Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’ bike path. Every bike path should look like this :)

Innovations

The beautiful bike path that was inspired by Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’

By Matt McFarland November 17 at 9:48 AM

Daan Roosegaarde describes his work as “techno-poetry.” (Studio Roosegaarde/Heijmans)

Designer Daan Roosegaarde and Dutch construction company Heijmans have teamed up again, this time delivering a solar-powered bike path.

The 600-meter route opened last week in Eindhoven, Netherlands. It’s a follow-up to the glowing highway the team built outside the Dutch city of Oss. Both charge in the daytime and glow at night. The bike path is launching now as an early start to celebrating the 125th anniversary of painter Vincent van Gogh’s death, which falls on July 29, 2015.

The project, which was funded in part by the local and provincial governments, received an investment of  $875,000. The path may be a selling point for tourists interested in visiting the region to explore the painter’s roots. Van Gogh painted his first masterpiece, “The Potato Eaters,” in nearby Nuenen.

The path is full of stones that glow green and blue. (Studio Roosegaarde/Heijmans)

Here’s a close-up look at the path. (Studio Roosegaarde/Heijmans)

A cyclist rides on the path. (Studio Roosegaarde/Heijmans)

Matt McFarland is the editor of Innovations. He's always looking for the next big thing. You can find him on Twitter and Facebook.