Nationale Wegen (''National Highways'') or simply N-wegen (''N-roads''), was a numbering system for a set of main highway routes 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 ...

, used from 1957 through 1976. In 1957, signposted road numbering was introduced in the Netherlands and the governments ''Rijkswegen'' plan foresaw in an increasing number of highways, together forming a nationwide system. Alongside the pan-European E-road numbers, which were given to routes of international importance, a complementing series of N-road numbers was devised to designate those routes not included in the European system, but considered of national significance. In 1976, the until then administrative only ''Rijksweg'' numbers were adopted as the new road denominations, along with a ''completely new'' series of N-numbers for Non motorway highways, in 1978. The original brown N-numbers on road-signs were since then replaced with red A-numbers, for Dutch motorways, and new yellow N-numbers for other highways.
The E-road system was significantly renumbered in 1985, but remains signposted everywhere in the Netherlands. For this road system the numbers 89 to 100 were used. This is because the numbers leading up to 85 were used for the original Rijksstraatwegen and later the modern ''rijkswegen'' count.

Original N-highway routesShell Stratenboek van Nederland. Editie 55 (2008); the sections shared with E-roads have not been counted toward the total length of the N-roads.

N89 ''"The Wadden Sea Route"'', length: 200 km

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 ...

Delfzijl Delfzijl (; gos, Delfsiel) is a city and former municipality with a population of 25,651 in the province of Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. Delfzijl was a sluice between the Delf and the Ems, which became fortified settlement in ...

(via Alkmaar,

Leeuwarden Leeuwarden (; fy, Ljouwert, longname=yes /; Stadsfries dialects, Town Frisian: ''Liwwadden''; Leeuwarder dialect: ''Leewarden'') is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in Fri ...

and Groningen) N90 ''"The Frisia Route"'', length: 130 km

Almelo Almelo () is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands. The main population centres in the town are Aadorp, Almelo, Mariaparochie, and Bornerbroek. Almelo has about 72,000 inhabitants in the middle of the rolling countryside of Twente, ...

(via

Heerenveen Heerenveen (, fry, It Hearrenfean ) is a town and municipality in the province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the municipality had a population 50,859 (1 July). ...

and

Zwolle Zwolle () is a city and municipality in the Northeastern Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Overijssel and the province's second-largest municipality after Enschede with a population of 130,592 as of 1 December 2021. Zwolle is on ...

) N91 ''"The Zuyderzee Route"'', length: 145 km

Joure Joure (; West Frisian: ''De Jouwer'') is a town in the north of the Netherlands. It is the administrative center of De Fryske Marren, Friesland. With 13,090 inhabitants, it is also the most populous town in the municipality. Residents of Joure a ...

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 ...

(via Lelystad and Hilversum) N92 ''"The Lower Saxony Route"'', length: 185 km

Eemshaven Eemshaven (; en, Ems Harbor) is a seaport in the province of Groningen in the north of the Netherlands. In 1968, the Dutch government declared the Ems estuary ( Eemsmond) to be an economic key region. One of the key developments for the regi ...

- Enschede (via Emmen and

Hardenberg Hardenberg (; nds-nl, Haddenbarreg or '' 'n Arnbarg'') is a city and municipality in the province of Overijssel, Eastern Netherlands. The municipality of Hardenberg has a population of about 60,000, with about 19,000 living in the city. It recei ...

) N93 (Netherlands), N93 ''"The Veluwe Route"'', length: 180 km
Emmeloord - Tilburg (via Apeldoorn, Arnhem, Nijmegen and 's-Hertogenbosch) N94 ''"The Central Route"'', length: 220 km
Hoorn -

Valkenswaard Valkenswaard () is a municipality and a town in the southern Netherlands, in the Metropoolregio Eindhoven of the province of North Brabant. The municipality had a population of in and spans an area of of which is water. The name Valkenswaard ...

(via Lelystad, Ede, Oss and Eindhoven) N95 ''"The Upper Meuse Route"'', length: 140 km
Nijmegen -

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...

(via

Venlo Venlo () is a city and municipality in the southeastern Netherlands, close to the border with Germany. It is situated in the province of Limburg, about 50 km east of the city of Eindhoven, 65 km north east of the provincial capital Maastricht, a ...

and

Heerlen Heerlen (; li, Heële ) is a city and a municipality in the southeast of the Netherlands. It is the third largest settlement proper in the province of Limburg. Measured as municipality, it is the fourth municipality in the province of Limburg ...

) N96 ''"The Rhine Route"'', 110 km

Maasvlakte The Maasvlakte () is a massive man-made westward extension of the Europoort port and industrial facility within the Port of Rotterdam. Situated in the municipality of Rotterdam in the Netherlands, the Maasvlakte is built on land reclaimed ...

- Enschede (two sections, separated by European route E31, E31 ) N97 ''"The Lower Meuse Route"'', length: 135 km

Renesse Renesse ( zea, Renisse) is a village in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is a part of the municipality of Schouwen-Duiveland, and lies about 28 km west of Hellevoetsluis. Renesse is a popular tourist resort with zero-fare bus services in th ...

- 's-Hertogenbosch (via

Zierikzee Zierikzee () is a small city in the southwest Netherlands, 50 km southwest of Rotterdam. It is situated in the municipality of Schouwen-Duiveland, Zeeland. The city hall of Schouwen-Duiveland is located in Zierikzee, its largest city. Zieri ...

, Steenbergen and

Moerdijk Moerdijk () is a municipality and a town in the South of the Netherlands, in the province of North Brabant. History The municipality of Moerdijk was founded in 1997 following the merger of the municipalities of Fijnaart en Heijningen, Klundert ...

) N98 ''"The Delta Works Route"'', length: 160 km

Europoort Europoort (, en, Eurogate, also "Europort") is an area of the Port of Rotterdam and the adjoining industrial area in the Netherlands. Being situated at Southside of the mouth of the rivers Rhine and Meuse with the hinterland consisting of the ...

Sas van Gent Sas van Gent is a town in the Netherlands. It is located in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is a part of the municipality of Terneuzen and lies about 30 km south of Vlissingen on the border with Belgium. The Ghent–Terneuzen Canal passe ...

(via Renesse and

Flushing Flushing may refer to: Places * Flushing, Cornwall, a village in the United Kingdom * Flushing, Queens, New York City ** Flushing Bay, a bay off the north shore of Queens ** Flushing Chinatown (法拉盛華埠), a community in Queens ** Flushin ...

) N99 ''"The North Sea Route"'', length: 235 km

Wieringen Wieringen () is part of the municipality of Hollands Kroon, established in 2012 in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It is a former municipality in this province, with its name appearing in records of the late 9th and early 10 ...

- Antwerp (via Amsterdam,

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...

and

Bergen op Zoom Bergen op Zoom (; called ''Berrege'' in the local dialect) is a municipality and a city located in the south of the Netherlands. Etymology The city was built on a place where two types of soil meet: sandy soil and marine clay. The sandy soil ...

) N100 ''"The IJ Route"'', length: 55 km (incomplete){{citation needed, date=July 2014
Greater beltway around Amsterdam

References

Lists of roads in the Netherlands

Original N-highway routesShell Stratenboek van Nederland. Editie 55 (2008); the sections shared with E-roads have not been counted toward the total length of the N-roads.

See also

References