Where in Zuidas
On 15 November 2022, the men and women working for the Nieuw-Zuid construction consortium had an early start. From 06.00 in the morning until deep into the night, they worked non-stop on a concrete sheet that will be pushed underneath railway track 1 and one of the two new future tracks next year. We have photos of their work.
Pouring concrete
On our work site alongside the A10 Zuid in Arnold Schönberglaan, there were plenty of trucks coming and going. Every hour, we used twelve concrete mixers to create the concrete mix needed to build the colossal roof section with a surface area of around 70 x 14.5 m and 1.2 m thick. After that, two concrete pumps spent ten hours pumping the concrete mix into the pre-constructed formwork, similar to a mould. After ten hours, the concrete had hardened sufficiently and the surface was ready for smoothing.
Power floating
A power float was used to level off the hardened concrete, a process that took four hours. Once the roof section was smooth and level, raised edges were added to the concrete sheet. Ultimately, the rails will be positioned between them and they will also help ensure that the gravel under the track remains in place.
Tensioned
The reinforcement on the roof section includes 16 cable ducts through which high-quality steel cables run. When the concrete has hardened sufficiently, these cables will be tensioned using tendons. This cannot be done all at once: firstly, the concrete is pre-tensioned to 15% to prevent tearing. Only after that is the roof section fully tensioned. This, combined with 130 tons of steel reinforcement, will ensure that the roof section is sturdy enough for several trains to pass over it on a daily basis.
The Brittenpassage roof: now and in the near future
The roof above the Brittenpassage will consist of seven roof sections of different sizes, the first of which was positioned under railway tracks T2 and T3 in November 2019. In August 2021, it was time for the two roof sections underneath metro track M1 and railway track T4. Before the end of the year, the roof section just completed will be moved closer to the A10 (it will ultimately be underneath railway tracks T1 and T6) to make room to build a second one (that will be underneath railway track T5 and the A10).
Renovation of Amsterdam Zuid station
Zuidasdok is working on the renovation of Amsterdam Zuid station. The existing Minervapassage will be made wider and taller and there will be a second passenger tunnel, the Brittenpassage, on the west of the station. This will enable the increasing number of passengers (250,000 passengers by 2030 compared to 80,000 now) to continue to travel safely and comfortably.
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