historic Suikerdijk and B l o k k e r s dijk

At the access roads the

buildings gradually get a little

bit higher to create the

effect of a gate.

In Galgeweel, Regatta is

expanded using the

historic ditch structure,

and by building next to

the Galgeweel. Allowing

for a continues edge

around the ring parl.

Here along the borders of

Zwijndrecht and Burcht a


transition is started from

free-standing or semi-detached

dwellings to row houses and higher

apartment buildin. This will give the

borders a more urban feel.

Buildings gradually start to increase in height here to create a link to the right side.

Traces

of ditches

The building gradually start to get higher past the yacht club.

The end of the

recreational axis

holds several cafes.

Here the buildings also

increase in height to

respond to the scale

of the weel.

The high-rise of

Galgeweel responds to

the high-rise of

Nieuw Zuid.

Visual connection between towers.

The buildings gra

increase in height he

Here in Burcht,

existing patterns in

the landscape are

also used to densify.

256

The high-rise here will

act as a gate to the

yacht club and the

Esmoreitpark.

Along the new Esmoreitpark the buildings will also be higher. This park

simultaneously established a connection to the park across the river.

Here the higher buildings

mark the end of the quay.

This axis is ended to give priority to the city axes.

The high-rise here get a

solid plinth to bridge the

height difference to the

surrounding buildings.


The yacht

club also

gets a higher

edge.

The high-rise here near

the yacht club responds to

the high-rise at Eilandje.

In addition, the tower

guides the traffic

along the new road on

the quay.

The new high-rise on both

sides, creates a strong

connection between left and

right.

This orientation

connects the

middle zone.

Here the axis increases

in width to form an

elongated square to

indicate that the axis is

higher in hierarchy

This orientation

strengthens the

end of the

monumental

axis.

The buildings get higher

here to respond to the

scale of the Scheldt.

The middle part will get a quay similar to the

one on the right to facilitate recreational

activities. This difference also makes

Linkeroever more legible.

Ferry

With all the through traffic and

other major traffic going through

the Oosterweel tunnel or the R2,

the Waaslandtunnel can become

a public transport and bicycle

tunnel. The tunnel will have a key

role in the completion of the

Leien.

dually

re.

With this tunnel Antwerp's Leien will

become 'round'. This will increase

the connection between left and

right.

The buildings gradually

The high-rise here also makes a

visual link between left and right.

increase in height here.

The width of the

buildings lines up

with the width of the

warehouses on the

right quay.

This has now become public space.

The new high-rise also

marks the two historic

access roads to the

city.

The quay on the left will be less

generous than the one on the

right. This is to facilitate a

typo-morphological transition

from free-standing dwellings to

(higher) closed buildings blocks,

like the ones on the right bank.

The centuries old

visual axis to the

cathedral will keep its

important position in

the urban fabric.

257

Here, the start of Antwerp's harbour, can,

on the long-term also be densified. The

buildings can then respond to the

high-rise of the Geuzen weel, and guide

the traffic along the new Scheldt bridge.

ion plans of this neighbourhood.

In this neighbourhood - Geuzen weel - the

historic ditch structure of the

Borgerweertpolder is beautifully interwoven

with the orthogonal structure of Camp Tophat,

still visible in the structure of the old

Sint-Annebos. This blend caters to creating the

round shape to guide the ring park back to the

other side of the Scheldt, as well as

connecting to the orthogonal structure of the

existing morphology of Linkeroever.

This is the course of

the historic Rot beek.

Along the border of the inundation area the

buildings get a little bit higher. This section is

similar to the section along the quays. Here

the buildings also react to a larger scale.

The building gradually start

to get higher past the yacht club.

This is the ditch structure of the Borgerweertpolder.

A higher end to the

yacht club.

This is the grid of

Camp Tophat.

This shape is based on

an old bent in the Scheldt

dyke.

Here at Geuzen

weel the high-rise

responds to the

high-rise across the

river, and the large

scale of the harbour.

The villas will get

a defined border,

allowing its unique

spatial planning to

persist.

is section will also receive the

me typological transition that will

ve Zwijndrecht a more urban

ont.

Buildings

are a bit

higher here.













bit higher here to

mark the entrance

of the park.

The horizontal

orientation of the


between the park


Here the

park border

extends to

guide de

recreational

axis.















Buildings are a

bit higher along

the axis.

ijk

258







effect of a gate.

The high-rise here will

act as a gate to the

yacht club and the

Esmoreitpark.

Along the new Esmoreitpark the buildings will also be higher. This park

simultaneously established a connection to the park across the river.

Here the higher buildings

mark the end of the quay.


The high-rise here get a

solid plinth to bridge the

height difference to the

surrounding buildings.


The yacht

club also

gets a higher

edge.

The high-rise here near

the yacht club responds to

the high-rise at Eilandje.

