Train operator NS has introduced buses on a commuter route into Amsterdam as it struggles to cope with overcrowding on peak-hour services.

Passengers between Castricum and Amsterdam Sloterdijk are being offered the bus service as an alternative. The bus takes around 70 minutes compared to the 20-minute train journey, but costs €1 rather than €4.80 and passengers receive a voucher for food and drink.

The experiment is running until May and if successful could be used on the busiest points on the network, such as around Utrecht.

No interest

NOS said the take-up for the first replacement bus was zero. ‘There was nobody on it apart from the driver and a journalist,’ said reporter Roel Pauw.

NS is investing €2 billion in new trains, but the vehicles will not be ready until the end of the year. Until then overcrowded trains are expected to be a feature of the morning and evening rush-hour.

Older trains which were due to be taken out of service are on standby to be used in emergencies, while the seating on Sprinter trains has been rearranged to fit in more second-class seats.