NS loses millions on Fyra high-speed train: ‘passengers to come first’

Dutch railway company NS booked a loss of €43m in 2013, mainly because of the debacle with the Fyra high-speed train, the company said on Friday.

The loss compares with a profit of €263m in 2012. Turnover of €4.6bn remained roughly the same as 2012.

The NS, which is state owned, cancelled its Fyra trains between Amsterdam and Brussels in early June last year following months of technical problems.

CEO Timo Huges said in a statement that the NS would now be focusing on the improvement of its service within the Netherlands. ‘This means the passenger takes first, second and third place,’ he said.

Last year, passengers travelled 17 billion kilometers at the rate of 1.2 million a day. However, 53% of passengers were unhappy with the service, compared with 51% in 2012.

Punctuality dropped 1% to 93.6% of trains arriving on time. This led to 458,886 claims for compensation which resulted in a total €4.3m being paid out.

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