After weeks of jammed trains, NS believes the worst of the crowds are now gone, the company told NU.nl. The railway workers’ union is less optimistic and even fears that the worst is yet to come.

NS expects that the worst crowds are behind us regarding crowded trains, despite the fact that there are trains November 7 Fewer trains will run.

“We have reduced the schedule compared to the period before Corona,” the spokesperson says. This relates to 13 percent fewer trains. Meanwhile, the number of passengers has not yet reached the pre-Corona level. He says it is currently 20 percent less crowded.

Trade union FNV Spor is less optimistic. On Wednesday, the union struck an agreement with NS over a plan to deploy hired security guards as a “second captain” on the train. FNV Spor talks about an “emergency action”.

The fact that the union is forced to take such an emergency measure already indicates that there is still little capacity left, says FNV Spoor Director Henri Janssen. “Without that, we wouldn’t have had to agree on this,” he says.

Complaints about full trains also paint a less rosy picture. Volletreinen.nl has received 2,357 reports so far in October alone. This is more than six hundred compared to September.

I’m still dealing with “excessive talk”

NS reports that September is its busiest month. “This is because schools and work start again after the summer break.” In October it is usually a little less crowded.

In addition, September was a bad month in terms of accidents. The speaker points to the bus that is parked on the path it hit Bergen op Zoom And repair work on the track after a power outage in Flevoland.

Jansen agrees with NS that September is usually the busiest month, but he doesn’t expect the issues to be resolved now. “You are still dealing with ‘hyperactivity,'” he says, referring to the morning and evening peak hours. According to him, there is still a shortage of people and materials.

With the above contingency procedure, FNV Spoor wants to increase capacity and reduce workload. But this is a temporary solution: “I hope NS will collectively recruit, train and train staff within a short period of time,” says Janssen.