Many people are hard at work building the new metro – not only on the sites of the future stations, but also in other places around the city.
No more reversible lane on Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg
As of Thursday, 17 May 2007, there will no longer be a reversible lane on Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg. The reversible lane had been in use since September 2005 as a way of reducing congestion during the morning and evening rush hours. The reversible lane created a major obstacle to the progress of the building activities on the Noord/Zuidlijn, however, since it ran right through the Noord/Zuidlijn work area. As an experiment, the reversible lane was closed for two weeks. The results of that experiment led to the conclusion that closing that lane would not cause any additional traffic delays. For that reason, it was decided to cancel the reversible lane. Building activities near Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg
Since the metro and Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg will be built on a lower level, Volewijkspark and Florapark can be joined to form a new, larger city park that will be known as Noorderpark. Work on rebuilding Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg at a lower level and creating room in the central reserve for the new metro will take place towards the end of 2009. It concerns the s116 (Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg) between the A10 ring way and the IJ Tunnel. Motorists should count on delays during that period. Closure
The thoroughfare lanes of Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg beneath the Johan van Hasseltweg Viaduct are closed. The traffic in both directions is being re-routed above along a single lane. During rush hour, one reversible lane below is in use: towards town in the morning, and out of town in the evening. As from 17 May 2007, the reversible lane will no longer be in use. Studies have shown that the reversible lane is no longer necessary. Maximum speed
For safety reasons, the maximum speed in this area has been lowered from 70 km to 50 km per hour. Emergency services will always have access. Transport tips
For alternative routes, see the red arrows on the map below.
Use the P+R Zeeburg or P+R Sloterdijk or else park for free at Buikslotermeerplein.
Take the train, bus or metro.
Pay attention to the signs alongside the road.  Klik hier voor een uitvergroting
There will be a new viaduct beneath Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg at Van Heekweg to help make the future Elzenhagen residential district more accessible. The viaduct will be built in three parts: first the western end, then the eastern end and finally the part in the middle..The Nieuwe Purmerweg Viaduct will be replaced. This will take place in two phases: first the western half and then the eastern half. Access ramp to Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg to be closed on 5 July 2007
On 5 July, the access ramp to Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg from Nieuwe Purmerweg will be closed between 9 am and 6 pm. Traffic signs will indicate the detour. The closure is due to activities necessary for building a cofferdam in the access ramp from Nieuwe Purmerweg to Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg across from the Meerdijk. This cofferdam of sheet piling is needed to be able to rebuild Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg at a lower level.
| Buiksloterdijk/Waddendijk |
The underpass for cyclists and pedestrians will be closed while Nieuwe Leeuwarderweg is being rebuilt at a lower level. It will also be necessary to rebuild an underwater connection (siphon culvert) lower than it is now. A new bridge will be built here in future to facilitate access to Noorderpark.
| Tunnel along the Noordhollandsch kanaal |
The metro will go underground just south of Johan van Hasseltweg. The caisson that will join to the Sixhaven construction dock is being built alongside the Noordhollands Kanaal from the ground level.
| Sixhaven construction dock |
A total of four submersible caissons (i.e. tunnel elements that will be sunk into the water) are being built at a gigantic dock next to Sixhaven. Along with the three caissons that will be sunk to the bottom of the IJ, workers also building one that will be inserted beneath Central Station. The first two caissons, each one 140 metres long, were already completed in June 2006 and were towed to a temporary 'parking place'. It took four tugboats about half a day to manoeuvre each of these colossal structures across the water to Amsterdam’s western port district. Hundreds of spectators watched from the banks of the river or from boats. The construction dock has been pumped dry in the meantime, and the contractor has already begun making the final two tunnel elements. At a later stage – and at the same dock – the final section of tunnel will be built that will connect the tunnel that lies on the bed of the IJ River with the northern route of the Noord/Zuidlijn in Amsterdam-Noord. At Dam Square, Muntplein and various locations in De Pijp, the ground beneath the foundation of buildings will need to be fortified. The first site to serve that purpose was set up at Dam Square in 2007. | Central reserve of the A10 ring way |
The tracks of the Noord/Zuidlijn will be laid in the central reserve of the A10 ring way, which is also where the existing ring railway tracks are. To make room for the new metro tracks, the existing metro tracks need to be repositioned slightly closer to the southern roadway. The new metro tracks will first be laid next to the existing tracks before the latter are removed. As workers will need to work close to and even on the tracks, much of this work will be done at night. These building activities began in January 2007 and should be completed in April 2007. | Crossing the A10 ring way |
Nearby the future RAI Station, the Noord/Zuidlijn will intersect with the A10 ring way. The metro line will run beneath the access ramp to the A10 and that motorway’s northern roadway before resurfacing in the central reserve. The construction of this point of crossing began in May 2006. As the southern stretch of the A10 is one of the busiest motorways in the Netherlands – more than 200,000 cars drive here every day – two viaducts were built: one in the northern roadway and one in the access ramp. These viaducts will make it possible to build an ascending ramp for the metro line beneath the A10 without disrupting traffic. Building the viaducts on the main roadway was truly a heroic feat. They were built in just nine days at the same time that major repairs were being made on this stretch of the A10 during the summer of 2006. With the viaducts completed, the ascending ramp for the metro line is now being built.
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