Transport in the Netherlands

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Transportation in the Netherlands

Rail transport
Operations
Stations
Trains
Locomotives
Rolling stock
History
Terminology
By country
Disasters
Modelling
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Contents 1 Rail transport 1.1 Railway tracks 1.1.1 New tracks operated since December 2003 1.1.2 New lines under construction 1.1.3 Non-electrified lines 1.2 Railways for public transport 1.2.1 International trains 1.2.2 Night service 1.2.3 Off-Peak Discount Pass 2 Public transport in general 3 Other public transport 3.1 Metro 3.2 Tram / light rail 3.3 RandstadRail and other light rail projects 3.4 Bus 4 Cycle ways 5 Highways 6 Waterways 7 Pipelines 8 Ports and harbors 9 Merchant marine 10 Airports 11 Ministry 12 See also 13 External links 13.1 Maps showing all streets and also public transport

[edit] Rail transport

[edit] Railway tracks

The Netherlands has an extensive and much-used railway network, connecting virtually all cities and many towns with each other. Trains are frequent, with two trains per hour on most lines in the country, up to 8 or 10 trains an hour between the big cities. Trains are divided into stoptreinen (stop trains, stopping at all stations), sneltreinen (fast trains, stopping in bigger towns) and intercities, providing fast connections between the bigger cities.

• all standard gauge (1.435 m) (from 1839 till 1864: 1.945 m, see 6ft 4.625" (1945 mm) and [1]; it was changed because Germany and Belgium had 1.435 m, see [2])
• total: 2809 route-km, 6505 track-km
• electrified 2061 km (2001), 1500 volt DC, see w:nl:Elektrificatie#Nederland.
• single track: 931 km.
• 3,004 level crossings, of which 2,144 are protected.

ProRail takes care of maintenance and extensions of the national railway network infrastructure (not metros or trams), allocating rail capacity, and traffic control. The rail capacity supplied by ProRail is used by five public transport operators (see below) as well as cargo operators: Railion, ERS, ACTS, Rail4Chem. Also there is Herik Rail, with seven carriages, where trains can be chartered for parties, meetings, etc.

Not operational is the NESM Nostalgie Expresse.

See also europa.eu.

[edit] New tracks operated since December 2003

• Hemboog between Schiphol/Amsterdam-Lelylaan and Zaandam, bypassing the crossing at Amsterdam Sloterdijk (see [3]) Hemboog at Amsterdam Sloterdijk. It provides a direct connection between Schiphol and Zaandam / Hoorn. It would also allow a direct train service from Schiphol to Alkmaar, but that is not provided yet.
• Gooiboog between Hilversum/Naarden-Bussum and Almere Muziekwijk (see [4])
• Utrechtboog (map) between Schiphol/Amsterdam-Rai and Bijlmer/Utrecht, bypassing the crossing at Duivendrecht. More information (in Dutch) on [5].

[edit] New lines under construction

• The HSL Zuid (see below)
• A freight line from Rotterdam to Germany, the Betuweroute.
• The Hanzelijn project is a planned railway line Lelystad-Dronten-Kampen and upgrading of the stretch Kampen-Zwolle. This is also supposed to replace the deemed too expensive maglev line Amsterdam - Almere - Lelystad - Emmeloord - Heerenveen - Drachten - Groningen (city).

There are two crossings of regular railway lines, both non-level and with a station providing stops on both lines: Amsterdam Sloterdijk and Duivendrecht. A third crossingis under construction east of Zoetermeer, also non-level but without stops, one line is the HSL Zuid.

[edit] Non-electrified lines

(with timetable number)

• Groningen-Delfzijl 84
• Groningen-Roodeschool 83
• Groningen-Nieuweschans Grens 85
• Groningen-Leeuwarden 80
• Leeuwarden-Harlingen 81
• Leeuwarden-Stavoren 82
• Zwolle-Kampen 63
• Zwolle-Wierden 65
• Almelo-Marienberg 72
• Zutphen-Hengelo 73
• Enschede-Glanerbrug Grens 522
• Zutphen-Apeldoorn 67
• Zutphen-Winterswijk 71
• Arnhem-Winterswijk 70
• Arnhem-Tiel 68
• Nijmegen-Roermond 29
• Landgraaf-Landgraaf Grens 525

[edit] Railways for public transport

• operated mainly by Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS), minor parts by NoordNed, Syntus, Connexxion, DB Regionalbahn Westfalen, and (from Dec 2004) Prignitzer Eisenbahn (PE Holding AG, Arriva) (for the latter two, see Enschede); all have a common tariff system.

