The Amsterdam–Arnhem railway, also referred to as the Amsterdam–Elten railway or ''Rhijnspoorweg'' in

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

(English: Rhine railway), is an important

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a p ...

that connects

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

with

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...

and

Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both ban ...

, and continues into

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

History

The railway was opened in several stages by the Nederlandsche Rhijnspoorweg-Maatschappij (NRS) between 18 December 1843 and 15 February 1856, with construction starting in 1843. The line was electrified in 1938 between Amsterdam and Arnhem and in 1966 between Arnhem and Elten. The line has been heavily reconstructed to increase its capacity between Amsterdam Bijmer Arena and Utrecht Centraal; this began in 1999 and finished in 2008.

Route

The line leaves Amsterdam in an easterly direction with the line to Amersfoort, which leaves at Amsterdam Muiderpoort, the line then continues in a southerly direction and shortly before arriving at Amsterdam Amstel, the metro lines 51, 53 and 54 operate between the line.

Duivendrecht Duivendrecht () is a village in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Ouder-Amstel, and lies about 6 km southeast of Amsterdam’s city centre. In fact, it is surrounded by Amsterdam. History The village w ...

is a bi-level station with the Schiphollijn operating below. Freight lines from the

Weesp Weesp () is a city, an urban area in the municipality of Amsterdam and a former municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. It had a population of in . It lies on the river Vecht and next to the Amsterdam–Rhine Canal in an are ...

direction join and the ''Utrecht Curve'' from

Schiphol Amsterdam Airport Schiphol , known informally as Schiphol Airport ( nl, Luchthaven Schiphol, ), is the main international airport of the Netherlands. It is located southwest of Amsterdam, in the municipality of Haarlemmermeer in the province ...

joins the line. At Amsterdam Holendrecht the metro lines 50 and 54 leave towards the east. The line continues travelling through the countryside and a few towns towards Utrecht, often running parallel to the

Amsterdam–Rhine Canal The Amsterdam–Rhine Canal ( Dutch: ''Amsterdam-Rijnkanaal'') is a canal in the Netherlands that was built to connect the port and capital city of Amsterdam to the main shipping artery of the Rhine. Its course follows a generally southeasterly di ...

. At Breukelen the line to Gouda leaves the line. On approaching Utrecht Centraal the lines from

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte (river), Rotte'') is the second largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the Prov ...

and

Amersfoort Amersfoort () is a city and municipality in the province of Utrecht, Netherlands, about 20 km from the city of Utrecht and 40 km south east of Amsterdam. As of 1 December 2021, the municipality had a population of 158,531, making it the second- ...

join. From Utrecht Centraal the line continues in an easterly direction, with the line from

Hilversum Hilversum () is a city and municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. Located in the heart of the Gooi, it is the largest urban centre in that area. It is surrounded by heathland, woods, meadows, lakes, and smaller towns. Hilver ...

joining and crossing over, with the line to

's-Hertogenbosch s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of ...

leaving southwards. east of

Maarn Maarn is a town in the municipality of Utrechtse Heuvelrug in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located about 10 km (6.2 mi) east of Zeist. In 2001, the town of Maarn had 4,071 inhabitants. The built-up area of the town was 1.26 km ...

the line to

Rhenen Rhenen () is a municipality and a city in the central Netherlands. The municipality also includes the villages of Achterberg, Remmerden, Elst and Laareind. The town lies at a geographically interesting location, namely on the southernmost pa ...

leaves. At Ede-Wageningen the

line Line most often refers to: * Line (geometry), object with zero thickness and curvature that stretches to infinity * Telephone line, a single-user circuit on a telephone communication system Line, lines, The Line, or LINE may also refer to: Art ...

from

via Barneveld joins. Shortly before arriving at

the line from

Nijmegen Nijmegen (;; Spanish and it, Nimega. Nijmeegs: ''Nimwèège'' ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and tenth largest of the Netherlands as a whole, located on the Waal river close to the German border. It is about 6 ...

