Transport in Amsterdam

1. Getting around the city

**Tram.** The tram is the transport for the centre and the districts around it. Lines run on street, sometimes on their own lane, and stop at the main squares, the stations and the museums. In the centre, the tram reaches almost everywhere. Bikes do not normally travel on trams.

**Metro.** Amsterdam has five metro lines: 50, 51, 52, 53 and 54. Line 52, the North/South line, runs from Noord under Centraal Station to the centre and on to De Pijp and Zuid station. The other lines mainly serve districts outside the centre, including Zuidoost. For longer trips across the city, the metro is the fastest mode.

**Bus.** GVB city buses run where the tram does not go: outer districts, side streets and links between districts without a detour through the centre. At night, when trams and metro stop, night buses take over.

**Ferry across the IJ.** GVB ferries across the IJ are free for pedestrians, cyclists and moped riders. You need no ticket for them. From the back of Centraal Station they sail to Amsterdam-Noord. The F3 to Buiksloterweg runs day and night and drops you at the EYE Filmmuseum and the A'DAM Tower. The F4 sails to the NDSM wharf, the F2 to IJplein, the F6 and F7 from Pontsteiger, and the F9 between Zeeburgereiland and Sporenburg. The ferries do not travel through the centre or the canal belt: they only cross the IJ.

**Bike.** The bike is a full means of transport in Amsterdam, with its own cycle paths, its own traffic lights and bike parking. Stay on the cycle path, usually recognisable by red asphalt, ride on the right, and cross tram rails at a sharp angle, or your tyre can get caught in them. After dark your bike must have a front and a rear light. Park only in a rack or a garage: bikes parked in the wrong place can be removed by the city to the bicycle depot (Fietsdepot). At rush hour the cycle paths are busy, especially around the stations and the narrow streets of the centre.

**On foot and by taxi.** The centre, above all the canal belt and the Jordaan, is best walked. The streets are narrow and many distances are short. Take taxis from a rank or hail one in the street. Use only an official taxi.

2. Getting to and from the city

**By plane.** Schiphol Airport lies south-west of the city. The NS station sits directly under the terminal: take the lift or escalator down from Schiphol Plaza. NS trains run regularly to Amsterdam Centraal and to other stations in the city, such as Sloterdijk, Lelylaan and Zuid. No tram or metro serves Schiphol. Check your train in the NS app or on the boards in the station hall, because not every train to Amsterdam stops at the same stations.

**By train.** Amsterdam Centraal is the main station, on the northern edge of the centre, with the ferries to Noord at the back. From Centraal, NS trains run to every part of the country, and international trains to Belgium, Germany, France and the United Kingdom, among others. Other useful stations are Amsterdam Zuid in the south, Amsterdam Sloterdijk in the west, Amsterdam Amstel in the east and Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA in Zuidoost, by the Johan Cruijff ArenA. For a train to another city, first check which station is closest to where you stay: not every train leaves from Centraal.

**By bus and by car.** Regional buses link Amsterdam with the surrounding towns. The main bus stations sit by the railway stations. By car, you reach Amsterdam on the A10 ring road, which runs around the city. In the centre itself a car is rarely handy: the streets are narrow, parking is scarce, and many streets are for local traffic only or entirely car-free.

3. Commuting in general terms

For short distances in the centre, walking and cycling are usually fastest: waiting for a tram often takes longer than walking, especially in the narrow streets of the canal belt. For longer trips across the city, the metro is fastest, because it is free of street traffic. The bus fills the gaps between the tram and metro lines.

Many people who live in Amsterdam work in the city itself or travel by train to another city in the Randstad. In the morning and late afternoon the cycle paths, trams and stations are busy. Anyone heading to Noord takes the ferry: it is part of daily transport, not only a day out. Anyone who lives outside the city and works in Amsterdam usually arrives by train at Centraal, Zuid or Sloterdijk and changes there to tram, metro or bike.

4. What a newcomer needs to know first

This page gives general information about transport. It sells no tickets and does not verify timetables, fares or specific services.

• **Check in and out on every mode.** On trams, metros, buses and trains, tap a contactless bank card or phone (OVpay) when you board and when you get off. Use the same card or phone for the whole trip. On the free IJ ferries you do not need to check in.
• **Check fares and times with the operator.** This page gives no fares or timetables, because they change: for tram, metro, bus and ferry see gvb.nl, for trains ns.nl, and for a trip anywhere in the Netherlands see 9292.nl.
• **Mind the exact station name.** Amsterdam Centraal is the main station, but Zuid, Sloterdijk, Amstel and Bijlmer ArenA are separate stations in other parts of the city. A train to Schiphol leaves from the station under the terminal, not from a bus stop outside.
• **Take the right ferry to Noord.** Buiksloterweg (F3) is the ferry for the EYE Filmmuseum and the A'DAM Tower, NDSM (F4) for the wharf. The ferries leave from the IJ side, the back, of Centraal Station.
• **Do not cycle on the pavement and do not walk on the cycle path.** The red asphalt is a road for cyclists, not a widened pavement. On foot, stay on the pavement; on a bike, stay on the cycle path and signal turns with your hand.