After a trial run on Saturday, where customers could ride for free, Utrecht’s new fast tram service officially started running on Monday. 10 trams will run in both directions along the Uithoflijn every hour, with nine stops.

New tram line replaces old bus line

Utrecht’s new Uithoflijn tram line will replace an old bus line that used to transport around 25.000 students and other passengers a day. The Uithoflijn covers a distance of eight kilometres and will stop at the University of Utrecht, the hospital UMC Utrecht and the HU of Applied Sciences.

As of Monday, the new public transport service will run on weekdays from 6am until 10pm. The line will run 10 trams every hour, in both directions, passing by nine stops. Over the course of 2020, the aim is to increase the number of trams running every hour to 12.

Uithoflijn finally running despite delays

Plans for a new fast-tram service were approved back in 2012, with construction starting in November 2016. Originally, the plan was to have the new service up and running by July 2018, however, it was delayed in 2017 due to the renovation of the station area in Utrecht and financial problems.

In 2018, it was announced that the project was 84 million euros over-budget. Then, in November, the project required another injection of funds that supposedly amounted to between 22 and 39 million euros, taking the total cost of the Uithoflijn to around half a billion euros. The line eventually opened 18 months later than originally planned.

Thumb: Erik Swierstra/Wikimedia Commons