The Gooiboog is a railway chord which links the Dutch Flevolijn

Flevolijn

The Weesp–Lelystad railway, also known as the Flevolijn, is a Dutch railway line. It is operated by Nederlandse Spoorwegen. The line runs from Weesp, in the province of North Holland, to Lelystad, capital of the neighbouring province of Flevoland....

 and Gooilijn

Gooilijn

The Amsterdam–Zutphen railway is a railway line in the Netherlands - running from Amsterdam to Zutphen; the line passes through the towns Hilversum, Amersfoort and Apeldoorn...

 railway lines.

The link is double tracked. The outer, southbound line is 2200 metres long, the inner northbound one is 1400 metre. The outer track is in a dive-under

Flying junction

A flying junction or flyover is a railway junction at which one or more diverging or converging tracks in a multiple-track route cross other tracks on the route by bridge to avoid conflict with other train movements. A more technical term is "grade-separated junction"...

, running beneath the surface level for about 1500 metres, diving underneath the Gooilijn.

The Gooiboog offers a direct link between Almere

Almere

Almere is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, the Netherlands, bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde. The municipality of Almere comprises the districts Almere Stad, Almere Haven, Almere Buiten, Almere Hout, Almere Poort and Almere Pampus .Almere is the youngest city in the...

, Hilversum

Hilversum

is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Located in the region called "'t Gooi", it is the largest town in that area. It is surrounded by heathland, woods, meadows, lakes, and smaller villages...

 and Utrecht

Utrecht (city)

Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...

.

History

In 1980 work began on the construction of the Flevolijn and in 1987 the line opened as far as Almere Buiten. In 1988 the line was extended to Lelystad

Lelystad

Lelystad is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Flevoland. The city, built on reclaimed land, was founded in 1967 and was named after Cornelis Lely, who engineered the Afsluitdijk, making the reclamation possible...

. As early as 1987 the possibility of a link to Hilversum, Utrecht and Amersfoort

Amersfoort

Amersfoort is a municipality and the second largest city of the province of Utrecht in central Netherlands. The city is growing quickly but has a well-preserved and protected medieval centre. Amersfoort is one of the largest railway junctions in the country, because of its location on two of the...

 was discussed. At present there is still no link between Almere and Amersfoort.

At first it was planned to build a fly-over

Overpass

An overpass is a bridge, road, railway or similar structure that crosses over another road or railway...

 but residents of Weesp

Weesp

Weesp is a town and a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It has a population of 17,533 .Weesp lies next to the rivers de Vecht and Smal Weesp and also next to the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal. It is in an area called the "Vechtstreek"...

 complained it would ruin their view of the Naardermeer.

Construction started in 2000, with the first services running on December 14, 2003.

Gooiboog Use

The regular service over the Gooiboog is the half-hourly Almere Centrum

Almere Centrum railway station

Almere Centrum is a railway station in Almere, the Netherlands. It is located approximately 22 kilometers east of Amsterdam. The station lies on the Weesp–Lelystad railway. Almere Centrum is located in central Almere: a new town established in 1976 on land reclaimed from the sea...

 - Hilversum

Hilversum railway station

Hilversum is a railway station in Hilversum, the Netherlands. It is located approximately southeast of Amsterdam. It is on the Amsterdam - Hilversum - Amersfoort main line, with a branch to Utrecht. There are two other stations in Hilversum: Hilversum Noord to the north, and Hilversum Sportpark to...

 - Utrecht Centraal

Utrecht Centraal railway station

Utrecht Centraal is the central railway station for the city of Utrecht in the Netherlands. It is the largest railway station in the Netherlands in terms of size, with fourteen platforms With Utrecht being located centrally in the Netherlands, Utrecht Centraal is also the largest station in terms...

service. During evenings and Sundays this service is reduced an hourly frequency.