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47-460: The Randstad's main cities are Almere , Amsterdam , Delft , Dordrecht , Haarlem , The Hague , Leiden , Rotterdam , Utrecht , and Zoetermeer . Other towns include Alkmaar , Alphen aan den Rijn , Amersfoort , Amstelveen , Capelle aan den IJssel , Gouda , Heerhugowaard , Hilversum , Hoofddorp , Hoorn , Lelystad , Nieuwegein , Oudewater , Purmerend , Rijswijk , Schiedam , Spijkenisse , Vlaardingen , Zaandam and Zeist . Although

94-564: A light rail system. The section from Den Haag Centraal to Laan van NOI is elevated on a viaduct . From Laan van NOI to Leidschenveen , the lines share the track and stations with line E. East of Leidschenveen, line 3 follows the same route as the former Zoetermeer Stadslijn , while lines 4 and 34 branch off towards Oosterheem after Seghwaert station . In 2019, the Oosterheem branch was extended from Javalaan to Lansingerland-Zoetermeer. In December 2012, two bus lines were added to

141-653: A classical centralistic metropolis . Amsterdam recently started to present itself as the Amsterdam metropolitan area ( Metropoolregio Amsterdam ). The expectation is that the use of the terms Noordvleugel and the Randstad will become less prevalent as a result. While Utrecht is not the center of the Noordvleugel, it is in fact the center of the whole of the Netherlands itself. While being categorised as part of

188-609: A combination of lines 3 and 4, connecting Loosduinen to Lansingerland-Zoetermeer railway station. West of Den Haag Centraal railway station , these lines are operated as regular street-running tram lines, partially interlined with the local network and passing through the Haagse tramtunnel , a 1.25 km (0.78 mi) tunnel under the Grote Marktstraat  [ nl ] in the city centre. Between Den Haag Centraal and Zoetermeer, they operate on dedicated tracks as

235-469: A few overnight bus lines (Mon-Sat nights only): N21, N22 and N23. They run under the Keolis internal name nightGo (but are operated by R-net branded regional buses). The bus company running almost all buses is Keolis Netherlands. Local buses (city buses) run under the name allGo. In the buses one can use the national transportation chipcard (smart card) , subscriptions or one can buy bus tickets of allGo in

282-463: A lot of local traffic also uses the motorways. Another growing issue is the number of trucks on the radiating motorways from the Randstad; truck volumes can be as high as 20,000 trucks per day, occupying the entire right lane on some motorways. The Randstad is the keystone of the Dutch railway network; most intercity connections terminate in one of the key cities in the Randstad. The railway network in

329-544: A population of around 3.6 million people, consists of the Haarlem and IJmuiden conurbations in the west, Amsterdam at the centre and Almere , the Gooi area and Utrecht in the east. The conurbation of Utrecht (population around one million) can be considered to be part of this wing, but can also be excluded. The cultural centre of the Noordvleugel, however, is notably centered on Amsterdam , which could as such be considered

376-415: A separate bus lane in most parts of the city). Almere is connected to the motorways A6 and A27 . In 1987 Almere was connected to the national railway system (see NS ) with the fully completed Flevolijn which connected Weesp to Lelystad Centrum . Almere currently has six railway stations: A seasonal-use station, Almere Strand , was set up for certain events, such as Libelle Zomerweek. The station

423-564: Is a district where all street names are named after famous comics characters and cartoonists. Almere is the home of football team Almere City FC , American football team FlevoPhantoms and the home of professional basketball team the Almere Sailors . The traffic infrastructure in Almere is recognisable because of its separate infrastructure for cycles (which, in most cases, have separate cycle paths), cars and buses (the buses drive on

470-416: Is a major mode of transport. The Port of Rotterdam , and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol , are both major international gateways. There are various smaller ports and airports in the Randstad, like the ports of IJmuiden, Amsterdam and Dordrecht, as well as Rotterdam The Hague Airport . The Randstad has various motorways, most of them starting around Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Many (inter)national corridors start in

517-692: Is home to some of the most reputable universities in Europe, including the University of Amsterdam , the VU Amsterdam , Leiden University , Erasmus University Rotterdam , Utrecht University and the Delft University of Technology . The Randstad possesses a large infrastructure system, with many railways, motorways, trams and subways in various cities. It is possible to cycle on reasonably safe and pleasant routes almost everywhere and cycling

