Referendum on Lange Wapper

Unpopular project put to the popular vote

The people of Antwerp are to vote on the controversial Lange Wapper project to close the Antwerp ring. Some 66,158 people signed a petition calling for a referendum, which was presented to Antwerp mayor Patrick Janssens by the action group Ademloos (Breathless). The mayor agreed to hold a referendum on 18 October, which will be the first in the city's history.

The referendum will ask people to choose between two projects - a combination of tunnel and viaduct (the Lange Wapper) close to the city centre, or a tunnel running from the left bank of the Scheldt to Ekeren, which takes traffic away from the centre of town. The Mobile Antwerp Management Agency (BAM) designed the Lange Wapper proposal, while Arup-SUM produced the competing tunnel plan.

The BAM project was recently blocked following an objection from a restaurant owner whose business lay below the proposed viaduct (see Flanders Today, 8 July). It has also met with fierce criticism from environmental groups because it leads heavy traffic over residential districts. But the competing tunnel project also has its drawbacks.

The results of the referendum will not be binding and the final choice rests with the Flemish government.

(July 22, 2009)