{"id":156773,"date":"2023-06-28T12:12:07","date_gmt":"2023-06-28T10:12:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=156773"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:51","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:51","slug":"terrible-students-and-staff-would-rather-not-see-tram-7-go","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2023\/06\/28\/terrible-students-and-staff-would-rather-not-see-tram-7-go\/","title":{"rendered":"Students and staff would rather not see tram 7 go: ‘Terrible’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Several tram lines in Rotterdam, including line 7, will be shortened around 2030. Currently, line 7 still runs between Central Station and the university. University students and employees are unhappy with the prospect. “Who would come up with such an idea?”<\/p>

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\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThanh Nguyen<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Rotterdam\u2019s tram network will be reorganised<\/a> over the coming years. One of the changes is the shortening of line 7, which runs between Rotterdam Central and the university. After the modification, tram 7 will stop in Crooswijk and no longer pass through Kralingen. According to the municipality, not enough people travel by tram on this route. The Kralingen-Oost residents\u2019 association has started a petition<\/a> to keep the tram. Travellers at the tram stop near the university also voice their dissatisfaction. Whether or not they themselves will be affected, students and staff are not keen on this change.<\/p>\n

Dependent on the tram<\/h2>

\u201cTerrible, who would come up with such an idea?\u201d Marijke Poppelaars, secretary at the Legal Affairs department, is not happy about the shortening of the tram line. She takes public transport from Hellevoetsluis to campus twice a week. \u201cIf the tram disappears, I will have to transfer at Oostplein and walk quite a bit farther. In good weather that\u2019s not a problem, but the weather isn\u2019t always nice.\u201d She sees the tram as an important means for students and staff to reach the university. \u201cI\u2019ll be signing the petition.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joris Elderson (21, Law) does not have the impression there are few passengers on tram 7. \u201cIf it\u2019s actually true that very few people take this tram I think it\u2019s justifiable, but I don\u2019t think that\u2019s the case.\u201d He goes to campus two or three times a week and is fairly dependent on the tram. \u201cI cycle to the Meent and then catch a tram to university. I could cycle the whole stretch but that\u2019s just a bit too far, so I\u2019d rather not.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hannah (21, International Business Administration) rarely takes the tram in normal circumstances, but an injury currently prevents her from cycling when it\u2019s raining. \u201cIt\u2019s a nuisance to lose this option. Suppose your bike breaks down or gets stolen: then it\u2019s nice to be able to take the tram.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fare dodging<\/h2>

Yazan Marashdeh (20, International Bachelor of Economics and Business Economics) wonders if the municipality has an accurate picture of how much the tram is actually used: \u201cIt\u2019s a student line, which means many people don\u2019t touch in. Maybe the municipality is unaware of how many people actually take this tram.\u201d He rides it almost daily and regularly avoids paying: \u201cI only touch in when I see inspectors.\u201d Yazan thinks he would go to campus less often if there were no tram and thinks it\u2019s a great loss: \u201cI like the tram and I don\u2019t see the point of taking it away. The tracks are already there; how much money can they really save?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a cost-cutting measure, plain and simple\u201d, says Bernard Kats, secretary of the Kralingen-Oost residents\u2019 association. \u201cAnd this at a time when the city is growing and the population is ageing\u201d. Kats denounces the municipality\u2019s philosophy of profit: \u201cIt doesn\u2019t work in the case of public transport, which is a public utility.\u201d<\/p>\n

Easy cuts<\/h2>

The municipality wants to replace the trams with buses, something Kats is not in favour of, especially in view of people with mobility problems: \u201cJust try getting on the bus with a walker.\u201d If trams are replaced by buses, his association fears for the future of public transport in Kralingen. After all, buses are easily scrapped when making cuts: \u201cThat\u2019s done in the blink of an eye, of course. If the bus is also underused, it\u2019s easy to decide to end the service altogether.\u201d\u00a0 Nor is the metro an alternative, according to the residents\u2019 association, as only a single metro station (Voorschoterlaan) lies within reach of Kralingen.<\/p>\n

The municipality believes removing the tram tracks will improve road safety for cyclists<\/a> by preventing tram accidents and allowing for speed humps. The Kralingen-Oost residents\u2019 association, however, is sceptical, fearing that the Oudedijk and \u2019s Gravenweg roads will turn into race tracks. \u201cTrams slow things down a bit and calm down the traffic\u201d, says Kats. In his view, the plans are unsound. \u201cWe can\u2019t fathom it. Why remove a tram line that\u2019s been there for 130 years?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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