A2 (Netherlands)

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The A2 is a well-frequented motorway in the Netherlands.

Check the Dutch Wikipedia!

Hitchhiking on the A2

Most efficient, as usual along motorways, is to hitch from service area to service area. Along the motorway one passes by several cities, notably Utrecht, 's-Hertogenbosch, Eindhoven and Sittard. In Maastricht the A2 ends for a distance of about 2 km, to turn into A2 again from the south of Maastricht up to the border to Belgium, where it is named A25, and goes towards Liege.

Since the A2 is the main north-south motorway within the Netherlands, hitchhiking is usually pretty straightforward.

Hitchhiking A2 Amsterdam direction Maastricht using service areas

  • Petrol station 500 meter south of the bridge Utrechtsebrug in Amsterdam. This one may be reached on foot from the Utrechtsebrug. One has to walk in the verge of the motorway. Rating: not available
  • Petrol station "Viersprong" between exit 3 and 4. This petrol station does not exist anymore Rating: useless
  • Petrol station "Haarrijn" between exit 5 and 6. Huge petrol station, and the best one to change cars between Amsterdam and Utrecht. Possible to camp at the west end of this huge area. Rating: good
  • Petrol station "Nieuwegein" between exit 8 and 9. Comparatively small petrol station, yet good going further down the A2 or onto the A27. Rating: average
  • Petrol station "Bisde" between exit 13 and 14. Quite big petrol station. Rating: perhaps good
  • Petrol station with restaurant "De Lucht west" between exits 17 and 18. Huge petrol station with a long history. One of the buildings dates back to the 1950s, and the area has been used as a stopover for travellers for over a hundred years. This service area may be considered the most important one between the west and the south of the Netherlands. Fverhart hitched there over 10 times, with an average wait of 10-15 minutes for a 100 km ride to Maastricht or its vicinity. Rating: great
  • Parking area "De Rooijen" between exit 19 and 20. Please avoid this one, just a couple of kilometers after the previous great petrol station. Few people stop here, it is usually rather noisy and windy (though the views over the river are nice), and there seem some shady activities to be going on. And you may smell piss or so, because there is no toilet there. Rating: average/good
  • Petrol station "Velder" between exit 26 and 27. Place to change car is the driver is going into Eindhoven. Pretty standard size, and even if it is not the most busy one, pretty easy to get away. Rating: average/good
  • Parking area "Aalsterhut" between exit 34 and 35. This parking does not exist anymore. Rating: Mission impossible
  • Petrol station "'t Haasje" between exits 35 and 36. Quite good, just as the previous one. Rating: average/good
  • Restaurant and parking "Roevenpeel" between exits 39 and 40. There is no petrol station on this service area, therefore the prospects with hitchhiking are not optimal. Rating: quite bad
  • Petrol station "Ellerbrug" between exits 40 and 41. This one is rather quiet, especially in the evening. It is currently being rebuilt. Rating: average
  • Petrol station "Het Anker" between exits 46 and 47. This is the service area which you should use in case the driver is not going to Maastricht, but to one of the other cities in the southernmost part of the Netherlands, or if the driver is heading for Aachen or beyond in Germany. It is quite easy to find a driver to Maastricht. About 20% of the drivers actually go there, while most go towards Geleen, Heerlen, Kerkrade etc. French and Luxembourgian cars are extremely likely to go through Maastricht from here. Rating: average/good
  • Petrol station "Vossedal" between exits 49 and 50. This one is small, but since Maastricht is only 8 kilometers further on, one normally finds a ride there in no time. Rating: good (for Maastricht) and bad/average (for any place beyond Maastricht)
  • Petrol station "Knuvelkes" between exit 57 and 58. This one is already south of Maastricht. Alas, it is not frequented very much, because all driver go into Belgium, and rather leave this one aside, for the petrol in Belgium is a bit cheaper. Still it is possible to find rides to Liege/Luxembourg or towards Charleroi. Rating: bad/average
  • Parking area on the border. On this former customs area you will find a snack bar, where some people stop on their way to the south. France, for example. Rating: bad/average

Hitchhiking A2 Amsterdam direction Maastricht using ramps

If an om ramp is not listed, it does not mean it is good or bad. However, it is likely not to be particularly good.

