In the Policy Document City Water, adopted by the city council in November 2024, the ambition is to create more official swimming locations in the city. Alderman Susanne Schilderman (Public Space): “Utrecht has beautiful water, and with spring in full swing and summer approaching, more and more people want to swim in the city. Additionally, we need to adapt to the changing climate. This also means ensuring safe places to swim. Therefore, we commissioned a study that identified two promising locations: The Werkspoorhaven and Noorderpark-Ruigenhoek. It is great that we are now a step further in developing new swimming spots where Utrecht residents can swim and cool off in the future.” 

Promising locations

On behalf of the municipality of Utrecht, Tauw BV investigated five locations, focusing on safety, water quality, accessibility, and costs. The study considered four unofficial swimming locations where Utrecht residents often swim—Muntsluis, Veilinghaven, Amelisweerd, and Noorderpark-Ruigenhoek—and the Werkspoorhaven as a potential future swimming location. Two spots stand out as promising for official swimming water: the Werkspoorhaven and Noorderpark-Ruigenhoek. Especially the Werkspoorhaven offers opportunities for future realization. The site is within the municipality, and the municipality owns the harbor. Also, co-owner of the quays, Erfgoed Werkspoor Utrecht BV (EWU), is positive about the idea of further investigating feasibility. 

Whether swimming can actually take place here in the future depends on freeing up financial resources. The investment costs estimated by Tauw BV range between 1 and 2 million euros, with annual operating costs of 100,000 to 300,000 euros. The municipality will discuss with Erfgoed Werkspoor Utrecht BV to explore under what conditions the swimming location can align with the future developments of EWU at the Werkspoorhaven. Additionally, further research is needed on the impact of shipping on the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal for the safety of future swimmers.

Noorderpark-Ruigenhoek also comes out as promising from the study. The potential swimming location falls under the Recreation Board Stichtse Groenlanden, of which the municipality of Utrecht is a part. Part of the area also lies in the municipality of De Bilt, which must also agree to the establishment of an official swimming location. The possibility of a swimming location has been included in the Future Vision 2040 of the Recreation Board Stichtse Groenlanden. The municipality of Utrecht is in consultation with the parties involved about the further development of this swimming location.

Safety and information 
There are 3 official places to swim in open water in Utrecht: Strijkviertelplas, Voorveldse Polder, and Haarrijnse Plas. Swimming in shipping lanes is not allowed. The other investigated locations—Muntsluis, Veilinghaven, and Amelisweerd—are found unsuitable for development into official swimming water. Factors such as steep quays, shipping traffic, insufficient water quality, and a lack of support from local residents play a role here. The municipality will continue to actively promote swimming safety information at locations this summer, just like last year, through information boards and digital channels. 

Next steps
The municipality will engage with stakeholders to further develop the plans for the Werkspoorhaven and Noorderpark-Ruigenhoek. If you want to know where you can swim safely in your area, visit www.zwemwater.nl