The Station Island already plays host to around a quarter of a million passengers a day. In a few years, this will have increased to 300,000. The decision to build the North/South (metro) Line was the principle reason to examine the position of the Station Island as a whole. It seemed a large-scale upgrade was necessary to enable the island to remain a well-functioning interchange in the future.
Station Island Coordination It quickly became clear that upgrade work at such a busy location, at the heart of the capital of the Netherlands, would be very complicated. For that reason, three parties agreed on a joint approach. They were the Amsterdam City Council, the NS (Dutch Railways) and ProRail on behalf of the Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management.They set up the Station Island Coordination. Their most important task is to coordinate the various projects taking place on the island so that it remains accessible throughout the period of construction.
The Station Island Coordination makes sure that Station Island looks orderly: there are checks to see if the area is clean and undamaged. Building site fences must be in order. Advertising billboards make the fencing less attractive to graffiti artists and information notices show what is going on behind the fencing. Proper signposting ensures that routes are always clearly identifiable.
The Station Island Coordination arranges agreements on the supply routes for building materials and the size of the building sites. The state of the fencing is also monitored: it must be properly closed off and meet certain requirements regarding height and construction.
The Station Island Coordination is continually comparing the various project plans to make sure they are compatible. If an opportunity for working together at some point in the future is spotted, or a potential bottleneck, then this can be planned for as far in advance as possible.
South bank of the river IJ The transformation of Station Island also forms part of a larger plan – the redevelopment of the southern bank of the IJ. The aim of this project is to restore the link between the centre of Amsterdam and the river IJ. There are eight sub-districts: Oostelijke Handelskade, Oosterdok, Oosterdokseiland, Stationseiland (Station Island), Westelijk Stationseiland, Westerdokseiland, Silodam and Houthavens. Each of these areas along the IJ will have their own character, with housing, offices and a range of amenities. Examples include the public library, the academy of music, and the music centre.