There will be no train service to and from Amsterdam, Utrecht and Schiphol airport until at least 6 pm on Tuesday because of an outage, rail operator NS said.

A fire involving track cables has caused serious damage which maintenance company ProRail initially thought could be repaired by noon. It has since said repairs will take at least until the early evening.

Schiphol airport said travellers should be sure to allow extra time for their journeys and to use alternative transport, such as a bus, car or taxi where possible. Road closures because the Nato summit may cause added problems, the airport authority said.

Travellers are advised to use the metro between Amsterdam Sloterdijk, Amsterdam Lelylaan and Amsterdam Zuid. The airport can be reached from The Hague and Rotterdam.

Tuesday is normally the busiest day of the week for train travel but because of Nato-summit-related traffic restrictions, more people are expected to work from home.

It is not known what caused the fire, but caretaker justice minister David van Weel has ordered an investigation into a possible link with the NATO summit, which starts on Tuesday. “It may have been sabotage. It is one of the things we are looking at,” he told broadcaster NOS. Van Weel said “activist groups” or “another state” could be behind the fire but copper theft is also an option.