Most trains have 1st and 2nd class; some local trains belonging to local railway operators NoordNed and Syntus only have 2nd class.

See also:

• Train routes in the Netherlands
• Railway stations in the Netherlands
• Trains in the Netherlands

[edit] International trains

• Amsterdam C - Schiphol Airport - The Hague HS - Rotterdam C - Dordrecht - Roosendaal - Antwerp - Berchem - Mechelen - Brussels Noord - Brussels C - Brussels Zuid). Also known as The Benelux train. See also Train routes in the Netherlands#Train number series (series 600). This service will be replaced in 2007 by the HSL-Zuid.
  • The train has a multisystem locomotive which can use 1500 volt DC (Netherlands) and 3000 volt DC (Belgium).
• Thalys [6]: Amsterdam C - Schiphol Airport - The Hague HS - Rotterdam C - Antwerp Berchem - Brussels Midi -Paris Nord; twice a week also to Marne-La-Vallée-Chessy (Disneyland Resort Paris)
  • The train can use 1500 volt DC (Netherlands), 3000 volt DC (Belgium) and 25000 volt AC 50 Hz (France).
  • High-speed between Brussels and Paris.
  • HSL Zuid-project: a new high-speed railway is being built between Schiphol Airport and Brussels.
• Amsterdam Centraal - Berlin Ostbahnhof, Germany, has stops in the Netherlands at::
  • Amsterdam Centraal
  • Amersfoort
  • Deventer
  • Hengelo
  • (further see Transportation in Germany)
• Amsterdam Centraal - Frankfurt Hbf, Germany and Basel SBB, Switzerland and once a day City-NightLine further to Munich, Germany and]] and Vienna Westbf, Austria, partly by ICE [7], has stops in the Netherlands at:
  • Amsterdam Centraal
  • Duivendrecht (not all trains stop here)
  • Utrecht Centraal
  • Arnhem
  • (further see Transportation in Germany)
• Maastricht- Brussels direct train

See also Rail transport by country#Europe.

[edit] Night service

There is a night service, called Nachtnet (Night Network, although it is just a single U-shaped line) with a hourly service connecting Rotterdam Central, Delft, The Hague Central, Leiden Central, Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam Central, Utrecht Central (i.e., most of the large cities in the Randstad as well as the main airport). Due to the U-shape, the travelling time from the first four stations to Utrecht is longer than during the day. (Other little map, also showing the railway line itself)

edit this map

[edit] Off-Peak Discount Pass

In Dutch: Voordeelurenkaart

For trains in the Netherlands there is an Off-Peak Discount Pass for €55/year, giving a 40% discount. Its validity starts at 09:00 AM (until 4:00 AM the next morning) on weekdays, and all day at weekends and in July and August. In the case of a group of up to four people, all get the discount even if only one has a pass.

Rail passes not requiring an additional ticket come in two versions: for a fixed route, and for the whole network. Both are mainly used by commuters. No off-peak discount version of these passes is offered since there is insufficient demand; commuters usually cannot avoid the rush hour.

[edit] Public transport in general

Metros and trams usually run from around 06:00 until midnight. There are night buses in a number of cities, but only on Friday and Saturday night in the smaller ones. Sometimes these will only run during the first part of the night, or in one direction only; e.g. the Connexxion-Niteliner.

A public transport pass for train (2nd class), bus, metro and tram costs 3360.50 euro/year (2006). It is also valid on the ferries Vlissingen-Breskens, Amsterdam-IJmuiden and Rotterdam-Dordrecht. It is not valid on most other ferries, nor on the Thalys. Night services by train are included, those by bus are not.

The pass will not be valid on the HSL-Zuid.

[edit] Other public transport

All metros and trams and almost all buses share the National Tariff System (nl) . For buses exceptions are:

• neighborhood buses (small 8-person vans driven by mostly elderly volunteers in lowly populated areas; operated by bus companies but with different tariff system)
• night buses
• some bus services that are mainly for pleasure, such as serving an amusement park or beaches, e.g.:
  • special summer bus service from Zandvoort train station to the south side (near the nude beach) and to Bloemendaal aan Zee

[edit] Metro

(all standard gauge (1.435 m))

• Amsterdam, Diemen, Ouder-Amstel, operated by Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedrijf (GVB) (GVB site, Urbanrail site)
  • power 750 volt DC
• Rotterdam, Schiedam, Spijkenisse, Albrandswaard, Capelle aan den IJssel, operated by Rotterdamse Electrische Tramweg Maatschappij (RET); see Rotterdam metro.(RET site, Urbanrail site)
  • power 750 volt DC
  • The eastern parts of the system have some level crossings (with priority), and could therefore be called light rail instead of metro; however, they are integrated in the system; these parts have overhead wires, while the rest has third-rail, the vehicles can handle both.

