Leidsestraat

When I just moved to Amsterdam, I would often get up early and wander around the city. I had no idea where everything was and more than once I would get lost without Google maps. One day in April 2020, when the COVID lockdown had just begun, I decided to see for myself how empty the city was. It was around 9:30 when I made my way to the Leidsestraat and as you can see it was pretty much empty. This is usually one of the busiest streets in Amsterdam, but not on that day and not for the duration of the lockdown.

The history of this street dates back to the great city expanse of 1658 and ran from the Heiligewegspoort to the Leidsepoort in the direction of the city of Leiden. From 1877 all the way until the electrification of 1903, horse trams would ride these streets to commute citizens back and forth. Tram lines 1 and 2 have been riding these streets ever since 1904. Can you imagine that? For 118 years (writing 2022) the trams have been riding every day and every hour on the clock. I think that's pretty awesome.

Eventually to modernise and to accommodate trams longer than 18 metres, the interchanges were extended in 1971 and crossing traffic was banned during rush hours. In 1980 the street was reprofiled and provided with decorative paving, whereby the road and sidewalks disappeared. The single track was replaced by winding track, which meant that the switches could be omitted.

Since 1971 the street (apart from the fact that there are trams running) has been a pedestrian zone, closed to cars and taxis. Only for freight traffic, there is a loading and unloading arrangement at certain times. The street has been off-limits to cyclists since 1960; these were redirected to a nearby parallel street and this rule was even enforced by police officers.

The Leidsestraat has an integral part in Amsterdam's history and it's expansion into the city it is today. If you ever visit Amsterdam, make sure to take a nice long walk on these streets and take in the awesome views.

Creator: Vizualsbynick
Code: AMS#1 Artwork: Leidsestraat Collection: Slices of Amsterdam

his photo was taken on April 10th, 2020.

Damrak; an edition by Nick van Eijk

LICENCING: The Edition NFT Holder is free to use this image for displaying privately in non-commercial settings.

Where displayed on social media, in virtual galleries and virtual rooms the creator, Nick van Eijk, should be credited.

The Copyright remains with the creator, Nick van Eijk