Waterlooplein is an underground metro station in the city centre of Amsterdam, Netherlands. Served by metro lines 51, 53 and 54 of the Amsterdam Metro, the station was constructed by sinking caissons with a length of 40 metres (130 ft), with the first one being lowered in 1972. There were "open tube" days in 1975 showcasing the station, which was the first time the public got access to the underground tunnels of the metro system.

Waterlooplein
General information
Location	Waterlooplein, Amsterdam,  Netherlands
Coordinates	52°22′02″N 4°54′06″E
Owned by	Gemeente Vervoerbedrijf (GVB)
Line(s)	51, 53, 54 (Metro)
Platforms	1
Tracks	2
Connections	GVB tram: 14 GVB bus: N85, N86, N87, N89, N91, N93 (night)
Other information
Fare zone	5700 (Centrum)
History
Opened	11 October 1980

The station, opened to metro traffic on 11 October 1980, has an island platform of 180 metres (590 ft) and two halls with a total of five entrances. Waterlooplein, along with other stations on the East Line, had a major renovation in 2016 that brought back the brutalist architecture used in the original station. There are two pieces of artwork located in the station: one in a station hall and the other on the platform level.

Layout

The station has an island platform of 180 metres (590 ft) long 8 metres (26 ft) wide, located 12 metres (39 ft) under the surface. Each end of the platform goes up to a hall, with a total of five entrances into the station. Four entrances lead up to the square with the same name, two of which go to the Stopera, the town hall of Amsterdam, while the fifth entrance is located at the Nieuwe Herengracht. There are columns in the middle of the platform, roughly 7 metres (23 ft) apart from each other.[1] A restaurant serving Surinamese food is located inside the station.[2] Waterlooplein station ends the straight line between Weesperplein and Wibautstraat, as the turn from Nieuwmarkt to Amsterdam Centraal would've been too tight otherwise.[3]

History

Construction and opening

Alderman Han Lammers inspecting the station in 1975 (left) and the platform a week before its opening (right)

Most underground areas of the line were constructed by using caissons, which made pumping out groundwater unnecessary. The caissons were built above ground on-site, and had a length of 40 metres (130 ft) and a width of 10–18 metres (33–59 ft).[4] The earth below the cassions were rinsed with water and pumped out, lowering them into their place.[5] The first caisson at Waterlooplein was lowered in 1972.[6] There were protests against the construction of the metro, as this method required the demolition of the houses above the line.[7]

Lots of oak revetments of the Amstel river were found during construction.[6] From August to October 1975, an "open tube" was organized inside the station, which was the first time that locals were able to see how the underground metro would look like.[8] The section of the tunnel from Waterlooplein to Amsterdam Centraal was opened on 11 October 1980.[9]

Later developments

The station was planned to have a renovation from March to September 2011.[10] The start was delayed several times and eventually started after May.[11] Metro traffic was stopped on 23 July, accordingly to the plan,[12] and restarted on 5 September while the work was still ongoing.[13]

All stations on the East Line were set for another renovation in 2016. The renovation of Waterlooplein started in September. The aim was to bring back the brutalist architecture used in the original station. The paint on walls was removed to reveal the bare concrete. Metro traffic still continued as entrances were closed one by one.[14] Some of the features added after initial construction, such as the usage of primary colours and a black ceiling, were kept after the renovation.[15] Het Parool wrote that after the renovation "[the station] suddenly look[s] as if [it is] no longer just from the past, but also a bit from now."[16] In April 2017, the Gemeente Vervoerbedrijf started to play music through the speakers of underground metro stations as a test. The type of music would depend on the time of day: slow and calming music during rush hours, and energetic music during the afternoon.[17]

Artwork

Waterloo on the platform wall (left) and Sporen van verlichte voetstappen on the floor (right) photographed in 2011, before the renovation.

Waterloo of Willem Sandberg consists of blue and red letters on the platform walls spelling out the name of the work. The typographic artwork consists of basic shapes—circles, rectangles, triangles and trapezoids—with frayed edges.[18] The letters were planned to be removed during the 2016 renovation, as well as a few other artworks in different stations, as they were damaged. They were kept in the end due to their "cultural-historical value". Smoke screen panels were installed on the artwork to stop the spread of smoke in case of a fire.[19] The advertisements on the walls near the letters were also removed.[14]

Located on one of the station halls, Sporen van verlichte voetstappen by Dirk Müller is made up of several plexiglass plates of footsteps that leave a trace on the floor which continues on to a wall. The lights of the footprints illuminate one by one creating a walking motion. The footsteps were initially planned to be on Spaklerweg station, but were given to Waterlooplein due to delays with Spaklerweg.[20]

Services

The station is served by metro lines 51, 53 and 54. North-bound, all three lines use the same track and end at Amsterdam Centraal. South-bound, M53 ends at Gaasperplas, while M54 ends at Gein. M51 used to serve the Amstelveen suburb by heading south after Amsterdam Zuid station and end at Westwijk.[21] The section after Zuid was closed in 2019 and replaced by a tramline.[22] M51 now continues west-bound after Zuid and ends at Isolatorweg.[23] A tram stop near the enterance shares the same name as the metro station and is served by tram line 14 during the day. At night, night buses N85, N86, N87, N89, N91 and N93 stop near the station.[24]

References

Citations

Bibliography

External links

• Official website (in Dutch)