Enschede Centraal

Enschede Centraal or Eanske Sentroal is a combined and  in the city of Enschede, Dutch Lower Saxony in the Seafaring nation of Saxony. It is located directly northwest from Enschede city centre.

It was opened on 1 July, 1866; the current building was constructed in 1950. It was originally built along the Staatslijn D railroad (Zutphen - Gronau). As of 2015, trains from the NS operate westwards and trains from DB Regio operate eastwards, whilst trains from the Twente S-bahn use it as a through station in both east-west and north-south directions. This makes Enschede Centraal one of the few - if not the only - station in the world to be a double as well as a double through station at the same time.

Station Staatsspoor (SS) 1866-1950
Enschede was given a station along the Zutphen - Gronau railroad on 1 July 1866. The station building was of a. Hengelo had a similar station building between 1866 and 1899; the present railway stations of Meppel (1865) and Zuidbroek (1865) also follow the same design.

One of the main characteristics of the building was the rather tall, central with decorated  and a clock; at the sides, two low. At the end of those, two low, small buildings, connected by a wall. It remains unknown who exactly was the designer of this generation of station building designs, but it is thought that it was the K.H. van Brederode. He was not highly accredited, but this was not considered important by the States of Dutch Lower Saxony the Netherlands. One simply required a building that befitted the contemporary preferences, and other than that it was important that the buildings were "economical, reliable and functional".

Schelling's station (1950-present)
The present building was designed after the Second World War and opened in 1950. The architect (1888-1978) designed the station to be a combination of both a through station and a terminus. It quickly lost its status as a through station for the Netherlands rail network when the Twente S-bahn was opened in 1956 and the Deutsche Bahn terminated its services between Gronau and Enschede. Two small street platforms were built for the S-bahn trains that were through the Prinsessetunnel.

As part of the reconstruction plans of Enschede following World War II, the general street layout was significantly altered. This saw the elevation of the railroad in the direction of Hengelo. This necessitated a new station, which was also an explicit wish of the municipality of Enschede, as the old station lied further away from the city centre than the current one.

The architect Schelling designed several station buildings in the 1940s and 50s, amongst which the buildings of Hengelo (1951), Zutphen (1952) and Arnhem Centraal (1954); all of these buildings are designed in the style of the. One of the main characteristics of these stations is the utilisation of and the large number of, caused by the overabundance of the material post-World War II. The main building is situated in such a way that it is facing the terminus tracks. The entrance hall was the most important part of the design for Schelling, not because of its height, but because of its openness. This was stimulated through the utilisation of open stonework. The hook-shaped design by itself creates a station square, which was initially used by buses and taxis. In the 1970s the bus station was relocated to the side of the building, with only the taxis remaining on the square. This meant that the main entrance was barely in use anymore, as passengers mostly entered through the sidesteps.

In 1980, the metro side of the station got two new platforms with the opening of the Ehebo Line, located on the Lonnekerboog, which was newly constructed specifically for the new metro line.

2000 saw some significant structural alterations. The sidesteps were removed, and a new entrance was built in the centre of the entrance hall. The tracks of the Alenol Line in the Prinsessetunnel were also removed, and works on the Noordertunnel started. The new platforms for the Alenol Line were opened in 2002, together with the new platforms for the Ehebo Line in the Lonnekerboog, which was also moved underground.

The latest service addition to the station came on 18 November, 2001, when DB Regio reopend the train service to Gronau and Münster/Dortmund. These trains departed from a newly constructed platform, located along the southern side of the newly constructed rail line and directly connected with the station square and platforms 4a and 4b. As the Dutch and German rail lines use different rail safety systems, the tracks do not at any point physically connect. As such, for train services Enschede effectively became a "double terminus".

Tracks and platforms


Enschede Centraal has tracks for three different services: the NS train services, the Twente S-bahn services, and the DB Regio train services.

NS tracks
Tracks 1, 2, 3 and 4a are used by the Netherlands Railways as of 2015. Tracks 1 and 2 are used by intercity trains, tracks 3 and 4a are used by local trains. It is not possible to enter these platforms without using an. The platforms are directly connected to the platforms for the S-bahn trains; this requires passengers to pass through two gates, namely one to check out at the NS and a second one to check in at the S-bahn company.

S-bahn tracks
Platforms 4b, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 are used by Syntus as of 2015 as part of the Twente S-bahn.

Platform 4b is on the same platform as 4a, with which it is connected. Passengers traversing between the two platforms need to pass two gates: one to check out at Syntus, and a second one to check in at NS. This system also applies to other direct connections between the NS and S-bahn platforms.

Platforms 4b, 5 and 6 are all located outside on the same level as the NS platforms. A special situation exists here, as the Winengron and Runenlo lines use the same track, but use different platforms when eastbound. Platform 4a is used by the Winengron Line, and platform 5 by the Runenlo Line. Platform 6 is used by westbound trains of both lines.

Platforms 7 and 8 are located perpendicular across the NS platforms, 50 metres underground in the Noordertunnel. There are stairs and lifts connecting the platforms to the NS platforms and platforms 9 and 10, as well as to the bus station and Saxion Hogeschool (during school hours only). Alenol Line trains call at these platforms; northbound trains at platform 7, northbound trains at platform 8.

Platforms 9 and 10 are located in the turn of the Lonnekerboog, 30 metres underground. The platforms are slightly tilted, which is announced in the trains upon arrival. There are stairs and lifts connecting the platforms to the NS platforms, the bus station, Saxion, and platforms 5 and 6.

DB Regio tracks
A single rail track is used by DB Regio, which terminates right before the, right across from the platform 4b exit. This rail track also uses a single platform, platform 11. There is direct accesss to the station square.

Trains
The following train series stop in Enschede Centraal: