The Fietspad Book w/ Roy Symons

In this episode, I connect with Burnaby, BC-based transportation engineer Roy Symons, for a chat about his beautiful book fietspad: A Journey Through The Netherlands Documenting its Bicycle Infrastructure that he recently published. We also talk about his journey as a classically trained civil engineer from Scotland to a passionate advocate for the creation of active mobility infrastructure in his new home of British Columbia, Canada.

Not surprisingly, Dutch cycle paths (fietspaden) and other forms of Dutch cycling infrastructure, such as the fietsstraat (bicycle priority street) are featured prominently in this episode.

Thank you so much for tuning in! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend and subscribe to the Podcast on your preferred listening platform, and don't forget to check out and subscribe to the Active Towns Channel for more content.

Helpful Links (note that some may include affiliate links to help me support the channel):
- Roy's blog Rolling in the City
- Roy on Twitter/X
- Roy's firm
- Order the Fietspad book
- Continuous Sidewalks and Bike Paths - Canada
- Melissa & Chris Bruntlett
- My episode with Jeff Speck
- My episode with Todd Litman
- Todd's tour of Victoria
- My episode with Dale Bracewell
- My most recent episode with Matt Pinder

Books referenced:
- Smart Growth Manual in the Active Towns Bookshop or Amazon
- Tactical Urbanism: Short-term Action for Long-term Change in the Active Towns Bookshop or Amazon   
- Walkable City in the Active Towns Bookshop or Amazon
- Happy City in the Active Towns Bookshop or Amazon 
- Curbing Traffic in the Active Towns Bookshop or Amazon

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1. Join our Patreon community. Contributions start at just $1 per month
(Note: Patron benefits include early, ad-free access to content and a 15% discount in the Active Towns Merch Store)
2. If you enjoyed this episode, you can also "leave a tip" through "Buy Me a Coffee"
3. Pick up some Active Towns #StreetsAreForPeople Merch at my store

Credits:
- Video and audio production by John Simmerman
- Music via Epidemic Sound

Resources used during the production of this video:
- My recording platform is Ecamm Live
- Editing software Adobe Creative Cloud Suite
- Equipment: Contact me for a complete list

For more information about the Active Towns effort or to follow along, please visit our links below:
- Active Towns Website
- Active Towns on Twitter
- Periodic e-Newsletter

Background:
Hi Everyone! My name is John Simmerman, and I’m a health promotion and public health professional with over 30 years of experience. Over the years, my area of concentration has evolved into a specialization in how the built environment influences human behavior related to active living and especially active mobility.

Since 2010,  I've been exploring, documenting, and profiling established, emerging, and aspiring Active Towns wherever they might be while striving to produce high-quality multimedia content to help inspire the creation of more safe and inviting, environments that promote a "Culture of Activity" for "All Ages & Abilities."

The Active Towns Channel features my original video content and reflections, including a selection of podcast episodes and short films profiling the positive and inspiring efforts happening around the world as I am able to experience and document them.

Thanks once again for tuning in! I hope you find this content helpful and insightful.

Creative Commons License: Attributions, Non-Commercial, No Derivatives, 2024

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