Cycling in Utrecht without traffic lights

The dream of every cyclist: cycling without traffic jams, stoplights and intersections. Without traffic, without pedestrians, without others on the road. Come on, let's do that. In the Netherlands, you have to deal with many other road users, and although some cyclists feel like the king of the road, you still have to share the road with them. It helps if you can find a route that is almost completely without traffic lights. When you go cycling in Utrecht, Well, the province has some possibilities to drive a route from the city itself without traffic lights. We drove one in the west, via the beautiful Harmelen to Woerden, then towards Linschoten, Oudewater and via the road from Montfoort to our starting point. The number of traffic lights from the city border? Just one! Would you like to join us?

From the heart of Utrecht

You can actually take this route from anywhere in the city We start, but almost all of them have one thing in common. They drive a nice stretch of the Leidseweg out of the city. From Jaarbeurs you have a beautiful wide bike path. At first you have to be careful here because you do experience some traffic and city cyclists. Once past the intersection with the Pijperlaan and Joseph Haydnlaan, the fun begins. We drive out of the city via the Meernbrug, over the Amsterdam-Rijnkanaal. Here you turn right onto the hill, along the Pedal and under the A2 towards the Meern. You now have the Leidsche Rijn on your right and after a kilometer you cross it and follow the sandy road.

Beautiful road surface

This road was made for cycling. It is very wide, well paved, and you basically have priority everywhere. You do drive through the built-up area, but because of the water and the spacious layout, you get the impression that you are in a rural area. The Zandweg, as it is called, is therefore anything but sandy and runs essentially uninterrupted to Harmelen. Past the center of De Meern, where you have to be careful for a while, the landscape opens up before you. On the right you see fields and a single greenhouse, on the left more fields, behind the water. After more than 10 kilometers you reach Harmelen and turn onto the square in front of the church, the Kalverstraat, to immediately turn right again and take the Uitweg. Here you ride wonderfully sheltered from all traffic on a beautiful bike path.

Woerden

Just before the railway, we turn towards Woerden. Here you follow the railway and you now arrive at the training ground of world champion Ellen van Dijk. Here too you have plenty of space, except for a few walkers who are letting their dogs out. Just have a nice ride on this bit of the bowling lane. You now drive into Woerden for a while, but after a few hundred meters you turn left onto Cattenbroekerdijk. Many will recognize this section, especially if you have ever driven the A12 in a car. There is a viaduct that bears this name and you therefore also drive over it. The path after that has a slight climb. You can also train well here if you would like to. Because of the viaduct you have a sharp bend to the right. It’s a good opportunity to test your cornering technique before you go on a cycling holiday.

Linschoten by the water

We are now heading towards Linschoten. Here it is already a lot wider and here we also encounter the only traffic light. Although. We could have avoided this, but a mistake in the route means that we have a traffic light. We have to cross the N-road and that is not possible without any delays. They drive quite fast here. Then we turn towards Linschoten and near the village we turn right towards the water, the Lange Linschoten. This stretch is beautiful. You drive past Linschoten Estate, there are a few farms and the water meanders very nicely towards Oudewater. It is better to drive on the right side of the water, because it can sometimes be busy with traffic from the hinterland and farmers. On an early Saturday or Sunday you hardly notice that.

(old) Water

That I, Sander, am a fan of water, some people will probably know. For me, there is nothing more beautiful than the Kop van Zuid, Hotel New York, and then watching. Water has something magical. The water from the Lange Linschoten quivers a little. It is, to put it bluntly, a rather large pond. Yet it is one that winds beautifully, which makes it so beautiful. I don’t know what it is, but it really gives you peace. In the summer it is extra beautiful, with the knotwillows along the side. With the end point of Oudewater, you also have a natural stop for coffee or to rest your legs for a moment. That is also necessary, because driving through the town requires some road knowledge and caution as well.

Variation on a theme

We drive this route back towards Montfoort, but from Oudewater you can choose from a multitude of route variations. Often we continue towards Polsbroek, and then you have the choice to go back via the inner route or via the Lekdijk. If you continue through towards Haastrecht, you can follow the Vlist and you will end up in Zilverstad Schoonhoven. If you choose that route, then Ruben You can also head up via Haastrecht, join Woerden on the way back, and head back via the water or via Nieuwkoop for a big round.

Waardsedijk

After a rolling route through the city center, we continue along the Waardsedijk via the town hall and the cemetery. Here again you have kilometers of world to yourself. Wide road, some traffic, but no big trucks or idiots on the road. You can train here nicely or you can get along well with a group. Sometimes there is a traffic bottleneck, but that’s about it. Eventually you come to Montfoort where you encounter the N204 and you have to cross it via a roundabout. After that you still follow the Hollandsche IJssel and at Achthoven you have to stop for the crossing. Still, the stoplight meter is at one (1). You now drive towards De Meern, but it is advisable to take the Heycop loop there. This is a favorite training loop of the Utrecht cycling club CS030 and it is also wonderfully quiet here.

Back along the Leids Rhine

After exiting the Heycop, you drive under the A12 and here you encounter traffic lights two. Unavoidable haste, but yeah. You now drive briefly through the industrial area and there is also traffic light three because of the bus lane, but that is green 95% of the time. Then you drive back against the Leiden River and with a turn to the right you can already see the Meern Bridge. After a long 50km you are back at the start. This route is really recommended for anyone who wants to cycle calmly. You can extend the route with loops, with an extra round of Heycop, with variation at Linschoten and more. That is why, the ideal route for cycling Utrecht, Almost without traffic lights from the heart of the city!

Route

This is the route we took. For more routes and inspiration, check out the other articles and our account on Komoot. There you can download, customize, and save multiple routes.