Amsterdam Metro

The Amsterdam Metro (Dutch: Amsterdamse Metro) is a rapid transit system serving Amsterdam, Netherlands, and extending into the surrounding municipalities of Diemen and Ouder-Amstel. The network is owned by the City of Amsterdam and operated by GVB, the municipal public transport company that also operates the city’s trams, buses, and ferries. The metro forms one part of Amsterdam’s rail-based public transport network alongside the extensive tram system and frequent regional and intercity trains operated by Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS). The metro is a relatively recent addition to Amsterdam’s transportation system, with service beginning in October 1977. The first line, the Oostlijn (East Line), connected the city centre to the newly developed Bijlmermeer area in the southeastern borough of Amsterdam-Zuidoost via Lines 53 and 54. Further expansion was delayed due to public opposition, resuming in the 1990s with the opening of Line 51, a hybrid metro/tram route developed as a compromise with the municipality of Amstelveen. The system now comprises five lines and 39 stations, spanning 42.7 kilometres (26.5 mi). Three lines—51, 53, and 54—originate at Centraal Station, with Lines 53 and 54 running southeast to Zuidoost, and Line 51 heading south before turning west. Until 2019, Line 51 continued as a tram into Amstelveen, but this segment was closed and replaced with a dedicated tram line, the Amsteltram. Line 50, the only route that bypasses the city centre, connects Zuidoost to western districts. The newest addition, Line 52, opened in July 2018 and runs from Amsterdam-Noord to Amsterdam-Zuid via Centraal. It was constructed mostly underground and does not share tracks with other lines.