Hardly any new route has been laid to run the additional trains. This means that everything must bypass the existing rails. This requires a long preparation, says Jantina Woodstra, who has been working on the new schedule at NS for three years. “The railways in Randstad are already full. So installing two trains an hour between them takes a lot of effort.”

In recent years, for example, level crossings have been modified and new points created in preparation for additional trains.

Focus on the train

The Travelers’ Union is generally excited about the new schedule. Manager Freak Boss believes NS passengers in particular would benefit. “People switching from a train to another mode of transportation, such as a bus, will have to deal with a weaker connection in a number of locations.”

According to Boss, there will be 10 percent fewer buses next year compared to the period before Corona. “Due to the drop in passengers, many buses started driving less in the last year. But now carriers sometimes remove entire lines. And that really is a wrong choice, because travelers – who work in healthcare and restaurants, for example – are not coming back to their homes.”

Boss also warns that the focus on extra trains between cities, and other trains — which stop at all stations — could get in the way. “As a result, they sometimes leave at more skewed times. While we also want to attract people in smaller places to public transportation.”

Woudstra of NS acknowledges this dilemma. “The track is so full that you can’t run extra trains without penalty. You can only give up the rails once.”

The new NS will also be operating between cities next year; This is what it looks like: