Expo A16 connects you with the people who will create and use the A16 Rotterdam. Planners, builders, residents and nature managers describe the making of the highway. They also intimately acquaint you with the enormous challenges that arise when constructing a state-of-the-art, energy-neutral road. At Expo A16, you get answers directly from the people involved.
On view
New
Highway
Expo A16, Bergschenhoek (NL)
How do you build a highway in a densely populated area with a nature reserve running through it? How do you prevent viaducts, bridges and tunnels weighing hundreds of thousands of kilos on top of soft peat soil from sinking? And who builds these highway components? You will discover the answers in the Expo A16 experience center where the new A16 Rotterdam becomes a reality. We designed and produced this project turnkey, and developed the content and shot the video material in-house.
Upstairs, you enter Expo A16 on a walkway overlooking an enlarged map of the construction area in the center of the room. An auditory and visual presentation projected onto the map explains why the new road and tunnel had to be built now. The animation transports you through time, revealing the region’s evolution through topographical changes and historical events. From hunter-gathers to motorists today, you can witness how humans have always adapted their environments to the needs of their time.


Downstairs, you can ‘meet’ the people involved in the highway’s construction as you move throughout the map. You take a thematic journey of discovery through the region with a specially designed interactive cart. Four choice routes provide different perspectives. You can choose between nature, mobility, integration and technology routes. At each destination, they can watch films in which builders, engineers, foresters, policymakers and residents talk about that specific location. Immersive, 360-degree videos speculate what the location will look like in the future. Throughout the map, we zoom in on ten complex challenges and their corresponding innovations and solutions. We explain the solutions with objects, animations and infographics.
Our entire design concept is circular. The exhibition’s pavilion is a modular, reusable structure filled with highway building materials. Some of the materials have had a previous life. After Expo A16 closes, builders will either reuse or repurpose these signs, tires, asphalt, scaffolding, and traffic lights. But for now, these materials transform the building into so much more than a roof over your head. They help bring to life the story of how we adapt our environment to our needs.