The Haarlemmermeer railway lines (Dutch: Haarlemmermeerspoorlijnen) are a former network of railway lines in the area between Haarlem, Amsterdam, Utrecht and Leiden. Despite the name they did not all travel over the territory that formerly comprise the Haarlemmermeer lake before it was drained.
Steam train over the swing bridge over the Zijl near Leiden, on the Leiden-Heerensingel route, around 1930Overview of the network circa 1930. A few smaller stop had already been closed; the temporary track to Schiphol is indicated but was not yet actually in existence.
Historyedit
The first plans for railway lines through the Haarlemmermeer polder were presented in 1864 by mayor Amersfoort, twelve years after the dredging of the lake and creation of the polder. However none of the plans was executed. In 1898 the HESM (Hollandsche Electrische-Spoorweg-Maatschappij, "Holland Electric Railway Company") was established with the goal of building electric railways in the area between South Amsterdam and Haarlem. After the HSM bought up the shares, the plans were changed and this led, in the end, to the establishment of a local network of steam railways.
The lines were built by the HESM. Despite the name including the term "electric", the lines were never electrified. Only steam trains served for passenger traffic.
The first lines opened in 1912, almost a half century after the first plans were drawn up. The lines lay in the area between Amsterdam, Haarlem, Leiden, Alphen aan den Rijn and Nieuwersluis, and were opened between 1912 and 1918. Because of the 1930s Depression, various lines were closed after only two decades. Only the Amsterdam Haarlemmermeerstation – Amstelveen – Aalsmeer and Bovenkerk – Uithoorn – Nieuwersluis lines remained in service for passenger and cargo traffic.
The last passenger train ran in 1950. In 1972 the lines were closed for freight, except for the Amsterdam – Uithoorn route, which remained in service between 1976 and 1981 to transport building materials for the new Schiphollijn (which originally had no connection to the rest of the national railway network) and Uithoorn – Nieuwersluis, which remained in service until 1986 to serve the Koek scrapyard in Mijdrecht, where the Dutch Railways demolished a lot of equipment.
The lines have, in the meantime, all been dug up, with the exception of the Amsterdam – Amstelveen – Bovenkerk line, which was electrified between 1975 and 1997 and is used by the Electric Tramway Museum Amsterdam [nl].
In many places there are still the remains of dikes, and various stations and stops are still recognizable and used as residences, including stations in Amsterdam, Amstelveen, Aalsmeer, Uithoorn, Hoofddorp, Mijdrecht, Nieuwveen, Wilnis and Aarlanderveen.
In September 2004, the Amstelveen light rail line was extended from Poortwachter to Westwijk and reused the embankment of the old Bovenkerk–Uithoorn line on the curve west of Spinnerij to the south of Westwijk. Plans exist to extend the Amstelveen line to Uithoorn. In Uithoorn part of the old railway dike is in use as a bus lane. Further south, portions of the railway dike have been used as rights of way for new provincial highways.
De Haarlemmermeerspoorlijnen in oude ansichten. Auteur: A.W.J. de Jonge. Europese Bibliotheek, Zaltbommel, 1982 / 2000. ISBN90-288-1960-6
Sporen: Een zoektocht langs de resten van de Haarlemmermeerlijnen. Auteur: Wim Wegman. HDC Media, Alkmaar, 2007. ISBN978-90-77842-04-1
Station Haarlem. Hollandsche sporen door Haarlem en omstreken. Uitgeverij Spaar en Hout, Haarlem, 2006. ISBN978-90-8683-004-6
October 30, 2023
haarlemmermeer, railway, lines, this, article, includes, list, references, related, reading, external, links, sources, remain, unclear, because, lacks, inline, citations, please, help, improve, this, article, introducing, more, precise, citations, january, 202. This article includes a list of references related reading or external links but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations January 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Haarlemmermeer railway lines Dutch Haarlemmermeerspoorlijnen are a former network of railway lines in the area between Haarlem Amsterdam Utrecht and Leiden Despite the name they did not all travel over the territory that formerly comprise the Haarlemmermeer lake before it was drained Steam train over the swing bridge over the Zijl near Leiden on the Leiden Heerensingel route around 1930Overview of the network circa 1930 A few smaller stop had already been closed the temporary track to Schiphol is indicated but was not yet actually in existence History editThe first plans for railway lines through the Haarlemmermeer polder were presented in 1864 by mayor Amersfoort twelve years after the dredging of the lake and creation of the polder However none of the plans was executed In 1898 the HESM Hollandsche Electrische Spoorweg Maatschappij Holland Electric Railway Company was established with the goal of building electric railways in the area between South Amsterdam and Haarlem After the HSM bought up the shares the plans were changed and this led in the end to the establishment of a local network of steam railways The lines were built by the HESM Despite the name including the term electric the lines were never electrified Only steam trains served for passenger traffic The first lines opened in 1912 almost a half century after the first plans were drawn up The lines lay in the area between Amsterdam Haarlem Leiden Alphen aan den Rijn and Nieuwersluis and were opened between 1912 and 1918 Because of the 1930s Depression various lines were closed after only two decades Only the Amsterdam Haarlemmermeerstation Amstelveen Aalsmeer and Bovenkerk Uithoorn Nieuwersluis lines remained in service for passenger and cargo traffic The last passenger train ran in 1950 In 1972 the lines were closed for freight except for the Amsterdam Uithoorn route which remained in service between 1976 and 1981 to transport building materials for the new Schiphollijn which originally had no connection to the rest of the national railway network and Uithoorn Nieuwersluis which remained in service until 1986 to serve the Koek scrapyard in Mijdrecht where the Dutch Railways demolished a lot of equipment The lines have in the meantime all been dug up with the exception of the Amsterdam Amstelveen Bovenkerk line which was electrified between 1975 and 1997 and is used by the Electric Tramway Museum Amsterdam nl In many places there are still the remains of dikes and various stations and stops are still recognizable and used as residences including stations in Amsterdam Amstelveen Aalsmeer Uithoorn Hoofddorp Mijdrecht Nieuwveen Wilnis and Aarlanderveen In September 2004 the Amstelveen light rail line was extended from Poortwachter to Westwijk and reused the embankment of the old Bovenkerk Uithoorn line on the curve west of Spinnerij to the south of Westwijk Plans exist to extend the Amstelveen line to Uithoorn In Uithoorn part of the old railway dike is in use as a bus lane Further south portions of the railway dike have been used as rights of way for new provincial highways Image gallery of stations edit nbsp Hoofddorp station circa 1912 nbsp Leiden Herensingel station circa 1912 nbsp Amsterdam Haarlemmermeer station nbsp Aalsmeer station nbsp Amstelveen station nbsp De Kwakel stop nbsp Uithoorn station nbsp Vijhuizen station nbsp Rijksstraatweg stop nbsp Aarlanderveen station tile signSources editDe Haarlemmermeerspoorlijnen Stationsweb Archived 19 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine De Haarlemmermeerspoorlijnen in oude ansichten Auteur A W J de Jonge Europese Bibliotheek Zaltbommel 1982 2000 ISBN 90 288 1960 6 Sporen Een zoektocht langs de resten van de Haarlemmermeerlijnen Auteur Wim Wegman HDC Media Alkmaar 2007 ISBN 978 90 77842 04 1 Station Haarlem Hollandsche sporen door Haarlem en omstreken Uitgeverij Spaar en Hout Haarlem 2006 ISBN 978 90 8683 004 6 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Haarlemmermeer railway lines amp oldid 1161304510, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
