NS plans to shake up services, add 1,600 journeys a week

Dutch railway company NS is planning a complete shake-up of services in the coming year and aims to add 1,600 extra journeys per week from 2025.

The plans still have to be approved by the government, as the railway’s shareholder, and will also be put to rail user groups, the NS said on Thursday.

The idea of the overhaul is to make it faster to move between regions and give the high-speed link from Amsterdam to Rotterdam, Breda and Antwerp a more important role in the network.

Amsterdam Zuid will also have a more prominent function.  For example, trains using the high-speed tracks will be able to travel onwards from Zuid to Almere, Lelystad and Amersfoort. In later years, the connection will be extended to Zwolle, Leeuwarden and Groningen, NS said.

Maintenance at Amsterdam’s main railway station will also lead to some services being rerouted via Zuid. However, NS is planning to launch a special sprinter service between Schiphol airport and Amsterdam Central to keep the city centre accessible to tourists.

Check here for all the changes

The number of NS services from Amsterdam to Brussels will also double to 32 per day, of which 16 will knock some 45 minutes off the current journey time.