Amsterdam, Schiphol train disruptions to continue into early Tuesday morning

People planning on using the trains to and from the Amsterdam area may have to consider other options on Monday afternoon and evening, as track and switching problems announced earlier in the day have not been fixed. The issue has caused delays and cancellations throughout the day. Passengers have been advised to use online travel planners, and to find other modes of transportation for their journeys when necessary.

In some cases, the situation will not improve until Tuesday morning. "Due to a shortage of available personnel, the recovery cannot take place earlier," said infrastructure firm ProRail. "Train traffic will be disrupted for the rest of the day at various places in and around Amsterdam." The problems are largely due to a break in the railroad near Amsterdam-Zuid, another in Haarlem, and a broken switch near Amsterdam Centraal.

"All three defects must be repaired in the short term before a normal train service can run again," ProRail said.

The infrastructure problems mean passengers will have a tough time travelling on routes connecting Amsterdam Centraal with Alkmaar, Haarlem, and Leiden Centraal, according to the NS. The route including Haarlem and Leiden was connected to a defective section of railroad track, while a switch failure was causing trouble between Amsterdam and Alkmaar. The NS updated both situations saying they would likely last until about 8 p.m.

Defective railroad sections also had an impact on the route connecting Schiphol Airport and Utrecht Centraal, with stops at Amsterdam Zuid, Amsterdam ArenA and Breukelen, the NS said. Those issues will not be resolved before the end of the day, the NS predicted. ProRail said the problems would likely continue into the overnight period.

The trouble was not isolated to that area either. "There are no Intercity trains running between Schiphol Airport and Hilversum and Sprinter trains are not running between Schiphol Airport and Diemen Zuid due to a defective track," the NS said. The problem also will not be fixed until later at night, the NS said. However, passengers can use the Amsterdam Metro to get between Amsterdam Zuid and Diemen Zuid, the railway advised.