joins and after Arnhem Velperpoort the

Zutphen Zutphen () is a city and municipality located in the province of Gelderland, Netherlands. It lies some 30 km northeast of Arnhem, on the eastern bank of the river Ijssel at the point where it is joined by the Berkel. First mentioned in th ...

heads north-east. At Zevenaar, the line to

Winterswijk Winterswijk (; also known as ''Winterswiek'' or ''Wenters'') is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands. It has a population of and is situated in the Achterhoek, which lies in the easternmost part of the province of Gelderland in th ...

leaves in a north-easterly direction, while the freight Betuweroute from

joins the line before continuing towards Germany. later the line crosses the Dutch-German border and continues towards Emmerich, where the railway becomes the Emmerich-Oberhausen railway and continues east.

Main stations

The main stations on the Rhijnspoorweg railway are: *

Amsterdam Centraal railway station Amsterdam Centraal Station ( nl, italic=no, Station Amsterdam Centraal ; Railway stations in the Netherlands, abbreviation: Asd) is the largest railway station in Amsterdam, North Holland, the Netherlands. A major international Rail transport, r ...

* Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA railway station *

Utrecht Centraal railway station Utrecht Centraal, officially Station Utrecht Centraal (), is the transit hub that integrates three bicycle parkings, two bus stations, two tram stops and the central railway station for the city of Utrecht in the province of Utrecht, Netherlan ...

Ede-Wageningen railway station Ede-Wageningen is a railway station located in Ede, Netherlands. It is situated on the Amsterdam–Arnhem railway and the Nijkerk–Ede-Wageningen railway. The station is the main Intercity station, but is not in the centre of the town. The sta ...

* Emmerich

Train services

The Rhijnspoorweg is used by the following passenger services: * International services along the whole line (Amsterdam – Frankfurt) * Intercity services between Amsterdam and Arnhem (Alkmaar – Heerlen; Den Helder – Nijmegen; Schiphol Airport – Nijmegen; Zwolle – Roosendaal) * Stoptrein services between Amsterdam and Zevenaar (Uitgeest – Rotterdam; Breukelen – Rhenen; Ede-Wageningen – Arnhem; Nijmegen – Zutphen; Arnhem – Winterswijk)

Train types

A wide variety of trains can be found regularly on the Rhijnspoorweg: * ICE 3M on the Amsterdam – Frankfurt service on the whole line. * Locomotive-hauled trains from Germany. * NS DD-IRM on the Alkmaar – Heerlen service between Amsterdam Centraal and Utrecht Centraal, Den Helder – Nijmegen service between Amsterdam Centraal and Arnhem, Schiphol Airport – Eindhoven service between Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA and Utrecht Centraal, Schiphol Airport – Nijmegen service between Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA and Arnhem, and Zwolle – Roosendaal between Arnhem and Arnhem Velperpoort. * NS Koploper on the Zwolle – Roosendaal between Arnhem and Arnhem Velperpoort. * NS Sprinter on the Uitgeest – Rotterdam service between Amsterdam Centraal and Breukelen, Breukelen – Rhenen service between Breukelen and Maarn, Ede-Wageningen – Arnhem service between Ede-Wageningen and Arnhem and Nijmegen – Zutphen services between Arnhem and Arnhem Velperpoort. * SLT on the Uitgeest – Rotterdam service between Amsterdam Centraal and Breukelen and Breukelen – Rhenen service between Breukelen and Maarn. * Arriva/Breng GTW on the Arnhem – Winterswijk/Doetinchem service between Arnhem and Zevenaar. * NS FLIRT on the Ede-Wageningen – Arnhem service. Large numbers of freight trains also operate along the line. {{DEFAULTSORT:Amsterdam-Arnhem railway Railway lines in the Netherlands Cross-border railway lines in Germany Railway lines opened in 1856 1856 establishments in the Netherlands Railway lines in North Holland Railway lines in Utrecht (province) Railway lines in Gelderland Standard gauge railways in the Netherlands 1500 V DC railway electrification Rail transport in Amsterdam Rail transport in Utrecht (city) Regional rail in the Netherlands