Utrecht Centraal

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Utrecht Centraal is the central railway station for the city of Utrecht in the Netherlands. It is the largest railway station in the Netherlands in both terms of size and passenger volume, with fourteen passenger tracks (of which three are terminal station) on seven platforms.

International, national and local services call at the station, most notably the InterCityExpress trains to Frankfurt and Basel, Intercity services to the northern and southern Netherlands, and local commuter services providing access to the Randstad settlements.

[edit] History

The first station at the site was opened in 1848, when the Nederlandsche Rhijnspoorweg-Maatschappij opened the first station on Utrecht territory. In 1938, the station became the central station as lines from Hilversum and Blauwkapel were diverted after the demolition of the old Maliebaanstation.

Until the 1970s, the station building dated back to 1865, with a fundamental renovation taking place in 1936. That station building was demolished in the 1970s to make way for Hoog Catharijne, then Europe's largest undercover shopping mall, which opened on December 17, 1973. In 1989, the station hall was enlarged to include another platform.

[edit] Trains calling at the station

The following train lines call at the station:

• 100 ICE Amsterdam Centraal - Utrecht Centraal - Arnhem - Frankfurt am Main – Basel SBB
• 300 CityNightLine Amsterdam Centraal – Utrecht Centraal – Zürich HB
• 500/20500 Intercity Den Haag Centraal/Rotterdam Centraal – Utrecht Centraal – Amersfoort – Groningen
• 800/900 Intercity Haarlem – Amsterdam Centraal – Utrecht Centraal – 's-Hertogenbosch – Eindhoven – Maastricht/Heerlen
• 1700/21700 Intercity Den Haag Centraal/Rotterdam Centraal – Utrecht Centraal – Amersfoort – Enschede
• 2000/2800 Sneltrein Den Haag Centraal/Rotterdam Centraal – Gouda – Utrecht Centraal – Arnhem (peak time service to Nijmegen)
• 3000 Intercity Den Helder – Alkmaar – Amsterdam Centraal – Utrecht Centraal – Arnhem – Nijmegen
• 3500 Intercity Schiphol – Utrecht Centraal – 's-Hertogenbosch – Eindhoven (spits: verder tot Maastricht of Roosendaal)
• 4900 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal – Hilversum – Almere Oostvaarders
• 5500 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal – Baarn
• 5600 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal – Amersfoort – Zwolle (does not call at stations between Utrecht en Amersfoort)
• 5700 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal – Hilversum – Amsterdam Zuid WTC – Leiden
• 5900 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal – Driebergen-Zeist – Veenendaal – Rhenen
• 6000 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal Geldermalsen – Tiel/'s-Hertogenbosch
• 7400 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal – Amersfoort – Barneveld – Ede-Wageningen
• 7500 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal – Arnhem (spits)
• 8800 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal – Woerden - Alphen a/d Rijn – Leiden Centraal
• 19600 Stoptrein Utrecht Centraal – Geldermalsen