Rotterdam-Tilburg trains most often delayed; Amsterdam, The Hague also have problems

Train travelers on the Rotterdam Central Station - Tilburg route are the most often frustrated by delayed trains. Nearly a third, 31.4 percent, of trains on this route were delayed by more than five minutes, RTL Nieuws reports based on the most recent half-year report NS sent to parliament this week. All routes with the most delays are in the busy Amsterdam - Tilburg - The Hague triangle.

Between Den Haag Central Station and Amsterdam Central Station, 26.3 percent of trains were not on time. And trains from Rotterdam CS to Breda and between Rotterdam CS and Amsterdam CS also arrived over 5 minutes late in more than a fifth of the cases.

According to RTL, the high-speed line is the common denominator on all worst-performing train routes. All lines in the top ten use an HSL track or are served by trains that run on the HSL track.

According to NS, that has several causes. The “technology is complex” because the main rail network and HSL have different voltage and different security systems, making transitions complicated, the rail company said in its report to parliament. “In addition, many international trains run on the HSL, which often enter the HSL with delays from abroad.” The timetable is also full, meaning that even a slight delay can have a domino effect.

On the HSL, only 78.2 percent of trains run on time, well below the 82.1 percent requirement. On the entire main rail network, 91.5 percent of trains run on time or are delayed by less than 5 minutes - exactly the target.

Top ten worst-performing train routes with percentage delayed by over 5 minutes in brackets:

1. Rotterdam CS - Tilburg (31%)
2. Den Haag CS - Amsterdam CS (26%)
3. Rotterdam CS - Breda (26%)
4. Rotterdam CS - Amsterdam CS (23%)
5. Amsterdam CS - Rotterdam CS (21%)
6. Amsterdam CS - Den Haag CS (19%)
7. Breda - Tilburg (19%)
8. Schiphol - Rotterdam CS (19%)
9. Breda - Rotterdam CS (17%)
10. Schiphol - Amsterdam CS (15%)