The Dutch Railway (NS) has decided to play around with the length of trains to ensure that more passengers find a seat during peak travel hours.
According to NS, the rail infrastructure in the Netherlands has been encountering more disruptions than usual. In 2025, there will be up to 30% more work compared to the years prior.
These disruptions mess up the schedules of long and short trains, resulting in passengers boarding overcrowded or empty trains.
Their solution? To make long trains shorter and short trains longer. Here’s why that might just make sense.
The hypothesis
NS will conduct an experiment to determine if varying train lengths can reduce the frequency of unexpectedly crowded trains.
Until the end of March, NS will test different train lengths. Long trains will be shortened (from 10 to 8 carriages), and short trains will be lengthened (from 6 to 8 carriages).
When a long rush hour train breaks down, the replacement is often a short train that cannot fit all commuters. Now that the backup trains will be a bit longer, the reiziger has a better chance of finding a seat.
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“Every morning, we have forty trains in the wrong location, meaning trains that are too short. We hope to reduce that by 30% with this adjustment,” NS spokesperson Carola Belderbos tells RTL Nieuws.
By running trains with a fixed composition more often, more passengers are expected to be able to find a seat despite a disruption in the schedule.
The proof
According to Belderbos, this plan has been calculated in computer simulations, but the trial will show real-life results.
The director of passenger association Rover, Freek Bos, is a bit sceptical.
“Trains will be shorter during peak hours. This applies during disruptions, but also during normal situations. This automatically leads to more crowded trains during peak hours. Not all passengers will be happy about that,” Bos tells RTL Nieuws.
@dutchreview Train delays are just the perfect way to start the day 😅
♬ Elevator Music – Bohoman
Despite doubting the plan in practice, Bos is committed to measuring the results with your help.
He is urging passengers to report overcrowded trains via Rover. The passenger association usually notices these problems faster than NS does. “This way, passengers can help keep NS on its toes,” he tells RTL.
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