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564-466: Is operated by RET and uses high-floor Flexity Swift vehicles, while lines 3, 4 and 34 are operated by HTM and use low-floor RegioCitadis vehicles. Stations that are served by both types of carriages have extended platforms with a higher and a lower part. Line E (formerly Erasmuslijn ) is a metro line, which also belongs to the Rotterdam Metro network. For a great part, it runs on

611-513: Is projected near Utrecht. Some hard shoulders are in use as peak hour lanes – traffic is allowed to use the hard shoulder as a third or fourth lane during periods of congestion, when traffic management signs indicate. Since these expansions traffic jams (which used to be quite intense) have been reduced by up to 25%. Traffic on the highway still is quite heavy, though. Because of the many obstructions in minor roads, such as one-way or circular routes (often created to make living neighbourhoods safer),

658-538: The IJmeer from Amsterdam . Bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde , the municipality of Almere comprises six official areas that are the districts of Almere Stad (which is further split up into Almere Stad Oost, Almere Stad West and Almere Centrum), Almere Buiten and Almere Pampus (which is currently being designed), and the boroughs of Almere Haven , Almere Hout and Almere Poort . Four of them feature official district or borough offices. Furthermore, it also comprises

705-675: The Randstad conurbation, the light rail network came into operation in 2006, after regular train services on the Hofpleinlijn and Zoetermeer Stadslijn had been discontinued. The system consists of four routes and serves 73 stations, with a total length of approximately 71 kilometres (44 mi). In 2018, it had a daily ridership of around 125,000 passengers. The RandstadRail network consists of four routes: one metro line (E) between The Hague and Rotterdam, and three tram-train lines (3, 4 and 34) between The Hague and Zoetermeer. Line E

752-570: The Government of the Netherlands, reveals that the Noordvleugel (Amsterdam and Utrecht region) is already growing parallel to the A1, A2, and A4 motorways, as well as into the northern part of North Holland (Alkmaar and Hoorn region) and Flevoland (Almere and Lelystad region). There is also a trend shown that the Noordvleugel is expanding parallel to the A2 (Amsterdam towards Eindhoven) and A12 (Utrecht towards

799-422: The Randstad share some commonalities, there are also large differences originating in centuries of divergent development. There are strong local identities within the region, especially in rural environments. Politically, the Randstad is broadly right -leaning and conservative , with student cities, including Amsterdam, Utrecht, Haarlem, Leiden and Delft, being more left -leaning and progressive . The Randstad

846-441: The Randstad, including the A1, A2, A4, A5, A6, A7, A8, A9, A10, A12, A13, A15, A16, A20, A27 and A28 autosnelwegen , as well as various commuter routes. The Randstad network of motorways carry some of the highest traffic volumes in Europe. Until 2005 most motorways used to be no wider than four or six lanes, but from 2005 on capacity of most major highways expanded to six or eight and on some parts even ten lanes. A 14-lane highway

893-490: The Randstad, the Utrecht agglomeration lies relatively further apart, owing to its long history of rivalry with Holland and Amsterdam in particular. Utrecht is much more monocentric than Amsterdam, which has booming satellite cities such as Haarlem and Almere. While Utrecht functions as the gateway to the Randstad for both car and rail transport, it is disconnected from the virtually continuous urbanised zone in western Holland by

940-519: The Randstad. Over the last few decades, a major topic in the Randstad is the conflict between the cities and the towns in between. These towns and the surrounding countryside, known as the Groene Hart (Green Heart), are usually much greener than the cities, they house many commuters that work in the cities and the former strongly depend on the latter for facilities such as hospitals and large scale entertainment. Cities need more space to expand, yet

987-519: The Randstad. Both branches (government and media) have their centre in the Randstad; respectively in The Hague and in Hilversum . The Randstad itself, however, does not represent a unified cultural zone. It is not a 'place' of residence or a carrier of cultural identity. According to the late influential urbanist Niek de Boer , the Randstad simply 'does not exist'. While the cities and landscapes in

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1034-526: The WERV region, encompassing the cities of Wageningen , Ede , Rhenen and Veenendaal ) motorways. This region is called the Zuidoostflank (English: Southeastside). It is sometimes argued that a cultural divide exists between the Randstad and the rest of the country. This distinction is usually made in relation to Dutch politics and media, who according to critics are mostly interested in the affairs of

1081-667: The area is dense and heavily used. Together with the Swiss Federal Railways (1st), and the Belgian railways (3rd), the Dutch Railways are in the top 3 of Europe in punctuality. Larger cities in the Randstad have many railway stations, as well as light rail, subway and/or tram networks. Much effort is being expended in increasing the cycling rate of the Randstad. The campaign Fietsfilevrij exists to encourage cycling as an alternative to waiting in traffic jams on