In addition, the tower

guides the traffic

along the new road on

the quay.

The new high-rise on both

sides, creates a strong

connection between left and

right.

This orientation

connects the

middle zone.


in width to form an

elongated square to


higher in hierarchy

This orientation

strengthens the

end of the

monumental

axis.








Ferry

With all the through tra

other major traffic goin

the Oosterweel tunne

the Waaslandtunnel ca

a public transport and

tunnel. The tunnel will

role in the completion

Leien.



access roads to the

city.



The centuries old

visual axis to the


259












bit higher here to

mark the entrance

of the park.

The horizontal

orientation of the


between the park


Here the

park border

extends to

guide de

recreational

axis.















Buildings are a

bit higher along

the axis.




clear entrance.




effect of a gate.

The new border that will be built along Burcht and Zwijndrecht roughly follows the contours of the historic Suikerdijk and B l o k k e r s dijk

beautiful.

also be build here.

his can be a bit higher.

In Galgeweel, Regatta is

expanded using the

historic ditch structure,

and by building next to

the Galgeweel. Allowing

for a continues edge

around the ring parl.

Buildings gradually start to increase in height here to create a link to the right side.

Traces

of ditches

The building gradually start to get higher past the yacht club.

The end of the

recreational axis

holds several cafes.

Here the buildings also

increase in height to

respond to the scale

of the weel.

The high-rise of

Galgeweel responds to

the high-rise of

Nieuw Zuid.

The bu

increase in

Here along the borders of

Zwijndrecht and Burcht a


transition is started from

free-standing or semi-detached

dwellings to row houses and higher

apartment buildin. This will give the

borders a more urban feel.

Visual connection between towers.

260

This orientation

connects the

middle zone.


in width to form an

elongated square to


higher in hierarchy

This orientation

strengthens the

end of the

monumental

axis.








right.

Ferry

With all the through tra

other major traffic goin

the Oosterweel tunne

the Waaslandtunnel ca

a public transport and

tunnel. The tunnel will

role in the completion

Leien.

ildings gradually

height here.

With this tunnel Antwerp's Leien will

become 'round'. This will increase

the connection between left and

right.

The buildings gradually

The high-rise here also makes a

visual link between left and right.

increase in height here.

The width of the

buildings lines up

with the width of the

warehouses on the

right quay.

This has now become public space.



access roads to the

city.



right. This is to facilitate a

typo-morphological transition

from free-standing dwellings to

(higher) closed buildings blocks,

like the ones on the right bank.

The centuries old

visual axis to the


important position in

the urban fabric.

261

262


3D drawing of the urban plan for

Linkeroever.

The left bank

The previous spreads show the more detailed urban plan for Linkeroever as

part of the inner-city of Antwerp, and the edges of Zwijndrecht and Burcht facing

the inundation area. The following pages will elaborate on the structures

that underlie the plan for Linkeroever, and the basic components of the plan

for Zwijndrecht and Burcht.


Zwijndrecht and Burcht are morphologically and typologically quite different

from the suburbs on the right bank of the Scheldt. In the latter you mainly find

closed (radial or orthogonal) building blocks with row houses or apartment

complexes. Zwijndrecht and Burcht are more rural. Meaning that there are a

lot of semi-detached or free-standing dwellings. But also, that the block configuration

is much more organic; the linear development of these two villages

is still very much visible.

In the planned transition to becoming part of the suburban region on

the left bank of the Scheldt, and part of the ring zone, these villages will receive

a more urban edge. To achieve this the current edge of Zwijndrecht and

Burcht is shifted to the east somewhat to create a typological and morphological

transition from the current free-standing and semi-detached dwellings to

row houses and higher apartment buildings, to give the border a more urban

feel. This will not create an edge similar to the one of the suburbs on the right

side of the river, but that does not necessarily need to happen; their position in

more rural landscape, at the other side of the ecological zone of the ring park

and the Scheldt, allow these villages to maintain a less urbanised appearance.

For the position of the urban edge, the historic structure of the dyke of the

Borgerweertpolder is picked-up. This structure will be petrified in the urban

edge and the suburban ring boulevard running along it. This structure will

also define the long-term development plan of the industrial area to the north

of Zwijndrecht. While extending towards this edge and transition, the same

contextual method as was used on the right side, was employed; existing lines

in the (agricultural) landscape were used to expand Zwijndrecht and Burcht.

The capped highway to the north and south of Zwijndrecht is used as green

radials, and as limiting aspects to the expansion of the suburban region on the

left bank.

263

Linkeroever - old

Linkeroever – new and old

This spread compares the old morphology of Linkeroever to its new morphology.

The main approach was to retain as much of the current morphology

as possible. This was achieved for the most part. In the middle section most

of the existing buildings – semi-detached dwellings and loose objects - are

demolished to make way for more urban building blocks with a higher density.

