Hoek van Holland Strand railway station explained

Hoek van Holland Strand
Style:NS
Address:Hook of Holland
Country:Netherlands
Coordinates:51.9828°N 4.1194°W
Line:Schiedam–Hoek van Holland railway
Platform:2
Opened:1893
Closed:1 April 2017 (end of NS service)
Code:Hlds
Operator:Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Map Type:Netherlands Randstad ZW#Netherlands

Hoek van Holland Strand station was the terminus of the Hoekse Lijn until 1 April 2017.

This railway station in Hoek van Holland was opened on 1 June 1893 . It was approximately 700 meters further west than Hoek van Holland Haven station, with limited trains running to the station outside the summer months. Due to the construction of the Maasvlakte in 1971, the coastline came to lie further out to sea than when the station was opened, so that afterwards the station was no longer close to the beach, but more than a kilometre (about a 15-minute walk) away.[1]

New metro station

On 1 April 2017, the Hoekse Lijn was taken over by the Rotterdam-The Hague Metropolitan Region and converted into a metro line that came into use on 30 September 2019. From 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2023 there was replacement bus transport to the Badweg near the beach of Hoek van Holland.

As part of the renovation of the Hoekse Lijn into a metro line, the old Hoek van Holland Strand station closed on 1 April 2017. On 31 March 2023, a new Hoek van Holland Strand metro station was opened near the beach, for which the track has been extended by 900 metres.[2]

Former freight lines

There were 2 more railway lines at this height; the " Strand line " and the Westlandsche Stoomtramweg Maatschappij (WSM) tram both came on standard gauge from or next to the dunes, both served for freight transport. The beach line connected to the NS tracks and crossed the WSM branch line, which ended approximately here. The WSM line disappeared in 1951, and is now partly a cycle path. The beach line disappeared in 1971.[3]  

Notes and References

  1. https://www.buwa.nl/fileadmin/buwa_upload/publicaties/NL/ROmagazine_05-2021_LR_40-43.pdf
  2. https://www.treinreiziger.nl/rotterdamse-metro-eindelijk-naar-hoek-van-holland-strand/
  3. Rook waait over het Westland, H.v. Lith, uitgeverij Kimabo, 2012.