Hierarchy & Scale, Project Rijnland

Within Randstad's complex urban system, the Rijnland region with Leiden city as core takes up a special position. No other region in the Randstad is so centrally located and so well connected to the national highways and train network as well as to the international airport Schiphol as Rijnland. This is why the region in the report from the workshop Werkweek Deltanet held in October 2003 became awarded with a strategic role for the further development of the Randstad: "...beside Schiphol Airport the Region Rijnland is the only connector that is accessible for almost 3 million households within 30 minutes. Rotterdam, Den Haag and the Zuidas of Amsterdam are following with some distance. A further development of Leiden fits with the strategic position of the Schiphol-Leiden axis within the Randstad and supports the integration of Randstad's north and south wing. Leiden's position is not only based on its centrality within the mobility network, but also in cultural and historical terms the city (and the region) plays an important part. The historic centre is well preserved and attracts tourists from all over the world. Moreover, the University of Leiden is the oldest university in the Netherlands. It has the highest ranking in the international competition, and its bioscience centre gains international fame. Furthermore, the coastline in the west with its wide beaches and dune landscapes offers attractive possibilities for recreation, the Duin en Bollenstreek area in the north of Leiden is internationally famous for the cultivation of tulips and attracts trade, business and tourism. However, in spite of all centrality and attractiveness the region's growth and development until now was less productive than Randstad's other parts. Compared with other regions, economy and employment are growing on a lower level, foreign directed investment is barely present, and the housing production is even falling behind. This delay is not caused by spatial limitations. Actually, the region has more space available for future developments than other parts of the Randstad: Rijnland's east and south parts still offer opportunities for new building activities, and the former airport Valkenburg in the west provides space for large scale developments in an attractive environment. Obviously, until now the region seems to be less attractive for investors, or is overburdened with constraints making development more difficult in Rijnland than in Randstad's other regions. To face the contradictions between potentiality and reality, in 2005 the project Proeftuin Rijnland2 started up with the aim to investigate the region's constraints and limitations and to explore future possibilities for a stronger development than the present situation. The inquiry mainly focused on the spatial dimension and tried to give an answer on the following questions: • Which spatial factors imped the region's further development? • Which spatial interventions can improve the region's competitiveness? Special attention is given to the issues of centrality and accessibility: Questions such as how to make use of the central position of the region, and how to improve the internal and external accessibility were taken into account. The approach of Proeftuin Rijnland was based on a combination of research and design explorations (research by design). The research intended to set forth the reasons for the region's relative stagnation, and to define aims and 'assignments' for spatial interventions. In this framework the following issues were investigated: • Foreign direct investment and regional growth; • Centrality and economic development; • Hierarchy and scale in the infrastructure network; • Policy framework, regulative restrictions and strategies.