To create an area that could function as Linkeroever’s centre. Most of the

high-rise in this area has been preserved and guides the main axis of the district,

although with a plinth to bridge the height difference to the surrounding

buildings.

Figure 4.32

Drawing of Linkeroever’s current

morphology.

264

Figure 4.33

Drawing of Linkeroever’s new

morphology.

Linkeroever - new

The main additions to the structure of Linkeroever are the areas next to the

inundation area. The forest Sint Annabos (top left) has been demolished, due

to its severely neglected state and low ecological value. The area of Middenvijver

(middle left) has been reduced in size and turned into an urban park,

which can hold the festivals currently held there. And Galgeweel (bottom left)

has been expanded to extend to the shore, to form a continues urban edge

along Linkeroever. The areas along the shore, which in this plan has become a

quay, in reference to the other side of the Scheldt, have received expansion to

facilitate a transition to more urban, higher density dwelling.

265

Basic orientation morphology.

Zoning of Linkeroever.

Linkeroever

of border the

Linkeroever

of zone

This will be

recreational

This will be

the centre

of

Linkeroever

the

be will This

Types of nature.

Transport options.

Ecological nature

Functional nature

Water system

Scheldt inundation area

Cars and public transport

Water

system

Water

system

Pedenstrians

and

cyclists

Water system

Water

system

Water system

Scheldt inundation area

266

Basic principles of Linkeroever’s plan

The page to the left shows the basic underlying principles of Linkeroever’s

urban plan. The basic orientation of the plan was based on establishing the

concentric movement that would bend the northern side of Linkeroever back

to the right side of the Scheldt. This was done using existing structures in the

current landscape and parcel structure. Galgeweel and the expanded bicycle

axis (now ring boulevard) guide the ring to the north, past the Charles de Costerlaan,

where the diagonal ditch structure of the Borgerweertpolder guides

it back to the Scheldt. Creating a defined edge along the entire ring zone of

Linkeroever. This movement is extended inwards to the rest of the district. The

urban edge also marks the division between what for the purposes of this

research has been dubbed ecological and functional nature. The ecological

nature is the inundation area of the ring park; the functional nature includes

the areas that hold a larger recreational function for the city (like a festival). In

line with the polycentric strategy, Linkeroever’s current recreational zones – the

Galgeweel, Middenvijver, The Sint Anna beach, and the yacht club – have

been (further) incorporated into the urban fabric of Linkeroever, and connected

to each other via a recreational axis; a boulevard that links all the larger recreational

zones together. The missing link in the neighbourhood of the previous

Sint Annabos has been filled by a larger yacht club. These large recreational

functions are positioned as the economic drivers of Linkeroever. The scale of

these areas is intentionally kept large, but clearly defined, to resonate the large

scale that has become characteristic for Linkeroever.

Together these amenities and axis form the recreational zone of Linkeroever.

The zone to the left of it creates the border of Linkeroever, which has a more

permeable structure to establish a connection between the ring park and the

recreational axis. The remaining area, the zone defined by the horizontal and

vertical axis, holds the centre of Linkeroever. Most of these areas are accessible

by car and public transport, except for a portion of the middle section, which

establishes a pedestrian and bicycle connection between the Middenvijver park

and the centre of Linkeroever.

Figure 4.34

Conceptual drawings of Linkeroever’s

urban plan.

267

Track of historic Rot beek

Ditch structure Borgerweertpolder

Rationalisation of

bend in historical

Scheldt dyke.

Grid Camp

Tophat

Border around villas

Ending

axis

Guiding park and recreational axis.

Ending

axis

Ending

quay

Connecting middle zone

Connecting

inundation area

and urban park

Monumental axis of De Heem and Vanaverbeke

Ending

monumental axis

and connecting

to the Scheldt

Conn ectin g existing ro ads.

Guiding the

chaussees

Guiding to the Scheldt bridge.

Morphological design principles.

268

Morphological design principles

The morphology of Linkeroever’s expansion plan is based on a mix of current

and historic structures. The main goal here was to improve Linkeroever’s connection

to its own history, as research has shown that most of it was lost when

the area was raised with sand. Basing the morphology on historic patterns

would bring a familiar and natural extension quality to it also found in the

morphology of the inner-city of Antwerp.

The main axes of the plan; the Charles de Costerlaan, the Blancefloerlaan

and the Halewijnlaan are accentuated by the long sides of the building blocks

adjacent to these boulevards. This is done to illustrate their movement towards

the city, and to end two dominate north-south axes in Linkeroevers current

structure. This will help create better cohesion between the northern strip.

The three new neighbourhoods; Geuzen weel in the north (top left),

Middenvijver in the middle section, and Galgeweel in the south, are all based

on a mix of historic and existing structures. In Geuzen weel, the historic ditch

structure of the Borgerweertpolder, and track of the Rot Beek is interwoven with

the orthogonal grid of Camp Tophat, still visible in the structure of the Sint-Annabos.

