Beatrixpark
Bridge 417 is the link on the Beethovenstraat between Oud-Zuid and Buitenveldert. It is also the bridge that a resident of that same Beethovenstraat crossed every day to walk his dog in the Beatrixpark. Until that fateful day in July 2014, when this Joep Lange and his partner Jacqueline van Tongeren were killed on their way to a conference in Australia, together with 195 other Dutch nationals. The story also intrigued writer and Beethovenstraat resident Frank van Kolfschooten. He launched a campaign to have the nameless bridge in his street named after Joep Lange.
Frank van Kolfschooten
Journalist Frank van Kolfschooten has been working on the stories of the Beethovenstraat for thirty years. The 'Queen' of Berlage's famous Plan Zuid has a rich past and continues to reveal new stories to this day. He recorded these stories in his book 'Beethovenstraat'.
A bridge to no man's land
A few more words about the Joep Langebrug itself. It was completed just before the start of the Second World War. An interesting detail is that at the time the bridge led nowhere at all. The area south of the bridge was undeveloped land where events could be held. It was not until the 1950s that the first houses appeared and the Beethovenstraat was extended further south.
