Amsterdam Centraal

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Amsterdam Centraal station at night
Amsterdam Centraal station at night

Amsterdam Centraal (Asd) is the Centraal Station (Central Station) of Amsterdam. It is one of the main railway nodes of the Netherlands. Maps: [1] [2] [3]; photos [4], [5]

It is also the starting point of Amsterdam metro lines 51, 53, and 54.

The station is being reconstructed with the construction of the North/South Line (metro line).

Amsterdam Centraal was designed by P. J. H. Cuypers and Al Van Gendt, and opened in 1889.

The Tokyo Station building is patterned after the Amsterdam Centraal.

Contents


[edit] History

Amsterdam Centraal was designed by P. J. H. Cuypers and Al Van Gendt, and opened in 1889. The building sits on three man made islands, themselves resting on 8,687 wooden piles which are driven deep into the mud and sand. The city of Amsterdam had originally hoped to build the Centraal Station in another location; possibilities included near the Leidseplein, the Weesperplein, or in the vicinity of modern day Sarphatipark. Officials in The Hague, however, felt that the location at the head of the city, along The IJ, was the best location. This was a highly controversial decision, as it would effectively cut off Amsterdam from its own waterfront, making it, for all purposes, an inland city. In his book Amsterdam, Geert Mak writes that

Almost all of Amsterdam's own experts and others involved in thought this to be a catastrophic plan, 'the most disgusting possible attack on the beauty and glory of the capital'. Nevertheless, the building of the Central Station in front of the open harbour was forced through by the railway department of the Ministry of Transport in The Hague, and the Home Secretary, Thorebecke. Finally, the plan made its way through the Amsterdam municipal council by a narrow majority. (Mak 1994)

[edit] Railway Lines

Previous Line Next
Terminus   Thalys
Amsterdam-Paris		   Schiphol
Terminus   CityNightLine
Pegasus		   Utrecht Centraal
Terminus   CityNightLine
Pollux		   Utrecht Centraal
Terminus   InterCityExpress
Amsterdam-Frankfurt		   Duivendrecht
Terminus   GoLondon
Amsterdam-London/Norwich		   Schiphol
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam-Brussels Intercity		   Schiphol
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam-Zandvoort/Uitgeest		   Amsterdam
Sloterdijk
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam-Breda		   Amsterdam
Sloterdijk
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam Centraal-Den Haag Central		   Amsterdam
Sloterdijk
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam-Vlissingen		   Amsterdam
Sloterdijk
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport		   Schiphol
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam-Leeuwarden/Enschede/
Groningen Intercity		   Amersfoort
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam-Rotterdam Stoptrein		   Amsterdam
Muiderpoort
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam-Utrecht/Nijmegen/
Maastricht/Heerlen Intercity		   Amsterdam
Amstel
Amsterdam
Amstel		   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Utrecht-Den Helder Intercity		   Amsterdam
Sloterdijk
Terminus   Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Amsterdam-Enkhuizen		   Amsterdam
Sloterdijk

[edit] Railway station layout

Amsterdam Centraal station in the 19th century.
Amsterdam Centraal station in the 19th century.

There are 15 tracks, of which 11 along a platform:

  • 4 island platforms with on both sides tracks along the full length (tracks 4/5, 7/8, 10/11, 13/14)
  • 1 side platform with 1 track along the full length (15)
  • 1 bay platform / side platform with 2 tracks (1/2)

10 of the 11 tracks along a platform have an a- and a b-side (all except track 1), hence there are 21 places where a train can be positioned for getting on and off.

One with on one side track along the full length (track 2), on the other side there is track only at the west end (track 1; bay platform), along the rest of the platform is the station building.

Tracks 3, 6, 9, and 12 have no platform.

Diagram (platforms are yellow, tunnels are grey, north is up):

           
 
15a ========== ========== ========== ========== 15b
14a ========== ========== ========== ========== 14b
 
13a ========== ========== ========== ========== 13b
12a ========== ========== ========== ========== 12b
11a ========== ========== ========== ========== 11b
 
10a ========== ========== ========== ========== 10b
9a ========== ========== ========== ========== 9b
8a ========== ========== ========== ========== 8b
 
7a ========== ========== ========== ========== 7b
6a ========== ========== ========== ========== 6b
5a ========== ========== ========== ========== 5b
 
4a ========== ========== ========== ========== 4b
3a ========== ========== ========== ========== 3b
2a ========== ========== ========== ========== 2b
 
1 ====
Railway Schiphol to Amsterdam Centraal (part of line 10), with stations (municipalities in bold) and official station abbreviations:
Railway Haarlem to Amsterdam Centraal (part of line 10), with stations (municipalities in bold) and official station abbreviations:

[edit] Amsterdam Metro

Amsterdam Centraal is also a major station on the Amsterdam Metro, with three of the four lines terminating there.

Previous Line Next
Terminus   Amsterdam metro
Line 51		   Amsterdam Nieuwmarkt
Amsterdam Rokin   Amsterdam metro
Line 52 (under construction)		   Amsterdam Van Hasseltweg
Terminus   Amsterdam metro
Line 53		   Amsterdam Nieuwmarkt
Terminus   Amsterdam metro
Line 54		   Amsterdam Nieuwmarkt

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  • Mak, Geert. "Amsterdam, A Brief Life of the City", The Harvill Press, 1999, Translated from the Dutch by Philipp Blom, Originally Published in 1994.

[edit] External links

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