NS running fewer trains due to staff shortages; Disabled travelers heavily impacted

From today, NS is running fewer trains on several routes due to major staff shortages. At the start of the new NS timetable on December 11, the rail company will further reduce the number of trains. The fewer and more crowded trains combined with the NS staff shortages are making it almost impossible for people with disabilities to travel by train, interest group Ieder(in) said to NU.nl.

NS has been struggling to fill about 2,000 vacancies for months. The Dutch rail company, therefore, started running fewer trains in September. Information on routes affected from today can be found here.

The cuts to the NS timetable disproportionately affect people with disabilities, who often can’t just take the car to avoid the overcrowded trains, Ieder(in) said to the newspaper. People who need wheelchairs report not finding space in crowded trains, and people who need help getting in or out of the train often say they can’t find an NS employee anywhere.

“If the trains do run, they are often shorter trains, which means that they are often very crowded,” Martin Boerjan of Ieder(in) said. “We receive reports of people in wheelchairs who can’t fit on the train and remain behind at the station. Or who do get on the train, but only with great difficulty.”

NS confirmed to NU.nl that the staff shortages are causing more problems for people with disabilities. “At the moment, travel assistance and accessibility at stations are not what travelers are used to from us. We find that very annoying, and we are sorry about that,” a spokesperson said. The company is working with external parties to make travel assistance possible. “But those organizations are also struggling with staff shortages. As a result, travel assistance may fail at the last minute.”