Train users baffled by having to buy a train supplement for €0

Image of NS double decker Dutch train sitting in station
Photo: Depositphotos.com

Travellers using the direct intercity trains between Schiphol airport and Rotterdam no longer have to pay a supplement for the service outside rush hour, but still have to spend time buying a €0 ticket, the AD reported on Friday.

Travellers are supposed to load the supplement onto their public transport smart cards before getting on the train, even though there is no extra fee to use the service.

The NS admits that the procedure is a waste of time, but says that it does not want to tell passengers to ignore the supplementary ticket machines in certain periods. ‘By always asking passengers to check in, we will stop them becoming confused,’ spokesman Erik Kroeze said.

Rikus Spithorst of the passenger lobby group Maatschappaij voor Beter OV told the paper that the rule is ridiculous. ‘It is completely pointless and achieves nothing for the passenger,’ he said.

Travellers who have not ‘bought’ their €0 supplement could technically be hit with a fine, Kroeze told the paper. ‘But in principle, we won’t be issuing fines,’ he said.

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