The High Speed Line
The Netherlands is breaking new ground in the field of transport: the Netherlands will get a connection to the European network of High Speed Lines. Ultra-fast trains with a maximum speed of 300 kilometres an hour will take travellers directly from Amsterdam to Schiphol, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Brussels and Paris. This offers significant advantages.
Travelling by high speed train is fast and comfortable. Both domestic and international travel times are reduced significantly: thirty minutes from Amsterdam to Rotterdam and 3 hours from Amsterdam to Paris. Passengers travel from one city centre to the next, without parking problems, check-in times or changing trains. In this way, travel within the Randstad and to various European cities will become much easier.
Impulse for the economy
The Netherlands and the Randstad will be more accessible once the HSL is operational. This benefits the international competitive position and stimulates the Dutch economy. High-quality infrastructure attracts international businesses and that also creates jobs. Even now, the areas around the planned HSL stations are prime locations for (international) corporations.
Safe, environmentally friendly and sustainable
A growing number of travellers can use the high speed line as a safe and environmentally alternative to car and air travel. With a maximum speed of 300km/hour the high speed train is still as safe as a regular train, and similarly environmentally friendly. Figures of the Dutch Nature and Environment Foundation indicate that by 2010 the average aeroplane traveller will cause ten times as much pollution as someone travelling by high speed train.
Moreover, the HSL is sustainable: the railway line is constructed to operate for at least 100 years. The railway's quality is guaranteed for the long term, thanks to the special type of contract used and extensive co-operation with private parties.