Sunday 02 April 2023
DutchNews podcast – The Bus Baby Eagle Edition – Week 21

DutchNews podcast – The Bus Baby Eagle Edition – Week 21

Our latest podcast features the mother in Breda who checked in for one on the bus but checked out for two, why a Dutch-trained American eagle is minding Donald Trump in Brussels, and how a court decided an Iraqi refugee was ‘not gay enough’ to stay in the Netherlands. We also discuss the fall-out from Ajax’s defeat in the Europa League final and whether we’re any closer to a new Dutch government. Top story Work starts on Amsterdam Eurostar terminal News Gay refugee... More >


More passengers can use mobile phones to check in on trains and buses

More passengers can use mobile phones to check in on trains and buses

Android phone users can check in for bus and train journeys using their mobile after an ‘OV chip’ app went live on Monday. Subscribers to Vodafone, KPN, Telfort, Simyo and Yes Telecom can swipe their phones at check-in points rather than use their OV chipcard once they have registered online. However, the system is currently only available to passengers paying the full fare. Passengers rights group Rover said it was pleased with the development of the app as a viable... More >


Fines for minor speeding offences rise by 31% in a year

Fines for minor speeding offences rise by 31% in a year

Nearly 70,000 people were fined last year for exceeding the maximum speed limit by one kilometre per hour, according to figures obtained by AD. The number of minor infringements on 130 km/h roads increased by 31% in 2016 compared to the year before, following an 18% rise the year before. In 2014 just 12,000 fines were handed out for the smallest infringement. Geert Priem, head of the ANPV police union, said the fines were a form of stealth tax on... More >


Dutch Turks ‘cannot leave Turkey’ due to travel ban

Dutch Turks ‘cannot leave Turkey’ due to travel ban

Up to 100 people have been banned from leaving Turkey to return home because they have been critical of Turkish President Erdoğan’s government, reports Dutch broadcaster the NOS. The national broadcaster claimed on Thursday night that ‘certainly ten and perhaps up to 100 people’ of dual nationality have had their passage home blocked, in the run-up to a constitutional referendum that would give Erdoğan sweeping new powers. Many, it reports, were visiting family or on holiday and some are now... More >





Construction starts on NL’s first energy-neutral highway

Construction starts on NL’s first energy-neutral highway

On Thursday, the Netherlands started construction of the first energy-neutral highway, reports the Financieele Dagblad. The A6 to Almere expansion project has already won a European Procura+ sustainability award, in 2016. Last June, infrastructure minister Schultz van Haegen announced that the Dutch road and water network will be fully energy neutral by 2030, with solar panels along roads and waterways, and roadside grass cuttings converted to green gas. The current motorway widening project on the A6 will have 30km of... More >


Dutch tourists to leave the Gambia today

Dutch tourists to leave the Gambia today

Most Dutch tourists holidaying in the Gambia are expected to fly home this afternoon because of the state of emergency, broadcaster NOS reported on Wednesday. Former president Yahya Jammeh of the Gambia has refused to recognise the recent election results and on Monday declared a state of emergency in an attempt to block the inauguration of president-elect Adama Barrow which has been scheduled for Thursday. The Dutch foreign ministry has updated its foreign travel advice to essential travel only. Travel... More >


Jams as Velsertunnel reopens after nine-month renovation

Jams as Velsertunnel reopens after nine-month renovation

The Netherlands’ oldest motorway tunnel reopened on Monday morning after a nine-month renovation – and immediately triggered traffic jams on its first day. The Velsertunnel, which takes the A22 beneath the river IJ between IJmuiden and Beverwijk in Noord-Holland province, has been upgraded with new emergency sliproads, a digital management system and better ventilation. The height of the tunnel has also been increased by 12 centimetres, but despite this one lorry driver brought traffic to a standstill by trying to... More >



Taxi touts face temporary ban at Schiphol airport

Taxi touts face temporary ban at Schiphol airport

The mayor of Haarlemmermeer is to impose a temporary ban on taxi touts at Schiphol airport, reports the NOS broadcaster. He has also called for a permanent change to the taxi laws. For months, there has been a standoff at Schiphol, with certain taxi firms licensed by the airport to pick up passengers but others legally plying for work in the public plaza. In October, British singer Skin from the band Skunk Anansie criticised the airport for allowing travellers to... More >



Gay Pride festival to be smaller and quieter: new event rules

Gay Pride festival to be smaller and quieter: new event rules

Amsterdam’s Gay Pride festival is set to shrink in the future, according to the Parool. Eberhard van der Laan, the mayor of Amsterdam, has informed the city council that the number of parties in streets and squares will be limited, and the traditional fun fair at the Dam will disappear from 2019. The restrictions are part of a new events policy aimed at controlling noise and crowds during the Dutch capital’s frequent events. The Gay Pride summer festival celebrated its... More >


Trains running again in Groningen after collision on level crossing

Trains running again in Groningen after collision on level crossing

The rail line between Groningen and Roodeschool has reopened after being shut by a collision between a train and a milk tanker on Friday afternoon. The Arriva train was derailed in the collision just outside the village of Winsum. Eighteen people were hurt, including the driver of the lorry. Eleven of the victims were taken to hospital but none suffered serious injuries. Recovery workers spent the weekend removing the train from the scene using a crane. The carriages needed to... More >





Schiphol taxi ‘harrassment’ slammed by lead singer of Skunk Anansie

Schiphol taxi ‘harrassment’ slammed by lead singer of Skunk Anansie

British singer Skin, from rock band Skunk Anansie, has criticised Schiphol airport for allowing travellers to be ‘harrassed’ by taxis touting for business rather than joining the official queue. She has posted a video – viewed more than 142,000 times – of ‘official guys fighting dodgy guys’, all trying to persuade people arriving at the airport to take their taxi. ‘Now I’ve travelled the world and been to many scary airports but I have to say this is the worse![sic]’... More >