1128-513: The bus or at TVM's (the latter only Downtown). Besides the local bus lines, there are regional and rush hour bus lines to towns and cities in the area. Line 159 is operated by the bus company Connexxion . Since April 2012, there was a rush hour route, 150, to Utrecht which connected Almere directly with the University Area of Utrecht called De Uithof . (This was previously done by former bus line 295 ). Due to budget cuts, line 150

1175-468: The conversion had not been flawless, with a series of technical problems and a derailment , the line has been in full operation since September 2007. In 2010, Hofplein terminus was replaced with the Statenwegtracé , a bored tunnel connecting the line with the local metro network at Rotterdam Centraal railway station . In December 2011, the line was further extended to Slinge metro station in

1222-419: The council of Almere has comprised a total of 45 members. Almere maintains international relations with the following twin cities : Almere is located in the polder of Southern Flevoland (Dutch: Zuidelijk Flevoland ). It is the most western municipality of the province Flevoland . It borders with Markermeer in the west and north, Lelystad in the northeast, Zeewolde in the east, and Gooimeer in

1269-555: The former Hofpleinlijn railway line between Den Haag Centraal railway station and Rotterdam Hofplein railway station . After the train services had been discontinued, the track was re-opened as a RandstadRail line in September 2006, running between Nootdorp and Hofplein. In November 2006, the line was extended to The Hague. As part of the line's conversion to RandstadRail operation, it began using RET metro trains, and more stops were added and train frequencies increased. Although

1316-408: The motorway. Bicycle "superhighways" have been built on which cyclists have priority for long distance, high speed cycle commuting. For instance, one of these stretches the 50 km distance between Amsterdam and Utrecht. Almere Almere ( Dutch pronunciation: [ɑlˈmeːrə] ) is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland , Netherlands across

1363-577: The municipalities in Flevoland with 214,715 citizens in 2021 and the 8th largest in the Netherlands. In October 2007, the city council of Almere made agreements with the government to expand the city to 350,000 inhabitants by 2030. The original plans for the IJsselmeerpolders saw the land being used for agriculture. However, after World War II housing was needed for the rapidly growing population of Amsterdam and two towns were planned in

1410-466: The name Randstad is often translated into English as "edge city" or "border city", a more accurate translation would be "rim city". The Dutch name was coined in 1938 by KLM founder Albert Plesman who, while flying over the region, used it to describe a strip of cities at the rim of a large green agricultural area (the Green Heart ). While technically more of a crescent (the southeastern edge of

1457-586: The network. These so-called "ZoRo" buses run between Zoetermeer and Rodenrijs RandstadRail station , where they connect with RandstadRail line E. A new bus lane was constructed for the project. The buses are operated by RET and have an almost instant connection to arriving metros at Rodenrijs station. At the termini in Zoetermeer, the ZoRo buses connect with regional bus lines ( Arriva and Veolia Transport ) and RandstadRail lines 3, 4 and 34. Despite not being

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1504-495: The newest parts of the city. The housing plan in Almere in the 1970s was basic functionality and a levelling of social status. However, starting in the 1990s more exclusive homes with striking designs were built (notably in the Regenboogbuurt). Hein van der Loo (independent) has been mayor of Almere since March 2023, with the municipal council consisting of a coalition of several parties. The first municipal council

1551-516: The platforms once stood from the windows of Flevolijn trains. In Almere there are 11 bus lines which service the urban area. Monday to Friday, most city buses run about every 5 minutes (10 times every hour) during daytime hours. Saturdays, only a few city bus lines run every 7.5 minutes during daytime hours; most of them run every 12–15 minutes. Sunday, most of the city buses run every 15 minutes (with some buses running extra runs during certain hours) and M6 which only runs every 30 minutes. There are

1598-597: The polders Oostelijk Flevoland and Zuidelijk Flevoland. The town in Oostelijk Flevoland became Lelystad . The town in Zuidelijk Flevoland was still called Zuidweststad (English: South West City) on the first sketches, but in the 1970s it became called Almere , named after the lake Almere , the early medieval name of the Zuiderzee . The first house in Almere was finished in 1976. At that time

1645-595: The protected polder landscape of the Groene Hart . The North Wing of the Randstad is expected to grow more in population than the Zuidvleugel and the Groene Hart areas, with the growth of population also being in effect for a longer period of time, compared to the other two areas. The Zuidvleugel ("South Wing"), with a population of around 3.5 million people, stretches some 60 kilometers from Dordrecht in

