Amsterdam–Haarlem–Rotterdam railway


Amsterdam–Haarlem–Rotterdam railway

Rijswijk station
Overview
Status Operational
Locale The Netherlands
Termini Amsterdam Centraal railway station
Rotterdam Centraal railway station
Operation
Opened 1839-1847
Operator(s) Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Technical
Line length 86 km (53 mi)
No. of tracks Double track
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) Standard gauge
Electrification 1.5 kV DC

The railway from Amsterdam through Haarlem to Rotterdam (also: Oude Lijn, Dutch for "old line") runs from Amsterdam Centraal to Rotterdam Centraal through Haarlem.

From December 2011 it is used by all direct trains from Amsterdam to The Hague, and all direct supplement-free trains from Amsterdam to Rotterdam except those through Woerden.

History

It contains the oldest railway line in the Netherlands, and follows the old trekschuit canal route from Leiden via Haarlem to Amsterdam-Sloterdijk. It was opened between 1839 and 1847 by the Hollandsche IJzeren Spoorweg-Maatschappij. The oldest section, opened in 1839, led from Amsterdam to Haarlem. Leiden and The Hague were reached in 1843, and the final section from The Hague to Rotterdam was opened in June 1847.[1]

The opening of the Schiphollijn (1978) and the Amsterdam-Schiphol railway (1986) provided a shorter connection from Leiden through Schiphol to Amsterdam. Nevertheless, the old line via Haarlem has remained an important railway line.

References

  1. ^ De Bosch Kemper, M.J. (1865) (in Dutch). Handleiding tot de kennis van de wetenschap der zamenleving en van het Nederlandsche staatsregt. Amsterdam: Johannes Müller. pp. 883. 

External links