Utrecht Central Station has seen significant growth over recent decades. It currently serves 88 million passengers per year and forecasts predict that passenger volume will increase to around 100 million by 2020. The station is being transformed to a public transport terminal (OVT) to offer a greater capacity. Many stakeholders are working together in several projects including the City of Utrecht, the City Region BRU, ProRail, Dutch Railways NS, Real Estate developers and the Jaarbeurs Exhibition. To support travel to and from the station, new tram and bus terminals are planned for the east and west side of the OVT.
The new bus/tram terminal will provide a vital link from the existing tram line to a new one under design phase. Running from Nieuwegein and IJsselstein to Utrecht Central Station, the SUNIJ line will join the new Uithof line connecting the city centre to the Uithof University campus. From 2018 both the SUNIJ and the Uithof lines will end and start respectively at the OVT East. The terminal is at street level and has incorporated in the design columns or reserved areas for columns for real estate developments and pedestrian bridges above the terminal.
Our study has included a comprehensive tram safety analysis. This comprises a detailed assessment of the risk of collisions with other vehicles and with columns, the accessibility for emergency services as well as passenger safety. We’ve also presented recommendations for the engineering and design and elaborate interfaces with the tram signalling system at this terminal.