Ordinary train users will pay 5.5% more for travel next year while the cost of some peak period season tickets will go down by 2.4%, railway company NS said on Thursday.

The aim, the state-owned company said, is to make it more attractive for commuters to travel to work by train.

At the same time, international tickets will rise 5%, an off peak season ticket is going up 10% and first class tickets will be 7.4% more expensive, the NS said.

Despite the increase, trains remain a cheaper option than cars for commuters, because of high petrol prices, NS board member Tjalling Smit said.

‘We want to keep train tickets affordable so that as many people as possible can use the train,’ he said. ‘And that means the cost of the coronavirus pandemic, when we made heavy losses, cannot be passed on to our passengers. At the same time, the NS is being confronted by very high inflation.’

Staff

The NS has also been struggling to deal with a shortage of staff, which has led to reduced services and shorter trains on some tracks.

On Monday the company said it was cutting the number of intercity trains between Amsterdam and The Hague, and Rotterdam and Utrecht, because of the problems.

Rail users lobby group Rover said earlier this week that it had received a record number of complaints about overcrowding and cancelations in October. However, passenger numbers are still only at around 80% of pre coronavirus figures, due in part because of the increase in working from home.