Transport minister Melanie Schultz van Haegen has fined the two state-owned rail firms ProRail and NS a total of €1,425,000 for poor performance in 2011 and 2010.

The minister, who based her decision on punctuality and passenger satisfaction levels, will increase the fine by a further €2m if standards do not improve, Nos television reported.
Despite problems caused by wintry weather last year, some 94.7% of trains ran on time – a record according to the company’s annual report. A train is considered on time if delays are no longer than five minutes.
It also emerged on Friday that the NS supervisory board has decided not to give bonuses to senior executives until an investigation into this winter’s chaos on the railways has been completed.