The European Investment Bank has agreed to provide a EUR 200 million loan for upgrading of the A9 motorway south-east of Amsterdam. The 8km Gaasperdammerweg stretch of the A9 motorway between Holendrecht and the river Gaasp near Diemen will be widened and part of the route covered to create a tunnel that will be covered by a new park in Amsterdam-Zuidoost.

“Investing in transport infrastructure is essential both to reduce congestion and to cope with expected increased traffic. The European Investment Bank has a strong track record of backing long-term investment in Dutch roads, railways, ports and airport infrastructure and supporting transport investment in the Netherlands is a key priority for the EIB. We are pleased to continue this engagement through significant new support for upgrading the A9 Gaasperdammerweg in Amsterdam.” said Pim van Ballekom, European Investment Bank Vice President.

The stretch of the A9 to be upgraded is a busy part of the motorway network between Schiphol airport, Amsterdam and Almere and will be upgraded to reduce congestion and improve travel times, as well as improving road safety and reduce traffic noise once complete. The new park to be built above the covered road link will improve connections between communities in this part of the city that that are currently divided by the above ground motorway.

The main motorway will be widened to 5 lanes in each direction, split between local and through traffic and. noise reduction measures put in place. Construction is expected to start after summer of next year and the new tunnel will open for traffic in 2020.

Europe’s long-term lending institution will provide a 22 year loan for the PPP project to be built by the IXAS Zuid-Oost Consortium on behalf of Rijkswaterstaat, executive agency of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment. The European Investment Bank is the largest lender for the A9 upgrade project, which will also be supported by financing provided by BNG, DZ BANK, ING, KBC, SMBC and Société Générale.

Over the last decade the European Investment Bank has provided nearly EUR 2.5 billion for investment in transport projects across the Netherlands. These include upgrading the A12 between Lunetten and Veenendaal that has reduced congestion around Utrecht, support for investment to improve passenger transit at Schiphol airport and expansion of the Port of Rotterdam at the Maasvlakte.