Location Netherlands Station code Ut Province Utrecht Platforms in use 16 | Operated by Nederlandse Spoorwegen Opened 18 December 1843 Phone +31 30 751 5155 | |
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Line(s) Amsterdam–Arnhem railway,
Utrecht–Rotterdam railway,
Utrecht–Boxtel railway,
Utrecht–Kampen railway Connections Qbuzz Utrecht Tram: 60, 61
Arriva: 81, 85, 90, 94, 181, 195 (shared with Connexxion), 295 (shared with Connexxion), 377, 388, 400, 401
Connexxion: 50, 102, 103, 107, 120, 195 (shared with Arriva), 207, 295 (shared with Arriva), 402, 407, 420, 450, 681
Qbuzz: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 16, 19, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 34, 36, 37, 38, 39, 41, 47, 51, 52, 53, 55, 63, 65, 66, 74, 77, 128, 247, 251, 412, 441, 447, 452, 474, 477, 495 Passengers 176.000 daily (2013-2014 statistics) Address Stationshal 12, 3511 CE Utrecht, Netherlands Similar Hoog Catharijne, Rotterdam Centraal station, Amsterdam Centraal station, Den Haag Centraal railway st, Railway Museum Profiles | ||
Pianist at utrecht central station
Utrecht Centraal is the central railway station for the city of Utrecht in the Netherlands. It is the largest and busiest railway station in the Netherlands, with sixteen platforms (of which thirteen are through tracks) and with more than 176,000 passengers per day. With Utrecht being located centrally in the Netherlands, Utrecht Centraal is also the most important railway hub of the country with more than 900 trains leaving this station per day, making it the largest junction station in the Netherlands. Therefore, disruptions at the station can easily affect the rest of the country's railway network.
Contents
- Pianist at utrecht central station
- Hyperlapse test utrecht central station
- History
- Future expansion
- Train services
- Bus services
- Busstation Centrumzijde
- Busstation West
- Tram services
- Bicycles
- References
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 towns all over the Randstad.
Hyperlapse test utrecht central station
History
The first station at the site was opened on December 18, 1843, when the Nederlandsche Rhijnspoorweg-Maatschappij opened the first station on Utrecht territory. In 1938, the station became the central station as the Maliebaanstation, on the other side of the city, was closed and the line from Hilversum was diverted into the central station.
Until the 1970s the station building of 1865 remained in place, though a fundamental renovation took place in 1936. Two years later, a fire burned down most of the building, which was subsequently rebuilt. That station building of the late 1930s was in turn demolished in the 1970s to make way for Hoog Catharijne, then Europe's largest enclosed shopping mall, which opened on 17 December 1973. Since that moment, the station hall no longer had a real entrance; the passageways of the shopping mall just continue into the station. In 1989, the station hall was enlarged to include an extra platform.
Future expansion
Between 2008 and 2016, the station is undergoing a major reconstruction, as part of a general reconstruction of the Utrecht Station Area, and because of the NS-project Wereldstations. The station hall is being replaced by a new glass structure, designed by architects Benthem Crouwel Architekten, the sheltering roofs on the platforms are being restored, and the station is being once again separated from the Hoog Catharijne shopping area. The bus station, which was located on the east side of the station (i.e. on the side of the city centre) is being split in two, with buses and trams arriving from the west of the city (among others the new suburb of Leidsche Rijn) terminating on the west side of the station to reduce traffic congestion.
A scale model of the new station has been displayed at Madurodam.
Train services
The following train services call at Utrecht Centraal:
Bus services
Utrecht Centraal has two bus stations. One next to the station at the city centre side (Busstation Centrum) and the other on the western side (Busstation West), including a tram stop. Bus services are operated by Qbuzz (Abellio) under the brand U-OV, Connexxion (urban and inter-urban services) and Arriva (Brabantliner to Breda and to Gorinchem area).
Busstation Centrumzijde
Busstation West
Tram services
Since 1983, the Central Station of Utrecht is a terminus of both Line 60 and Line 61.
Bicycles
With a large university, Utrecht has a disproportionate number of cyclists, parking their bike virtually anywhere, especially around Utrecht Centraal. Thousands of bicycles clog the area, at almost any time. This not only creates an eyesore, but is also affecting pedestrian traffic. To address the problem, the City Council decided in 2014 to build the world's largest bicycle parking station, near the Central Railway Station. This 3-floor construction will cost an estimated 48 million Euros and will hold 12,500 bicycles. Completion is foreseen in 2018.