New NS Sprinters to get wifi, power outlets; Old trains get toilets

NS' new Sprinters, expected to hit the rails next year, will all be equipped with WiFi, power outlets, USB connections and toilets. The Dutch railway company is also equipping 131 old Sprinters with toilets. NS placed an urgent order for the new trains with Swiss manufacturer Stadler, NOS reports. The improving economy and the fact that vocational students will soon also have a public transport pass, means that NS is expecting more passengers. The first new Sprinter is already in the Netherlands to be tested. "In the coming yer the train will make any test kilometers on the Dutch track", project manager Tom de Groot said to the broadcaster. "And in the meantime eight workshops is being prepared for the maintenance of this new type of train. Also, hundreds of engineers and technicians are being trained, just like thousands of conductors." The imminent arrival of new trains doesn't mean NS is neglecting its current fleet. The railway company is installing toilets on 131 of its old, toilet-less sprinters, according to RTL. A task that will cost NS about 310 thousand euros per toilet. The toilet installation is sure to be quite a project. The Sprinters will be taken out of circulation in stages and taken to Heerlen, from where a German locomotive will drag the trains to Aachen, where the toilets will be installed. Each toilet means 10 fewer seats on the trains. Due to the size of the trains and the size of the toilets, the toilets need to be dismantled completely before installation or they won't fit through the train doors. Once inside, they can be reassembled. Each installation will take about three weeks. The entire project should take about 5 years.