A blend that caters to the direction that guides the ring park back to

the other side of the Scheldt, as well as connecting to the orthogonal structure

of the existing grid of Linkeroever. At Middenvijver, the orthogonal structure of

Camp Tophat and the monumental axis of De Heem and Vanaverbeke, still

present in the parcel structure of Linkeroever are blended together. This allows

the middle section to connect to the Geuzen weel and Galgeweel, and simultaneously

connect to the Europark. In Galgeweel, Regatta is expanded using

the historic ditch structure, and by building next to the Galgeweel. Allowing for

a continues edge around the ring park.

The middle sections are connected to each other via the monumental

axis of De Heem and Vanaverbeke, and the north-south oriented building

block in between. At the crossing with the Halewijnlaan, the axis increases in

width to form an elongated square to indicate that the axis is higher in hierarchy.

At either end of the axis a private or public function can take residence.

The axis is deliberately ended before it reaches the border of the neighbourhoods,

to not interfere with the continuity of the system of the quay or inundation

area. Of which the latter forms the defined urban edge of the ring park.

Figure 4.35

Overview of the morphological

design principles of the urban plan for

Linkeroever.

Characteristic sections

The drawing to the left shows an abstract representation of the characteristic

sections of Antwerp that are applied to Linkeroever. The main motive for applying

the sections found in the morphological research (see chapter 4.1) is again

269

Response to the large scale of the inundation area. Response to the large scale of the inundation area.

Response to large scale of the harbour.

Response to the large scale of the inundation area.

Response to

high-rise

of Eilandje

Response to high-rise Nieuw Zuid.

Marks the historic

access roads to

the city.

Indication of characteristic section.

270

to bring a familiar and natural extension quality to Linkeroever that resonates

the properties found in the inner-city of Antwerp.

The main body of Linkeroever’s morphology will consist of the average street

section, with a 1 to 1 ratio or 1 to 1,5, with an average of four to five floors.

Linkeroever’s main access roads will receive the same cross section as the

chaussee roads on the other side of the river, with generally higher buildings

related to half the street width with four of five floors. Along the parks the

buildings will get higher, as is customary in Antwerp. The height of this front

will help define the scale of the park of Middenvijver and Esmoreit (top right),

but also give it a certain monumentality. For Middenvijver this monumentality

is increased by the addition of a lower strip of buildings. Champ de Mars in

Paris, was used as reference for this. Several sections in the plan receive highrise

as a means to bind it to the other side of Antwerp. The high-rise near the

yacht club (top right) will establish a visual link with the high-rise of Eilandje,

the high-rise of Galgeweel, with the high-rise of Nieuw Zuid, and the highrise

near the yacht club of Geuzen weel will respond to the large scale of the

harbour. Along the two chaussee roads – the Charles de Costerlaan and the

Blancefloerlaan – two towers will mark the historic access roads in the city,

and make the district more legible from the other side of the river. The same

concept is repeat in a more subtle way, at the entrance of the new tunnel near

Galgeweel. Along the quays of Linkeroever, and the inundation area the quay

section is applied, meaning that buildings here are generally four to five floors

and a big higher. This section is common in Antwerp when facing a large-scale

element. The new quays on the left will be less generous than the ones on the

right. This is to facilitate a typo-morphological transition from free-standing

dwellings to (higher) closed buildings blocks, like the ones on the right bank.

Figure 4.36

Overview of the characteristic cross

sections of Antwerp applied to

Linkeroever.

Legend

Large chaussee

LegendSmall chaussee

Park front

Large chaussee

Quay

Small chaussee

Average street

Park front

Quay

Average street

271

The following pages will illustrate the sections indicated on the map to the

left. The main goal here was to show the layout of the street and the different

traffic types. With the modal shift and mobility plan in mind, the sections were

adapted to facilitate wider than normal bicycle lanes, and large green public

transport corridors to cater to Antwerp’s wish to extend the green structure of

the ring park into the inner-city.

Figure 4.37

Cross sections of characteristic streets

of the urban plan for Linkeroever.

272

Sections Linkeroever - new





Building height

not related

to street width


273

Halewijlaan - chaussee

1,5 x street width

=

building height



Recreational axis - small chaussee


274

Middenvijver - park front

1,5 x street width = building height


3 x street width = building height

Esmoreitpark - park front


275

Quay - high-rise

1,5 x street width

=

building height

276

Profile width = building height

277

Quay - low-rise


2 x street width = width of quay

Edge of the inundation area - quay

2 x street width = building height


278

279

280

Conclusion

This research set out to design a strategy for Antwerp that could establish a link

between the two large structuring plans the city is going to implement in the

upcoming years – the ring project and the shift of Antwerp to their so-called

Network City. The strategy tried to allow the city to attain a more polycentric

structure, while managing to maintain a strong link between the inner-city and

the suburban regions. At the same time, it tried to apply spatial limitations to

the growth of the peripheral regions, and research ways to expand the densification

plans should the population growth increase more than expected due to

the success of the ring project. A general end date for this strategy, based on

the available planning of the city’s current plans, around 2050/2060.

