Netherlands 25: Riding the Velostrada from Leiden to Den Haag

Inspired once again by one of Bicycle Dutch’s post, on our first full day at Duinrell, I headed out for a quick ride along Velostrada, a direct cycling route between the cities of Leiden and Den Haag.

Watch full-length video at normal speed Riding the Velostrada from Leiden to Den Haag

Velostrada is a designed to be a high-quality continuous route linking the outskirts of Leiden and Den Haag. It was largely developed between 2010 and 2015 and like the F28 fast cycle route, follows the route of railway between the cities.

As usual, I highly recommend reading Bicycle Dutch’s post, which provides much more detail on the route, plus a summary of the review by ANWB, the Royal Dutch Touring Club.

Surprisingly, given the number of times we’ve stayed nearby, I’ve never actually ridden along Velostrada before, though I’ve crossed it multiple times over the years, at different points along the route.

Setting off from Duinrell, I made my way towards Leiden, arriving at the N206 Doctor Lelylaan, the dual carriageway running between the A44 and A4 motorways. At the time I was there, this section was closed for resurfacing, which was leading to a lot of congestion on nearby roads.

Crossing the N206 Doctor Lelylaan, being resurfaced

I continued along the N206 to the Churchillbrug bridge, on the cycle path running parallel. This was a nice wide bidirectional path, largely with a green median separating it from the road. After enjoying views of the Rijn, I made my way along to the start of Velostrada.

Passing under the N206, through the Leewatertunnel, I carried on over the Stevensbrug, a bus and cycling bridge across the Rijn. From there, I made my way along Rijndijk and Dobbedreef, to arrive at De Vink station where Velostrada begins.

Crossing the Rijn on the bus and cycling bridge, Stevensbrug

De Vink is typical for the stations along this route, with a decent cycling underpass passing under the station and lots of cycle parking. This is pretty standard for most Dutch stations, where even small commuter stations have better cycling facilities than the majority of UK mainline stations.

I was now on Baron van Heemstrapad at the start of Velostrada, making my way towards Den Haag. At this point, I was on a bidirectional path of smooth grey asphalt, that was reasonable width, but not the widest for a fast route. Though it was pretty straight, with street lighting.

Turning on the Baron van Heemstrapad cycle path

After turning onto Tuinderspad and crossing the canal, I continued along Gershwinpad as the rain started to come down. The path continued in a similar style along here and was pleasant to ride along, except for the rain.

The path became Oranjewatering, as I crossed the canal again and turned onto Van Wassenaerlaantje. I was soon on Geestwoningpad as I passed Voorschoten station. This is somewhere we’ve ridden past many times before, passing under the railway tracks.

As another commuter station on the line between Den Haag and Leiden, Voorschoten is much larger than De Vink, with a lot more cycle parking. Again, it’s impressive how integrated cycling is with rail, enabling people to combine the two modes to extend the reach of their journeys.

After passing the station, I continued along Geestwoningpad, which followed in a similar style as it ran parallel to the railway tracks. Along here, I stopped at a sign commemorating the Voorschoten train crash, which happened on 4th April 2023.

The crash was something I was unaware of until I saw the sign. It occured when a freight and passenger train collided with construction equipment obstructing the line. The driver of the crane was tragically killed and many people were injured.

Signage about the 2023 Voorschoten train crash

No definitive cause was established in the investigation carried out by the Dutch Safety Board (OVV), following the crash, though questions were raised about the safety of construction workers on the line.

I continued along Geestwoningpad as trains passed and the weather started to improve. I soon crossed the canal once again, then arrived at the Horst en Voordelaan tunnel, which carries both cycles and motor traffic on a shared carriageway.

Horst en Voordelaan tunnel under the railway

Built in the early 1970s, this tunnel passing under the railway definitely feels a bit dated now. The experience riding through it more akin to something you’d find in the UK, particularly if you’re mixing with traffic, so it’s definitely due an upgrade.

After leaving the tunnel, I was now back on a cycles only path, on Oude Veenpad. This was much more pleasant than the tunnel, with fantastic views across the Duivenvoordse en Veenzijdse Polder and cows relaxing in the sunshine.

This didn’t last for long, as it was time to pass under the railway once again, in another dated tunnel, in need of an upgrade. Like with the Horst en Voordelaan tunnel, this tunnel was highlighted in the ANWB’s 2019 review for having multiple issues, no doubt due to its age.

Passing under the railway on Oude Veenpad

Leaving the latest tunnel, I turned onto Tuinenlaan, which is the beginning of a fietsstraat (cycle street), where cars are guests (in theory). This is done to allow cars to access the various residential streets along Tuinenlaan.

Fietsstraten (cycle streets) succeed or fail largely on the amount of motor traffic they carry. As once you get too much traffic, the ‘cars are guests’ principle becomes nonsense. Traffic levels are largely driven by whether through traffic is allowed or not. So to succeed, through traffic shouldn’t be allowed or be really inconvenient.

The fietsstraat continued onto Kastelenring, until it reached Zijdesingel, where cycles carried on straight onto a cycle path, while cars turned off onto a road. At this point, I was surrounded by water and green space, with apartment blocks looking over.

While Zijdesingel started as a bidirectional path, it wasn’t long before it turned into another fietsstraat as I continued towards Den Haag. It then returned to a cycle path Zijdepad, before becoming another fietsstraat, Appelgaarde.

This switching between fietsstraat and cycle path is very common, with the intention to remove through traffic. It was along the fietsstraat on Appelgaarde that I had a near miss with a little dog running out into the road, with its owner chasing after it! Fortunately, I’d already spotted it and started to slow down.

Fietsstraat (cycle street) on Appelgaarde

The official Velostrada route ends at the end of Appelgaarde, at the junction with Hofzichtlaan. At this point, you can continue further into Den Haag, but on local routes, rather than Velostrada.

It was time for me to head back, so I turned back on myself along Appelgaarde, then took the turning for the cycle tunnel that runs parallel to the main N14 Noordelijke Randweg tunnel, known as the Sijtwendetunnel.

Approaching the underpass under the railway, next to N14 Noordelijke Randweg

The Sijtwendetunnel are actually three connected tunnels on the N14, the Vliettunnel, the Parktunnel and the Spoortunnel. The Vliettunnel passes under the Vliet canal (unsurprisingly), while the Parktunnel passes under a park and residential area and the Spoortunnel passes under the railway.

This tunnel is newer than the others I’d passed through, opening in 2000, according to the inscription above the entrance. Though this tunnel isn’t any better than the others, as it’s just as narrow, with unforgiving kerbs.

Selfie on the path next to N14 Noordelijke Randweg

Coming out of the tunnel, the cycle path gradually rises up above the height of the N14 as it continues parallel to the road. Separating the cycle path from the road is a large concrete wall, with a section filled with sound barriers.

Cycle path next to N14 Noordelijke Randweg

On the left of the cycle path is a large green area, with lots of trees and apartment blocks set back behind them. I assume the apartments are the reason for the sound barriers, rather than the cycle paths, though I could be wrong. Anyway, I don’t remember road noise being an issue.

Apartment blocks next to N14 Noordelijke Randweg

I continued along the path next to the N14, crossing to the other side at the junction with Bezuidenhoutseweg. I made my way along the opposite side until I reached the N44 junction, where I crossed over and turned right onto the N44.

Turning off into the woods surrounding Kasteel de Wittenburg, I made my way back through Wassenaar, following the route to Duinrell along Stoeplaan, Groot Haesebroekseweg and Jagerslaan, eventually arriving on Storm van ‘s-Gravesandeweg, where Duinrell is located.