History
The first Dutch railway was built and opened in 1839, on a short stretch between Amsterdam and Haarlem, and was quickly expanded to The Hague and Rotterdam. It was originally built to a broad gauge of 1,945 mm (6 ft 4 9⁄16 in), but was converted to 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) (standard gauge) in 1866. Further expansion happened in the 19th century to connect the rest of the country. During the 20th century most of the main lines were electrified, starting in 1908 with the Hofpleinlijn.
Read more about this topic: Rail Transport In The Netherlands
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