Bijlmer ArenA

The station takes its name from the Bijlmermeer district and from ArenA Boulevard, which it spans. Until 10 December 2006 it was simply called Bijlmer.

Built three times, the last time in glass

Few stations have been rebuilt so often. The first Bijlmer railway station opened on 24 May 1971, when the new district was still a building site. A second station followed in 1976, and in October 1977 the metro called here for the first time.

The current version is by the London practice Grimshaw, working with Arcadis Architecten. The building is almost 100 metres long, 70 metres wide and 30 metres tall, and spans ArenA Boulevard. It is largely transparent, so it does not stand like a wall between the two sides of the boulevard. Much of it was finished in July 2007 and it fully opened on 17 November 2007. The design was shortlisted for the Stirling Prize, Britain's leading architecture award.

The station had already been renamed Bijlmer ArenA in December 2006. On its west side are the Johan Cruijff ArenA, AFAS Live, the Ziggo Dome and a 14-screen cinema; on the east side is the Amsterdamse Poort shopping centre. Metro, intercity and local trains and around fifteen bus routes all meet here.