A50 motorway (Netherlands)

A50 motorway shield}}
A50 motorway
Rijksweg 50
Motorways in the Netherlands with A50 and N50 bolt
Route information
Part of E31 / E35
Maintained by Rijkswaterstaat[1]
Major junctions
South end E25 / A 2 in Eindhoven
Major intersections
North end E232 / A 28 / N 50 in Hattem
Location
CountryKingdom of the Netherlands
Constituent countryNetherlands
ProvincesNorth Brabant, Gelderland
Highway system
← A 44→ A 58

A50, the section of Rijksweg 50 that is constructed as controlled-access highway, is a north–south motorway in the Netherlands, running from Eindhoven in the province of North Brabant, northwards passing by the cities of Oss, Nijmegen, Arnhem and Apeldoorn, to its northern terminus in the province of Gelderland near the city of Zwolle.

The highway is maintained by Rijkswaterstaat.[1]

Route description

It passes the cities of Eindhoven, Oss, Nijmegen, Arnhem, Apeldoorn and Zwolle.

History

During the Second World War the Highway was known as Highway 69. Since 1969, it is known as N69 and has that name now only between the border of North Brabant and European route E34.

The highway was an important and only avenue of advance during Operation Market Garden, and after the fighting along its length between Allied and Wehrmacht forces it was named "Hell's Highway"[2] so named because of the effective artillery fire directed at it by the German forces in the area.[3] During the fighting some 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) of the highway south of Eindhoven was jammed with wrecks of vehicles being attacked by up to 200 Luftwaffe bombers[4] requiring bulldozers and blade-equipped tanks to roam the length, pushing them off the surface to keep traffic moving. The wrecks on the soft shoulders of the highway prevented its use by other vehicles,[5] in effect converting the highway into a narrow corridor, and slowing the movement on it to a crawl for the Allied drivers.

Exit list

ProvinceMunicipalitykmmiExitDestinationsNotes
North BrabantEindhoven0.0000.000— E25 / A 2 – Best, Eindhoven, Oirschot
6Ekkersrijt
Son en Beugel7John F. Kennedylaan
8 N 620 west (Bestseweg) – Best, Son en Beugel
Sonse Heide rest area
Southbound exit and entrance
Sint-Oedenrode9 N 637 north (Noordelijke randweg) / Eversestraat / Veghelseweg – Sint-Oedenrode, Schijndel
Veghel10 N 622 west (Eerdsebaan / Bovenrooy) – Veghel, Schijndel
Zuid-WillemsvaartJulian J. Ewellbrug
North BrabantVeghel11 N 279 (Rijksweg) – Veghel, Heeswijk-Dinther
12Driehuizen / Udenseweg
Uden13 N 264 east (Lippstadt-singel) – Uden
14Rondweg / Looweg
Bernheze15 N 603 west (Noorderbaan) – Nistelrode, Heesch
16 N 324 east (Rijksweg) / N 329 north (Graafsebaan) – Schaijk, Oss
Oss— A 59 west – Heesch, Oss, 's-Hertogenbosch
Ganzenven rest area southbound
De Gagel rest area northbound
17 N 277 south / N 626 west (Dorpenweg) / Erfsestraat – Ravenstein
MeuseMaasbrug Ravenstein
GelderlandWijchen— A 326 east – Wijchen
Beuningen— E31 east / A 73 east / N 322 west – Beuningen, DeestSouthern end of E 31 concurrency
WaalTracitusbrug
GelderlandOverbetuwe— E31 west / A 15 – Andelst, ElstNorthern end of E 31 concurrency
Weerbroek rest area southbound
Meilanden rest area northbound
18 N 837 (Cora Baltussenallee) – Heteren, Driel
NederrijnRijnbrug Heteren
GelderlandRenkum19 N 225 (Rijksweg) – Renkum, Oosterbeek
ArnhemDe Slenk rest area
Northbound exit and entrance
— E35 / A 12 – Ede, BennekomWestern end of A12 / E 35 concurrency
De Schaars rest area
Westbound exit and entrance
— E35 / A 12 – Arnhem, RozendaalEastern end of A12 / E 35 concurrency
20 N 784 (Apeldoornseweg) – Arnhem
21 N 784 south / N 311 west – Arnhem
North and southbound rest area
Transit buses and vehicle breakdown only
ApeldoornNorth and southbound rest area
Transit buses and vehicle breakdown only
North and southbound rest area
Transit buses and vehicle breakdown only
22 N 788 north (Arnhemseweg) – Beekbergen
23 N 786 (Loenenseweg) – Beekbergen, Loenen
De Brink rest area southbound
De Somp rest area northbound
— E30 / A 1 – Apeldoorn, Voorst
24 N 345 – Apeldoorn, Voorst
25Oost Veluweweg
Epe26 N 792 east (Geerstraat) / Eekterweg – Vaassen, Terwolde
27 N 309 west – Epe
Heerde28 N 794 (Eperweg) – Epe, Heerde
Het Veen rest area southbound
Kolthoorn rest area northbound
29Kamperweg
Hattem30Hessenweg / Keizersweg
— N 50 north–west / E232 / A 28 – Kampen, Zwolle, Wezep
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

References

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b "Wegbeheerders". Rijkswaterstaat. Retrieved 14 December 2014.
  2. ^ p.87, Koskimaki
  3. ^ p.125, Ambrose
  4. ^ p.125, Ambrose
  5. ^ p.125, Ambrose

Works cited

  • Koskimaki, George E., Hell's highway: chronicle of the 101st Airborne Division in the Holland Campaign, September - November 1944, Casemate, Havertown, 2003
  • Ambrose, Stephen E., Citizen Soldiers: The U. S. Army from the Normandy Beaches to the Bulge to the Surrender of Germany, Part One, Chapter 4, Touchstone, New York, 1997

Media related to A50 motorway (Netherlands) at Wikimedia Commons

51°58′12″N 5°46′4″E / 51.97000°N 5.76778°E / 51.97000; 5.76778