A train ride that takes nearly three hours will definitely put a damper on your leuk day trip to Brussels. Geen probleem, because the NS is unrolling new plans to have you faster than ever.
Your whim to hop onto a train from Amsterdam to Brussels quickly comes to a screeching halt when you find out that the ride is not as quick as you thought. Plus, you have to wait for the train to show up in the first place. Echt niet leuk!
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From 2025, that frustration and time spent twiddling your thumbs will be reduced. Why? The NS and Belgian rail operator, NMBS, will introduce more intercity trains between the capitals of the Netherlands and Belgium, reports the NOS.
Plans for a snel journey
Travel time from Amsterdam to Brussels will be shortened by about 45 minutes. This means the journey will take just over two hours.
So, how are they reducing travel time? By introducing a new connection with the new intercity (ICNG) that reaches a speed of up to 200 kilometres per hour.
Missed your train? The NS has a solution! How about 32 trains a day instead of the measly 16? Ja, alsjeblieft!
Sneller en vaker naar België! Het aantal treinen naar België verdubbelt van 16 naar 32 per dag. Ook rijdt er straks een snellere trein, de ICNG. Lees https://t.co/ynpWpCRlke #icbrussel pic.twitter.com/pEvVTGpIML
— NS International (@NS_Int) August 14, 2023
That’s not the only way they’re speeding things up. The train will also depart from Amsterdam South, instead of Amsterdam Central Station, and will have fewer stops.
Stops at stations in Breda, Noorderkempen, Mechelen, and Brussels Airport-Zaventem will be served by a different train from the Belgian NMBS.
Brussels is the bee’s knees
The cabinet wants to open the market for international train travel. This means that the NS will no longer have exclusive rights to provide train travel abroad. However, the train to Brussels is the exception to this.
With Brussels being the most popular international destination for Dutch train passengers, the NS sure got lucky.
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Lucky for us, other train companies will offer train journeys to other international destinations like London, Berlin, and Paris. Hieperdepiep hoera!
Have you travelled by train to Brussels? How long did it take? Tell us about your experiences in the comments!