.JPG) Central as seen from theLindenhof hill,Bahnhofbrücke to the left. | |
 Interactive map of Central | |
| Former name(s) | Leonhardplatz, Leonhardsplatz |
|---|---|
| Type | tramway, road, pedestrian |
| Owner | City of Zürich |
| Addresses | Central |
| Location | Zürich,Switzerland |
| Postal code | 8001 |
| Coordinates | 47°22′37″N8°32′38″E / 47.377°N 8.544°E /47.377; 8.544 |
Central is apublic square at the northern end ofLimmatquai inZürich, Switzerland. It is one of the city'spublic transport nodes, housing an interchange station fortram andbus lines run by theVerkehrsbetriebe Zürich. It was formerly known asLeonhardplatz orLeonhardsplatz.
Central is in fact outside of the historical core of the medieval town of Zürich, previously theCeltic-RomanTuricum. It is situated at the right-hand (eastern) bank of theLimmat, the principal river flowing through the city of Zürich. It is opposite of theZürich Hauptbahnhof and connected byBahnhofbrücke, a road and tramway bridge crossing the Limmat, and connectingRathaus andLindenhof respectively theCity andUnterstrass quarters. Situated nearby the historicalNeumarkt andNiederdorf, the most remarkable landmark is thePrediger church. The formerLeonhardplatz is named after theCentral hotel situated there.[1] TheSeilergraben,Weinbergstrasse,Neumühlequai andStampfenbachstrasse gather at the square. Redesigns of the Central–Bahnhofbrücke area occurred in 1950/51.[2][3]
Leonhardsplatz, as it was known then, first became a node in Zürich's transport system in 1889, when thePolybahn funicular was opened up the hill to thePolytechnikum, the presentETH Zurich. In 1897, theStrassenbahn Zürich-Oerlikon-Seebach (ZOS) company made Leonhardsplatz the city terminus of their suburban tram line via Stampfenbachstrasse and Schaffhauserstrasse toOerlikon andSeebach. Passengers were required to change at Leonhardsplatz for the separate city tramway system until 1931, when the ZOS was taken over by theStädtische Strassenbahn Zürich, who operated the city's trams.[4][5]
Today, the Zurichtram lines3,4,6,7,10 and15, andVBZtrolleybus lines31 and46 provide public transportation. The Polybahn also still operates over its original route.[6]
Private road transport towardsLimmatquai, the largest pedestrian zone of Zurich, is restricted to the short roadway towards the Brun bridge andUraniastrasse (Urania Sternwarte) at the site of the formerOetenbach nunnery. Since 25 September 2004, the driving of motor vehicles, motorcycles and scooters is forbidden, except for goods transport, traffic towardsWeinplatz, postal delivery services, and doctors and emergency services.[7]
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