In the Netherlands there is a tradition to create concentrations of primary schools (school islands) in new town quarters. The Dutch school system with its ‘freedom of education is described. A quantitative analysis of the relation between the number of new dwellings and the number school islands per municipality is presented. It shows that the tradition is widespread, but not generally accepted. The primary motive for creating school islands was financial, but the supposed superior quality of education in ‘broad schools’ leads to more and bigger islands. This is worrying because it enhances car use in school travel with the inherent consequences for traffic safety and obesity. A coordinated design of local traffic networks and school location planning may mitigate these developments. (Author/publisher)
Abstract