Editing RijnGouweLijn (section)

=== Western section (Leiden - Katwijk / Noordwijk) ===

From Transferium 't Schouw A44, the RGL would go as light rail to [[Katwijk aan den Rijn]], then fork into branches to [[Katwijk aan Zee]] and [[Noordwijk]] respectively. In 2005, an agreement was signed between all municipalities except the municipality of Leiden to share the costs of the project, with the national government and province covering a large part of the construction cost, and the county bearing all risks for the operation of the line. The western branch of the RGL was also important for the opening of the new building located on the former [[Valkenburg Naval Air Base]].

In Katwijk and Noordwijk there was much opposition to the tram plans, both among the general population and in the town councils. Neither community wanted tram traffic in the town centres. For Noordwijk it would end at the [[European Space Research and Technology Centre]] on the border with Katwijk. The municipalities presented an alternative alignment of the RGL. The RGL Noordwijk-Binnen would run to Voorhout station and the [[Nederlandse Spoorwegen|NS]] station at Sassenheim. In Katwijk there was opposition against the branch to Katwijk aan Zee. In both communities the tram line would have to be imposed by the provincial government, as had happened earlier in Leiden. In the autumn of 2009 the national government provided €45 million for the line to Katwijk, but not to Noordwijk. There is a gap of €55 million, for which a solution had to be found.

In June 2009, a preferred route was approved by the Provincial Council of South Holland. Both Katwijk and Noordwijk got a tram to the coast. However, the province addressed the concerns of Katwijk and routed the line not on the Boulevard but to finish in Badstraat.