The strategy was built on two assumptions. The first (1) was that the ring

project would result in the capping of the ring highway in its entirety. This

positioned the ring project as a scenario in which the ring park had the fullest

potential to attract people to the city, allowing for the exploration of a strategy

that needed to maximise its densification efforts. The second (2) assumption

was the role of the left bank of the Scheldt in the narrative of the two structuring

plans. The strategy assumes after close reading of the available literature,

that Linkeroever will become part of the inner-city of Antwerp, and that the

neighbouring villages of Zwijndrecht and Burcht, and the southernmost parts

of the harbour of Antwerp will become part of the suburban region of Antwerp’s

metropole.

The strategy’s main approach leaned on the interplay between the set: the

rampart, the traffic artery, and the park. An interaction which can be observed

in Antwerp’s past and upcoming plans. Applying this interaction allowed the

strategy to not only imbed a residential and economic component in the various

stages of the strategy, but a cultural, recreational, climatic, and historical

component as well. In addition, it allowed the strategy to establish a more

robust connection between the different regions of the city.

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Incorporating the previous paragraphs, the study thus had to provide answer

to the following research question: How can the interplay between the set, the

rampart, the traffic artery, and the park, be used to developed a strategy that

gives spatial direction to Antwerp’s metropolitan region, its suburban region,

and its inner-city?

This main question was assisted by the following three sub-questions specified

to the three city regions; (1) how can the interplay between the set give spatial

direction and definition to the metropolitan region? (2) how can the interplay

between the set create a polycentric strategy for the suburban region, while

keeping a relationship to the inner-city of Antwerp? And (3) How can the

interplay between the set give thematic direction to the green ring and create

a densification plan for the city and suburban districts along the ring, and

Linkeroever as part of the inner-city of Antwerp?

In the metropolitan region, an interplay between the rampart, the traffic artery,

and the park has created a defining green belt around the peripheral region,

that consists out of the concentric ecological structures of the Northern Parks

at the northern edges of the city, and the river valley of the tributaries of the

Scheldt at the southern edges. A structure that holds a symbiotic relationship

with the historical defence system, as both of these ecological zones hold the

peripheral fortification belts and were part of the inundation system. Infrastructurally

this belt encourages the pre-established function the tributaries and

several other transport corridors had as economic carrier between the numerous

industrial zones, and Antwerp’s neighbouring cities, Lier, Mechelen, and

Sint-Niklaas. With the addition of a bicycle highway through the ecological

zones and along the fortification belt, a stronger recreational and historical

connection is made through the defining green belt.

The strategy attempts to impose limitation to the growth of the

numerous villages in the peripheral region of the metropole by anchoring the

characteristic radial development in place. It does so with the appointment of

several additional green radials that extend from the green belt at the edge of

the metropole, to the edge of the inner-city; and by encouraging the growth of

industrial or economic activity along existing economic radials.

As a whole, the strategy in the metropolitan region tries to bind the

various city regions together through the employment of the existing radial

structure of Antwerp, in terms of economy, ecology, and recreation. However, it

also adds a third defining structure; the fortification spiral. This spiral is a subtler

structure that mediates between the radial-concentric structure of Antwerp’s

metropole, which adds a cultural and historic link between the regions, and

improves the recreational one.

282

At the suburban region, the inner fortification belt on both the left side and

right side of the Scheldt is positioned as a pearl necklace that links the various

economic, cultural, recreational, and ecological zones in the region together,

and simultaneously defines the edge of the suburban region. Here the interplay

is built on the ecological hubs and infrastructural artery that the inner fortification

belts provide. In this strategy the traffic artery – the Krijgsbaan – will

become an important public transport and bicycle corridor on both the left

and right side of the Scheldt, with an intermediate connection. The polycentric

development of this region will be carried by the major economic amenities

already present in the suburbs. The radial shape of these carriers will be fixed

in place via an attachment to multi-modal transport hubs at the edge of the

ring zone and inner fortification belt. Thereby, maintaining a certain serving

function and spatial relation to the inner-city. On the left bank, similar structures

will be put in place, although in lower density and more rural, and as the

final phase of the polycentric development.

In the inner-city region, the water element of the fortification system is used to

give thematic direction to the ring park. With the creation of a large inundation

area on the left bank, and a smaller water structure on the right. This allowed

the creation of not only a historic link, but a climatic one as well, as both of

these structures are going to serve in the water system of the city and bordering

suburbs, and the Scheldt. With the addition of the inundation area on the left,

Linkeroever is also able to strengthen its connection to the ecological structure

that is the Scheldt river valley. This large ecological structure and the extension

of the public transport and bicycle corridors, give shape to the expansion of

Linkeroever and the suburbs of Zwijndrecht and Burcht.