1692-409: The rim is significantly less populated), the ring shape formed by connecting the four major cities of the region led to the use of the name "Ring City". Randstad contributes around half or 53% of the Netherlands total GDP. Recently, Dutch planners have started to refer to the Randstad as Deltametropool . This actually consists of two large metropolitan areas: The Noordvleugel ("North Wing"), with

1739-517: The south of Delft to Rotterdam has also been constructed, creating a second connection from Rotterdam , via The Hague , to Amsterdam . A possible new area would be the Zuidoostflank; parallel to the A2 motorway (from Amsterdam to Eindhoven) and parallel to the A12 motorway (Utrecht to WERV (Wageningen, Ede, Rhenen and Veenendaal)), as this region has much potential to strengthen the knowledge economy of

1786-405: The south of Rotterdam, sharing the section between Rotterdam Centraal and Slinge with the already existing line D . The RandstadRail network originally included two tram-train lines: line 3 between Loosduinen and Zoetermeer Centrum-West , and line 4 between De Uithof and Lansingerland-Zoetermeer . On 23 July 2020, a third tram-train line was added to the network: line 34, which serves as

1833-563: The south. Almere consists of three boroughs and three districts (Dutch: stadsdelen ), three of which are under construction. Almere has an oceanic climate characterized by mild to cool winters, and warm summers with fair precipitation year-round. On 19 May 2004, at the instigation of Kees Kousemaker , owner of the Amsterdam comics store Lambiek , the first buildings of the Stripheldenbuurt were inaugurated in Almere. This

1880-473: The southeast to Leiden in the north. The main conurbations are the Rotterdam and The Hague areas. The virtual centre of the Zuidvleugel lies in between these two major cities, near Delft . The first steps toward this development were taken with the construction of a new fast light-rail connection between Rotterdam and The Hague : RandstadRail . A long-delayed extension of the western A4 motorway from

1927-514: The town was still controlled by the Openbaar Lichaam Zuidelijke IJsselmeerpolders (Z.IJ.P.), with a Landdrost . In 1984 Almere became an official municipality. Originally, Almere was envisioned as a town with multiple centres. This idea was later abandoned in favor of allowing neighbourhoods like Tussen de Vaarten to be built. There is also a difference between the way houses are built in the oldest and

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1974-437: The towns fear losing their identity and autonomy. The Randstad's borders have never been officially specified. Some consider only the four most populous cities of the Netherlands (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht) part of it, others would say that areas such as Alkmaar (which represents itself as being part of it), Hoorn and Lelystad are also part of this conurbation. The publication "Randstad 2040", released by

2021-679: The unofficial historic district and neighborhood Oostvaardersdiep. Almere is part of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area (MRA). Almere is the newest city in the Netherlands: the land on which the city sits, the Southern Flevoland polder , was reclaimed from the IJsselmeer from 1959 to 1968. The first house was finished in 1976, and Almere became a municipality in 1984. It has the largest population of

2068-405: Was decided to open an official station there (see Almere Poort ), thus making the station of Almere Strand obsolete. Almere Poort station opened on December 9, 2012. Therefore, Almere Strand station was officially closed just after the summer of 2012 and its iron platforms were torn down in the weekend of October 6–7, 2012. There are no remains of the station, although passengers can still see where

2115-559: Was installed on 2 January 1984 in the presence of the then-Minister of the Interior Koos Rietkerk . The council elections took place on 21 September 1983. Prior to 1984 Almere had an Adviesraad , which was chosen every 2 years (1978–1980, 1980–1982, 1982–1984). This Adviesraad was made up of different political parties similar to a local council. On 11 March 1977 the first adviescommissie was elected. It consisted of 5 people that were chosen on personal title. Since 2018,

2162-584: Was made up of iron platforms. It was opened in May 1996 under the name Muiderzand . The station was closed after June 1996 but re-opened in June 1999 under the name Muiderstrand and closed again in July 1999. It re-opened again in 2001 under the name Almere Strand as an official seasonal-use station, meaning it was now open certain seasons every year. Because of the rapid development of the adjacent borough Almere Poort, it

2209-604: Was scrapped on July 9, 2016. RandstadRail RandstadRail ( Dutch pronunciation: [ˈrɑntstɑtˌreːl] ) is a tram-train network in the Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area in the west of the Netherlands that is jointly operated by HTM Personenvervoer (HTM) and Rotterdamse Elektrische Tram (RET). It connects the cities of Rotterdam , The Hague and Zoetermeer , primarily using former train and existing tram tracks. Named after

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