Amsterdam street where 17-year-old Lisa was killed long known for safety hazards
Over the past two years, the municipality of Amsterdam has received more than 100 reports of broken streetlights along the Holterbergweg, the secluded road where 17-year-old Lisa was murdered last month, Pointer and AD report. The location has long been considered unsafe.
“It has been my fear spot for years,” said a woman previously interviewed by Pointer. “If something happens there, no one will hear you.”
The area is not only poorly lit and isolated but also heavily overgrown, limiting sightlines. Alternatives are scarce: women report that cycling along the A2 or Amstel River is similarly unsafe.
Officials from the nearby Emma Children’s Hospital confirmed repeated complaints about the poor lighting and dense vegetation. They said that attempts to report issues through the Ouder-Amstel municipal app often led to delays or referrals elsewhere, as the Holterbergweg falls under Amsterdam’s jurisdiction.
“Before I heard anything back, months often passed,” said one staff member. “Sometimes they said the problem was fixed, but it wasn’t always. Other times, I was told to contact the municipality of Amsterdam and had to report it again.”
The hospital has introduced measures to reduce risk: colleagues coordinate rides together, security staff accompany employees to public transport after dark, and police patrols around Holendrecht station have increased.
A municipal spokesperson said delays in repairing streetlights stemmed from capacity issues at utility provider Liander, but reports for the Holterbergweg are now being prioritized.
“It is embarrassing that it took an incident for action to be taken,” said Ouder-Amstel council member Frans Slats (VVD), noting that streetlight problems have been raised multiple times in council meetings each year.
Lisa was killed on August 20 while cycling home in Abcoude after an evening out. A 22-year-old man was arrested the following day in Amsterdam for a separate sexual offense. On August 22, police announced that he was also a suspect in Lisa’s murder and is believed to be connected to a third sexual offense. His identity has not been publicly released.