[edit] Tram / light rail

See also: Trams_in_Europe(nl)

All have standard gauge (1.435 m).

• Amsterdam, Diemen, Amstelveen, operated by GVB
  • power 600 volt DC, length 80,5 km

• Rotterdam, Schiedam, operated by RET
  • lines: 1 Schiedam Woudhoek - CS - De Esch, 2 Charlois - Lombardijen NS, 4 Molenlaan - CS - Heemraadsplein, 5 Schiebroek - CS - Willemsplein, 7 Spangen - CS - Woudestein, 8 Spangen - CS - Oostplein, 20 CS - Lombardijen, 23 CS - Beverwaard, 25 CS - Carnisselande, total length appr. 100 km^[1]

• The Hague, Rijswijk, Leidschendam-Voorburg, Delft, Nootdorp, operated by HTM
  • power 600 volt DC, total length unknown

• Utrecht, Nieuwegein, IJsselstein, operated by Connexxion (light rail in the sense of intermediate form between tram and train, with its own right-of-way, with level crossings with priority).
  • Stops for both branches: Moreelsepark - Stadsbusstation - Westplein - Graadt van Roggenweg - Ziekenhuis Oudenrijn - Vijf Meiplein - Vasco da Gamalaan - Kanaleneiland Zuid - Westraven - Zuilenstein - Batau Noord - Wijckersloot - Nieuwegein Centrum.
  • Further stops on Nieuwegein branch: Merwestein - Fokkesteeg - Wiersdijk - Nieuwegein Zuid.
  • Further stops on IJsselstein branch: St. Antonius Ziekenhuis - Doorslag - Hooge Waard - Eiteren - Clinckhoef - Achterveld.

• Houten, operated by NS (light rail line, could be called metro, though not underground, with its own right-of-way, without level crossings).
  • power 1500 volt DC (tram has been adapted with a so-called 'downchopper' to allow the use of this higher voltage), overhead wires
  • picture: [8]

[edit] RandstadRail and other light rail projects

RandstadRail (named after the Randstad agglomeration) connects Rotterdam, The Hague, Zoetermeer and the suburbs in between with each other.

• The Erasmus Line of the Rotterdam metro system goes all the way to The Hague central station. In the near future this metro will continue towards southern Rotterdam. At the moment it terminates at Hofplein.

• RandstadRail lines 3 and 4 in The Hague are lightrail connections from The Hague South to Zoetermeer. Existing tram tracks in The Hague are adapted for the longer and wider vehicles.

See www.randstadrail.nl, [9] (pdf), and [10].

• RijnGouweLijn between Gouda and Alphen aan den Rijn. For more information and future developments, see RijngouweLijn.

There are plans for the construction of a light rail line between Maastricht and Kerkrade and converting the Dordrecht - Geldermalsen railway line into a light rail service.

[edit] Bus

Both regional and city buses can be found throughout the country. Because of the extensive train system, the number of long-distance buses is limited to a few missing railway connections.

A special bus line around Amsterdam is the Zuidtangent, which has largely its own bus lane, with priority at crossings.

Route: Station Haarlem - Hoofddorp - Schiphol (railway station) - Amstelveen - Amsterdam Zuidoost

Arnhem has a trolleybus system.

Bus companies include Arriva, Connex, Connexxion, Hermes, NoordNed, Syntus.

[edit] Cycle ways

The Netherlands have a very high amount of well-constructed bicycle lanes. Biking is a common way of transport, and there are big bicycle parkings near stations.

See Cycling in the Netherlands for further information.

[edit] Highways

total: 125,575 km
paved: 113,018 km (including 2,235 km of expressways)
unpaved: 12,557 km (1998 est.)

See List of highways in the Netherlands

[edit] Waterways

5046 km, of which 47% is usable by craft of 1000 metric ton capacity or larger, see List of waterways and [11].

[edit] Pipelines

crude oil 418 km; petroleum products 965 km; natural gas 10,230 km

[edit] Ports and harbors

Amsterdam, Delfzijl, Den Helder, Dordrecht, Eemshaven, Groningen, Haarlem, IJmuiden, Maastricht, Rotterdam, Terneuzen, Utrecht, Vlissingen)

[edit] Merchant marine

total: 563 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,035,899 GRT/4,576,841 DWT
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 343, chemical tanker 41, combination bulk 2, container 56, liquified gas 20, livestock carrier 1, multi-functional large load carrier 8, passenger 8, petroleum tanker 25, refrigerated cargo 32, roll-on/roll-off 16, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 5 (1999 est.)
note: many Dutch-owned ships are also operating under the registry of Netherlands Antilles (1998 est.)