Linkeroever is densified and incorporated in the region of the inner-city

through a close reading of Antwerp’s morphological structure, and

reading of Linkeroever’s existing and historical structures. By doing so, an

urban plan is created that brings a familiar and natural extension quality to the

district, that is rooted more robustly in its own history, and the natural development

of Antwerp as a whole. Infrastructurally, the connection between the left

and right is improved through the construction of a new tunnel, that links the

northern and southern sections of the Leien to Linkeroever; effectively creating

a ring around the (historic) centres of both districts.

In retrospect the chosen approach of leaning on the interplay between the set

of the rampart, the traffic artery, and the park, has worked out surprisingly well.

The ability this interplay has to establish connections on a residential, economic,

cultural, recreational, climatic, and historical level is quite powerful. It

283

shows a design approach that is hands-on in the sense that it can solve or alleviate

contemporary problems in the city of Antwerp, like the development of

the polycentric structure, or assist the city in becoming more climate resilient.

However, it can also speak to the imagination of the inhabitants of the city, due

to its ability to connect the different regions of the city in a larger narrative.

Point of attention here should go to that the use of a design approach

that includes the articulation of certain components inherently leads to a

biased look while designing. The strategy in this research was actively trying

to establish an interplay between the set, even when one component of the

set was not present in a particular region. While the strategy was rooted in a

careful reading of the existing structures of all the city regions, the established

interplay between the set might have been too forced at times.

The analyses and strategies elaborated in this study mainly operate on a system’s

level; abstracting large scale ecological and socio-economic structures.

Nevertheless, the plans elaborated in this thesis are spatially more tangible

than what one might expect from strategic urban planning. The main carrier of

this is the drawing method applied throughout the analyses and strategies. By

using aerial photographs of the respective city regions as the underlays for the

drawings, the abstract ecological, socio-economic, or infrastructural systems,

are linked to their spatial manifestations in the physical reality of Antwerp’s

metropolitan region. The drawings are able to cater to the level of abstraction

- or manoeuvring space - needed to devise a strategy of this scale, while

simultaneously allowing for a more tangible, conceptual exploration of the

physical implications of the interventions the strategy proposes. It thereby, gains

the ability to mediate between the disciplines of regional planning (planologie

in Dutch) and (the peripheral spectrum of) urban design. It could, with further

research, perhaps even be employed to bridge the two.

While the effort of the strategy was to contribute to the improvement of the

existing plans for the city of Antwerp, it has touched upon, but mostly left out,

the intricate jurisdictional playing field that is Antwerp’s metropolitan region.

The 40+ municipalities that make up the peripheral areas and the suburbs,

and the two provinces that span the metropolitan region, make the creation of

an overarching strategy a difficult one. As we have seen with the plans of the

R2, the population quite has the ability to launch a successful counter offensive.

This combined with perhaps a historically more relaxed attitude towards

structural planning, may be the reason why no such plan exists. Nevertheless,

this should not stop the city, the region, or the province, to create large-scale

structuring (utopian, in the sense of this study) plans, especially given the

284

earlier notion that this strategy can give the sense that the inhabitants are part

of a larger whole.

Another topic this research has sided on purpose is the financial side

of the strategy. As we have established in the exploratory research, projects like

the ring park can easily run well into the hundreds of millions or even a billion

euros. While the main purpose of this strategy was to explore a scenario in

which maximum densification was needed, it does, again through the interplay

of the rampart, traffic artery, and park set, establish a connection with multiple

exiting plans of the municipality, the province, or the region (Gewest), which

could help provide funding. For instance, the inundation area in relation to the

Sigmaplan, or the green fortification belts in terms of preservation of heritage

and protected fauna.

This brings us to further research. While the strategy in this study has been

drafted with a careful reading of Antwerp’s past and existing structures, it still

only paints in primary colours. Further research (1) should go into analysing

the different city regions in more detail to fill in the secondary and tertiary colours

relating to economy, ecology, morphology, mobility, recreation, heritage,

and climate. Secondly (2), future researchers should get a more substantiated

view on the intricacies between the different jurisdictional borders in the region,

as well as a more detailed understanding of the protest culture of its population.

Thirdly (3), further research can go into the combining of the various

loose plans that are currently at large in the metropolitan region by different

actors, as a way to attract funding and to create a more coherent metropole.

And on a final note (4); further research should go in the development of the

drawing method employed in this study as a means to build a bridge between

the disciplines of urban planning and urban design.