  • Utrechtsebrug, bridge just before the beginning of the motorway. Amsterdam. This is a classic starting point to hitchhike, THE spot for hitchhiking in the '60s and '70s. Today it does not look too good there, but one may still ask for rides at the traffic lights just before the bridge. It is a pity for hitchhikers that there is a barrier between the road and the cycling lane onto the brdige. Autostopguide to Europe recommends hitchhiking after the bridge, between the first (inofficial) exit and entry lanes, though cars are speeding there yet at 80 kmh. Rating: quite bad
  • Entrance 3. Abcoude. Dangerous! Rating: bad
  • Entrance 5. Breukelen. Reasonable. Easy to get to the next petrol station. Rating: bad/average
  • Entrance 6. Maarssen (Utrecht north). Enough space, but drivers do not tend to stop here. Rating: bad/average
  • Entrance 8. Utrecht. Traffic situation on the square is complicated. On access lane drivers speed up too much, and not very easy to reach this place. Ask for a ride at the traffic lights. Rating: bad/average
  • Entrance 17. Zaltbommel. Enough space to stand, easy to stop. Quite good point to leave Zaltbommel. Rating: average
  • Entrance 20. 's-Hertogenbosch. There is NO space to stop. Rating: bad
  • Entrance 24. Vught. Enough space to stand, easy to stop. Rating: average
  • Entrance 26. Boxtel. Enough space to stand, easy to stop and to get to the next petrol station. Rating: average
  • Entrance 28. Best. Most drivers are heading for Eindhoven, and it can be hard to find one going further. Rating: quite bad
  • Entrance 31. Veldhoven. Enough space to stand, but many drivers will stay in Eindhoven. Still a reasonable place to get a ride towards Maastricht, Venlo or Antwerpen. Best is to ask at the traffic lights, where you would have just enough time to get in the car. Rating: average
  • Entrance 32. Veldhoven-Zuid. There is no space to stop on the access lane (only further on, where cars are speeding already. Rating: bad
  • Entrance 33. Waalre. Enough space to stand. Rating: perhaps average.
  • Entrance 38. Weert-Noord. Supposedly quite complicated junction with a 4-lane road to Weert. Rating: perhaps quite bad
  • Entrance 39. Nederweert. Enough space to stand, easy to get away, enough traffic from Weert and other main road. Rating: average/good
  • Entrance 40. Kelpen. Enough space to stand, easy to get away, enough traffic from Weert. Rating: average/good
  • Entrance 41. Grathem. Even though the motorway connects here to an important non-motorway the access lane may not be very good, since it has big dimensions and drivers need all their attention to take the sharp curve. Rating: bad/average
  • Entrance 44. Sint Joost. A traffic square with space to stand on the access lane. Traffic passes by slowly, and there are enough drivers, coming from Roermond for example. Easy to stop a car here. Situation will change in next years, when the A73 motorway will be realized. Rating: average
  • Entrance 45. Echt. Good, because there is a small roundabout where it is easy to stop. Rating: average
  • Entrance 47. Roosteren. Rating: average
  • Entrance 48. Urmond Rating: average
  • Entrance 50. Maastricht-Aachen Airport. Rating: average/good
  • Entrance 51. Meerssen. Impossible to hitch south, as the entrance lane is only to the north. Rating: mission impossible
  • Entrance 55. Randwyck. Rating: bad/average

Hitchhiking A2 Maastricht direction Amsterdam using service areas

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Hitchhiking A2 Maastricht direction Amsterdam using ramps

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Alternative information: Sleep, Food, Things to do, etc..

Applications-office.png This article is a stub. This means that the information available to us is obviously insufficient. In these places little information is available or the description is severely outdated. If you have been there, whether hitchhiking, for travel or as part of an organized tour − be sure to extend this article!