Due to a shortage of staff members working in traffic control today, Dutch rail company, ProRail had to make the tough decision to cancel certain train routes today — they simply don’t have enough people.
The company explains that they have been struggling with understaffing for the past year and as a result, a single person calling in sick can lead to trains being cancelled.
While they write that this is very frustrating, ProRail explains that the decision to cancel trains in these cases comes down to safety. “In the event of understaffing, we have to choose to run fewer trains, because there are not enough colleagues who can guarantee safety during normal crowds.”
Region of Utrecht badly effected
The effects of the staff shortage will be seen mostly around the region of Utrecht, “Due to personnel problems at traffic control Utrecht, we, unfortunately, had to decide not to run any trains or fewer trains on some routes until 3 PM. this afternoon,” the company wrote.
So sorry Utrechters, today there are:
- fewer Intercities between Amersfoort and Amsterdam,
- fewer Sprinters between Utrecht and Almere Centrum, and
- no Sprinters at all between Utrecht and Baarn.
In announcing these disruptions, ProRail took a moment to show some appreciation for their hardworking staff who have powered through the shortage, saying “thanks to committed and flexible colleagues at the traffic control posts, we almost always manage to provide all services.”
We hope whoever took a sick day feels better soon! Will you be affected by the shortage? Tell us in the comments below!
Feature Image: Skitterphoto/Pexels