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Originally we didn't plan to visit The Hague, but since we were so close to it when we travelled to Gouda, I talked András into taking a look around here.
The central railway station was a bit of a mess due to construction works for the new RandstadRail interurban LRT project, but tram traffic seemed to be unhampered by this.
The stop for some of the trams and buses is located on top of the railway tracks, still inside the central station, which is a real elegant solution I think.
Trams arrive here via a viaduct.
I believe there was a reversing loop up here earlier, but now it's gone, trams travel through the stops.
Between the tram tracks is where the RandstadRail LRT station will be. In the background you can see the bus station.
But let's deal with just the trams: currently this type, the GTL-8, manufactured by BN of Belgium, is the only one used in The Hague. The classic PCCs are long gone, and the TW6000s from Hannover are not in use.
An interior shot of this type.
We didn't had time to really explore the tram network, so we just boarded a tram at the central station. The tracks cross other tram lines here...
... on a flyover bridge...
... then run through a modern building...
... and then enter a short subway section. On the picture we see the station Spui. I liked this station very much, it seemed different to all the other underground tram stops I saw in other cities!
And the usage of parquetry for the floor blew my mind! :)
Small DivX video of a tram arriving to the stop.
We continued our way with tram route 2, then..
... went to Conradkade...
... to see route 11 running along a ship-canal in a very nice way...
... and then travelled with this line to the seeshore at Scheveningen.
Trams at the beach - I don't often have a chance to photograph such sceneries. I believe the last time was in Blackpool, years ago :)
The terminus had a surprisingly busy traffic.
One of the tracks was closed so the trams queued on the other one.
About a kilometer away, but still at the same seeshore holiday resort, one can find two more tram lines: 1 and 9.
There's also a turnout here, I believe leading to a depot, because there was no passenger traffic onthese tracks.
What I found strange was that although the terminus of these lines at Scheveningen Noorderstrand featured many tracks...
... suitable for dense headways, succession was quite low: only one tram in every ten minutes or so...
... and this proved to be insufficient, as it was a hot and sunny day, with many people visiting the beach.
A GTL-8 in the reversing loop of the terminus, running between sand dunes...
... overgrown by greenery.
The rare sight of departing trams ;)
From here we went right back to the central station. Unfortunately I fell asleep underway, so I don't have memories what the line looked like. I guess I'll have to come back. There's still much to see, and I also want to see the RandstadRail system in operation!
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