285

Acknowledgements

Those that have followed my graduation year know that this period has been

far from easy; I faced academic setbacks that I never thought possible. As a

result, this project not only felt pointless at times, but endless as well. In the

end, I myself, am perhaps the most surprised at how well this urban part turned

out. On that account, I would like to thank the members of my graduation

committee; Marcel Musch and Pieter van Wesemael, for the many conversations,

feedback, and guidance during this graduation project, and during my

studies as a whole.

There are a lot of people to whom I owe thanks. People that have helped

shape me into the person I am today. Naturally, I cannot mention them all

here, however, there are a few that I do not want to leave unmentioned.

I would like to thank Pieter van Wesemael for allowing me to expand

my architecture master’s with urban design. A wish on my part that, at the

time, was predominantly fuelled by necessity and intuition, but that has turned

out to be far more rewarding than I initially thought; and has brought me into

contact with a discipline that I have since fallen in love with. In extension, I

would like to thank Sukanya Krishnamurthy for helping me regain my confidence

at a time when I really needed it, and for showing me the added value

that thorough research can bring to a design. Johan van Zoest, I would like to

thank for his sharp and – at times – wise advice; his unfaltering support during

this year; and for our many, many conversations about our shared passion: the

wickedly complex environment of cities. In addition, I am immensely grateful

for the opportunity to serve as a teaching assistant in Johan’s (our) courses at

the TU/e. A role in which he has never treated me as merely an ‘assistant’, but

as an equal partner; allowing me to greatly develop my teaching and tutoring

skills.

I would like to thank two of my fellow students in particular: Jolien

Hermans and Nick van Garderen. Combined, their support and critical feedback

has been invaluable in the creation of this thesis. Separately, I would like

to thank Jolien for her unwavering ability to speak her mind, even if I did not

want to hear it. Nick, I would like to thank for our lengthy conversations about

the field of architecture and urbanism, both in built form and in the written

word. Here is to many more years of friendship!

286

A big thank you to the employees of Architectenbureau Beckers – Jules Beckers,

Ralph Hendrikx, Sandra Beckers, and Ingrid Beckers – for the numerous

fun projects we have worked on. In my mind you become part of my extended

family. A special thank you here for Ingrid Beckers, for the attention, support,

and encouragement during my bachelor’s and master’s, that have gone above

and beyond of what a normal employer should do; resulting in a friendship

that will hopefully last me a lifetime.

Another big thank you goes to three very special ladies: Madelon Pluis,

Madeline Prickett, and Eline Steenbergen, whom have all helped me in their

own way these past months or years. Special thanks to Eline for stubbornly telling

me “you can do it” in the final months of this project, and for subsequently

telling me “I told you so” when I did indeed ‘do it’.

My final words are reserved for mom and dad, whom have always encouraged

me to follow my dreams and to never give up. Words fall short for what you

mean to me.

287

288

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1.40 - Own image.

1.41 - Own image.

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2.8 - Own image.

2.9 - Own image.



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2.12 - Own image.

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3.2 - Own image.



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3.20 - Own image.

3.21 - Own image.

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3.23 - Own image.

3.24 - Own image.



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311

312

Appendix I

List of highway caps and tunnels

313

Name City Type Country Continent Length (km) Year Use Motivation

póÇåÉó=e~êÄçìê=íìååÉä póÇåÉó qìååÉä ~òáØLlÅÉ~åáØ NIR NVVO m~êâ pÉÅçåÇ=ÅçååÉÅíáçåÖ=íç=íÜÉ=Ü~

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~åÇ=êÉÇìÅáåÖ=åçáëÉ=~åÇ=~áê=é

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314

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321

Appendix II

Morphological analysis of the ring zone of the inner-city of

Antwerp and Linkeroever.

322

Conclusion morphological analysis

Morphological response to the ring road

City - in order from most to least common

Facades

Loose objects

Backsides

323

Block configuration

City

Organic


Radial

Orthogonal

324

Block configuration

City

Organic


Radial

Orthogonal

325

Squares

City


Absence of building block

Defined by iconic building

326

Sections

City

Average street

Street width

=

building height

Street width

=

building height

1,5 x Street width

=

building height

1,5 x Street width

=

building height

Chaussee


Half street width

=

building height

327

Sections

City

Park front


De Leien


328

Sections

City

Quay




329

330

Eilandje and Schipperskwartier

Combination facades, and industry towards ring road.

Legend

Morphology with front

facades

Morphology with rear

facades

Industry

331

Block configuration

Orthogonal

Organic

Squares

Absence of building block or setback of building block

332

Sections


Oudeleeuwenrui - Chaussee

1,5 x Street width

=

building height

Street width

=

building height

Average street

333




Kattendijkdok

334

‘t Noord

Amandus-atheneum, Seefhoek, and Dam

Combination of backsides, facades, and industry towards ring road.

