Things still aren’t looking great for Dutch public transport services. Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS) is already running a reduced service as a result of a shortage of workers, and this week saw the rail company announce that even fewer trains would be running in the Netherlands from November 7. 

Fewer trains running the Netherlands due to staff shortages at NS

Earlier this month, NS chief Bart Groenewegen warned that further cuts to rail services were on the cards as the company struggles to fill around 2.000 job vacancies. “If we continue like this, we may have to decide to scale down our timetable even further,” Groenewegen told NOS at the start of October. 

Now, barely two weeks later, NS has confirmed that, before the new timetable comes into effect in December, passengers should prepare for further cuts - particularly during rush hour. “The last thing we want is to run fewer trains. Yet it is necessary: ​​passengers are now too often faced with cancelled trains,” the company writes on its website. NS hopes that by bringing forward some of the changes initially planned for December 11, it can “ensure that trains are cancelled at the last minute less often, and our colleagues get more breathing room.”

Changes to NS timetable to come into effect in November

NS has announced that the following changes to its timetable will come into effect on November 7:

• Fewer Intercity trains running between Schagen and Alkmaar, and Alkmaar and Haarlem on weekdays during rush hour.
• Fewer Intercity trains running between The Hague and Amsterdam, and Rotterdam and Utrecht (during off-peak hours on Monday to Thursday and all day on Friday).
• Fewer Sprinters running between Oss and Den Bosch, Groningen and Assen, Rotterdam and Gouda, Houten and Utrecht, Woerden and Leiden, and Harderwijk and Amersfoort on weekdays during rush hour.
• Fewer Sprinters running between Dordrecht and Rotterdam.
• Fewer Sprinters running between The Hague and Gouda (during off-peak hours on Monday to Thursday and all day on Friday).
• Fewer Sprinters running between Utrecht and Leiden (all day on Fridays).
• Some evening and weekend services between Hoofddorp and Hoorn, and Baarn and Utrecht have also been cut.

In addition to these cuts, NS will run longer trains between Eindhoven and Amsterdam, and between Rotterdam, Schiphol Airport and Arnhem, in order to accommodate the larger crowds. Additional trains will also be running between Amersfoort and Zwolle. For more information about the new timetable, check the NS website.