The Utrecht–Rotterdam railway is a heavily used railway line in the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

, running from Utrecht

Utrecht

Utrecht is a city in the Netherlands.The name may also refer to:* Utrecht , of which Utrecht is the capital* Utrecht , including the city of Utrecht* Bishopric of Utrecht* Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Utrecht...

 to Rotterdam

Rotterdam

Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...

, passing through Gouda

Gouda

Gouda is a city and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. Gouda, which was granted city rights in 1272, is famous for its Gouda cheese, smoking pipes, and 15th-century city hall....

. The line was opened between 1855 and 1858. The western terminus was originally the Rotterdam Maas station. In 1899, a connection with the Rotterdam Delftse Poort station (the present Rotterdam Centraal station) was made. In 1953 a new line was opened between Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel

Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel

Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel is a town and former municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland...

 and Rotterdam Centraal; the now obsolete Maas station was closed.

Stations

The main interchange stations on the Utrecht–Rotterdam railway are:

• Breda
  Utrecht Centraal railway station
  Utrecht Centraal is the central railway station for the city of Utrecht in the Netherlands. It is the largest railway station in the Netherlands in terms of size, with fourteen platforms With Utrecht being located centrally in the Netherlands, Utrecht Centraal is also the largest station in terms...
  
  : to Amsterdam
  Amsterdam
  Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
  
  , Zwolle
  Zwolle
  Zwolle is a municipality and the capital city of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands, 120 kilometers northeast of Amsterdam. Zwolle has about 120,000 citizens.-History:...
  
  , Arnhem
  Arnhem
  Arnhem is a city and municipality, situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland and located near the river Nederrijn as well as near the St. Jansbeek, which was the source of the city's development. Arnhem has 146,095 residents as one of the...
  
   and Eindhoven
• Gouda
  Gouda railway station
  Gouda is a railway station in Gouda, The Netherlands. The station opened on 21 May 1855 when the Nederlandsche Rhijnspoorweg-Maatschappij opened the Utrecht–Rotterdam railway...
  
  : to The Hague
  The Hague
  The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
  
   and Leiden
• Rotterdam Centraal
  Rotterdam Centraal railway station
  Rotterdam Centraal is the main railway station of the city Rotterdam in the Netherlands.-History:The station opened June 3, 1847 as the Delftsche Poort railway station. The station building designed by Sybold van Ravesteyn opened in 1957 and closed on September 2, 2007...
  
  : to The Hague, Breda
  Breda
  Breda is a municipality and a city in the southern part of the Netherlands. The name Breda derived from brede Aa and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. As a fortified city, the city was of strategic military and political significance...
  
  , Brussels
  Brussels
  Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
  
  and Amsterdam