Legend


facades


facades

Industry

335

Block configuration


Organic

Squares

Absence of building block or setback of building block, and convergence of streets

336

Sections

Chaussee


Italiëlei


Average street

Street width

=

building height

Street width

=

building height

337

Borgerhout

Predominantly facades towards ring road.

Legend


facades


facades

Industry

338

Block configuration


Organic

Squares

Convergence of streets, absence of building block or in building block

339

Sections

Chaussee


Average street

Street width

=

building height

340

Zurenborg

Combination of facades, loose objects, industry and vacant buildings

towards ring road.

Legend


facades


facades

Industry

341

Block configuration

Radial

Squares

Convergence of streets

342

Sections

4,5 x building height = width square

Dageraadplaats - square

1,5 street width

=

building height

Chaussee

Half street width

=

building height

Average street

Street width

=

building height

343

Markgrave en Berchem

Combination of facades and loose objects towards ring road.

Legend


facades


facades

Industry

344

Block configuration

Radial

Orthogonal

Organic

Squares

Convergence of streets or in building block

345

Sections

Park front


Chaussee

Half street width

=

building height

Average street

Street width

=

building height

346

‘t Zuid en Brederode

Facades towards ring road.

Legend


facades


facades

Industry

347

Block configuration

Radial


Organic

Squares


348

Sections


Quay

Amerikalei


Average street

1,5 x Street width

=

building height

349

Nieuw Zuid

Facades towards ring road.

Legend


facades


facades

Industry

350

Block configuration


Squares

No public squares.

351

Sections


Quay

352

Linkeroever

Combination of facades, and loose objects towards ring road.

Legend


facades


facades

Industry

353

Parcel structure Linkeroever

Blo kkersdijk

sloten

inundatiegebied

langen direer weg

sloten inundatiegebied

Schelde dijk

S

c helde

de Rotbeek

de

Geusen

Weel

we g

langen gaan weg

korte direer weg

Dwarslaan

langen gaan weg

Laar weg

sporen

cht

van gra

354

Block configuration

Orthogonal

Organic

Squares

Convergence of streets, or inside building blocks

355

Sections


Street width

=

building height



Average street

front garden + pavement

=

roughly building height

356


Halewijnlaan

357

f Heren

lly

the

ity as a

e are the

urs of the

nse Omwalling -

irst paradigm.


I

sed

ic

nd

iation

a

Antwerp is on the eve of monumental change. The two large

structuring plans the city is implementing in the upcoming years

are going to transform the metropole forever. With the first

I

I I

I I

I I I I I I I I

I I I I I I I I I I

I

I

I I

I


project – the Grote Verbinding – Antwerp wants to solve traffic

congestion, and ambitiously, relocate the entire highway ring

underground and create a giant park on top of it, to increase the

cohesion between the inner-city and suburb. The second project

– the Network City – strives to shift Antwerp to a polycentric

structure, that is multimodal and short-distance. With these

strategies Antwerp tries to provide an answer to the city’s major

issues, like climate change, traffic congestion, and an increasing

scarcity of development space; and simultaneously establish

I I

itself as one of the most competitive and forward-thinking

metropolitan regions in Europe. While this is admirable, there is

however a certain duality in these two plans; striving to increase

the cohesion between the city regions, while at the same time

trying to increase their autonomy. A spatial strategy that

incorporates these projects into a larger whole is still missing.

Through a close reading of three defining moments in


I I I I I I I I I

Antwerp’s development, this graduation thesis – the Rampart, the

Traffic Artery, and the Park – tries to sketch such a unifying

strategy. A strategy that forms residential, economic, cultural,

recreational, climatic, and historical connections within the

different city regions, and establishes a more robust connection

throughout Antwerp’s entire metropolitan region.

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

large inundation area will

remember the Borgerweertpolder.

This link helps to solve

contemporary problems relating to

climate change (water system), and

restores the link to the historic fortification

spiral. Additionally, the inundation

area improves Linkeroever's

role in the ecological radial

Industrial centre

Shopping centre

that is the Scheldt

River Valley.

I I I

I

I

I

I

This area and t

area north of

Zwijndrecht are

the final section

of the ring proje

Recreation

centre

I I I


I I I I I I

I

The new industrial axis

here will also loop the

fortification spiral back to

Antwerp via the Chaussee to

Ghent, ending in Linkeroever

with a visual axis to

the Cathedral.

Agricultural radial to forest

The Krijgsbaan on

the left will be more

rural in design. The

tram line only

extends to the P+R

here; a bus

continues north.

A ferry will connect left

with right. Once the

urbanisation of the left

has started a more

permanent connection

can be researched.

ldt river valley

Industrial centre

I I I I I I

I I I I

I

I

I

I I I I I I I I I I

I

er

I

I I I I I

I

I

I

I

I

I

I

I I I

I

Industrial centre

I

I

I I I

Green ring

I

I

I

The Rampart, The Traffic Artery, and the Park; Designing for the city regions of Antwerp

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