[edit] Airports

Schiphol, the Amsterdam airport, is the main airport in the Netherlands, and the fourth largest in Europe. There are also a number of regional airports, the most popular being Eindhoven Airport, Maastricht Aachen Airport, Rotterdam Airport and Groningen Airport Eelde. See List of airports in the Netherlands

[edit] Ministry

Transport in the Netherlands falls under the Dutch Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management.

[edit] See also

• Train routes in the Netherlands
• Railway stations in the Netherlands
• Trains in the Netherlands

• Category:Roads in the Netherlands
• Category:Road transport in the Netherlands

• Transportation in Europe
• Transportation by country

[edit] External links

• Public transport in the Netherlands:
  • http://www.9292ov.nl/
  • Planned train departures in the next hour (up to 20 trains) from 83 stations, real-time adjusted for delays
  • National Tariff System (bus, tram, metro)
  • http://homepages.cwi.nl/~dik/english/public_transport/
  • First Experiences with Tendering at the Tactical Level (Service Design) in Dutch Public Transport
• train schedules for the whole of Europe (Deutsche Bahn site)
• Netherlands light-rail projects
• Light Rail Atlas
• Public transport to beaches (zip-file) - from Den Helder to Hoek van Holland, with map showing railways and bus lines, and showing km-pole numbers, used for defining beach locations.

Railway maps:

• http://www.treinen.demon.nl/map/ns2.htm (with intercity routes colored)
• Map with distances
• http://railweb.techsite.cz/mapy/mnls.jpg (with table numbers used in the paper version of the timetable)
• http://trainspotting.buekkes.de/maps/benelux-network/benelux-network.gif - (whole Benelux, indicating single or multiple track and electrification)
• Schematic maps of all tracks, switches and platforms: http://www.sporenplan.nl/html_nl/sporenplan/ns/ns_normaal/start.html
• http://www.spoorzoeker.nu/spoorkrt/spk1850.htm - maps showing development of the railway network since the first track in 1839; see also [12].
• For railway stations and surroundings, see also Railway stations in the Netherlands#Maps.

Line maps for other public transport:

• Amsterdam [13]
• Arnhem [14] (not up-to-date)
• Dordrecht and Werkendam [15] (consists of part of the NS map mentioned below with bus lines added)
• Eindhoven [16], [17]
• Nijmegen [18]
• Renesse [19]
• Roosendaal [20]
• Rotterdam [21]
• The Hague all, tram, bus
• free buses The Hague - Noordwijk/Oegstgeest [22]
• Utrecht (city) [23]
• Zoetermeer [24]

• Arriva maps, various parts of the Netherlands
• Friesland
• East of Gelderland (Syntus)
• Limex (southwest of Limburg)
• Fast Ferry Rotterdam - Dordrecht
• Border areas (with info in Dutch)
• Coastal areas: see above.

The maps by Carto Studio's, though meant only as examples, may also be of some use.

Oddly and unfortunately, for large parts of the Netherlands bus line maps do not seem to be available on the web. However, they are often posted at bus stops and can sometimes also be obtained on paper in bus information offices (sometimes in a less detailed version, e.g. without bus stops being marked). Connexxion has 13 maps on paper that can be sent by mail on request, see Connexxion maps.

[edit] Maps showing all streets and also public transport

General map showing railways and stations well (i.e. also in smaller scales), but, oddly, without station names:

• NS rail travel planner - contains a detailed map of the whole country; to view a location, specify it as destination and choose an arbitrary point of departure, then ask for the route map of the post transport from the station. If you specify "Public transport" as means of pre or post transport, you will be redirected to http://www.ovr.nl with the corresponding map.

General maps showing railways well, but stations only in larger scales,

• Multimap - with station names
• Vialys - with station names popping up

General map showing railways well, but stations only when highly zoomed in, and no station names:

• Yellow pages / Telephone directory - A map (plattegrond) is provided after searching for a company or person; if one just wants to use the map, do an arbitrary search like [25], select Plattegrond and by zooming out and selecting an area to zoom in go to any part of the map.

Of these three, only the NS map shows metro lines, without stations, and none show tram or bus lines. www.ovr.nl shows only the single bus stop concerned on the map, not the line or the other stops.

For general maps see also Geography of the Netherlands. There are hardly any maps on Internet that show virtually all streets as well as tram or bus lines (the maps of Dordrecht and Werkendam mentioned above seem to be the only ones, with on the latter not all lines). However, such maps are available on paper for many cities.