Bijlmer ArenA Amsterdam

A new central public transport hub, from A to Z

At the end of 2001, BESIX won the ‘Design & Build’ contract for the structural works on Amsterdam’s Bijlmer ArenA railway station. When it was delivered in 2007, the station earned its place among the most spectacular train stations in the Netherlands.

A central hub

Bijlmer ArenA played a vital role in both the regional public transport network and in the renewal of Amsterdam's southern district. With a direct line to Schiphol airport, the station brings together the business and leisure centre of the western region, and the residential and shopping quarter to the east of the Amsterdam-Utrecht line.

Scope of works

Four new tracks had to be laid: two to double the existing Amsterdam-Utrecht line, and two for the line linking Utrecht to Schiphol via the Utrechtboog viaduct. In addition to these tracks, the new Schiphol-Frankfurt HST was to use this brand new station. As well as the main station structure, BESIX was also involved in the technical and civil engineering work on four bridges, each 350 metres in length.

BESIX made the difference

On no account could rail traffic be interrupted, leaving BESIX to juggle with train and metro timetables. Our Engineering department worked out a system that used prefabricated elements, permitting rapid assembly and offering major savings for the customer. The works initially included 4 large viaducts, each nearly 350 m long, to be cast in situ. BESIX came up with a much faster solution using columns and column tables. Once these were in place and hardened, we placed the prefabricated concrete beams between the tables, which were then assembled and post-tensioned. A particularly ingenious system!

Continued trust from the client

In September 2004, BESIX, in partnership, won a contract extension for the finishing works: constructing and assembling the roof of the new station, technical installations, facades, roofing, floors and the finishing of all public facilities, technical areas, the shops inside the station and the new platforms. The new station roof was a real technical feat. It covers 18,000 m², of which 6,000 m² in glass and 12,000 m² in aluminium and PVC. The top of the roof, which weighs around 4,000 tonnes, was lowered into position using the largest crane in the Netherlands (2,800 tonnes), in an operation complicated by difficulties of access and the complex shape of the individual roof elements.