Hearing today could ensure Amsterdam-Schiphol train service during rail strike tomorrow
Arguments will be presented on Tuesday in the lawsuit filed by Schiphol Airport meant to force the continuation of passenger rail service between the airport and the city of Amsterdam. The national strike by rail workers will take place from 4 a.m. to 8 a.m. on Wednesday, which will bring national railway NS to a standstill. A day before the lawsuit was due to be heard, the municipality of Haarlemmermeer said it was also going to join Schiphol as a plaintiff in the summary proceedings.
The national train strike will also be joined by regional transport workers, which will also impact regional buses, trams and trains from Arriva, Connexxion, EBS, Hermes, Keolis, Qbuzz and Transdev. It is the second day of public transport strikes, following Tuesday's planned strike by those working for the urban transport providers GVB in Amsterdam, RET in Rotterdam, and HTM in The Hague.
Schiphol said when it announced the lawsuit last week that it was very concerned about maintaining safety and security at the facility, as well as the continuity of its operations because public transport is "crucial" to keeping the airport accessible. As such, the European Union's second largest airport is not seeking an injunction against the entire national rail strike, but rather an order to force the labor unions and the NS to run trains between the capital and the airport.
“With air traffic at Schiphol, thousands of arriving and departing passengers and employees are constantly coming and going,” the airport wrote in a statement on Friday. This is also the case during the early morning hours, the airport said. “Schiphol believes that a train shuttle was important during previous public transport strikes to keep the traffic situation manageable. In order to achieve this minimal train connection, Schiphol is initiating summary proceedings.”
During a wider public transport strike in 2019, a court ordered that four trains run per hour in both directions between Schiphol Airport and Amsterdam Centraal. These trains were ordered to also stop at the city's Lelylaan and Sloterdijk stations.
"Schiphol, NS and the unions have discussed the possibility of a train shuttle between the airport and Amsterdam in the past period, but no agreement has been reached. Schiphol regrets that legal action is necessary, but sees no other option,” the airport said last week.
"Schiphol demanded that the strike will not impact the airport’s operations. The FNV responded immediately by making it clear that it will completely ignore these demands,” the FNV labor union said. “We announced the strike well in advance and extensively informed travellers and companies, including Schiphol,” wrote FNV rail division head Henri Janssen. “Everyone could have taken measures.”
Haarlemmermeer Mayor Marianne Schuurmans disagreed with the FNV's take on this specific aspect of the strike. She is also very concerned about the safety situation in her municipality, which includes the airport and the vicinity around it. "We expect a large increase in road traffic as a result of the strike, especially on the A4. This will make the airport inaccessible to emergency services," she said.
Schuurmans was also concerned about stranded passengers, and the crowds that can develop, calling it dangerous and irresponsible "in the context of a terrorist threat."
Labor unions representing workers in demanding jobs want assurances for a permanent early retirement scheme. A temporary scheme for many of these workers will expire next year. The Cabinet only stepped in to help navigate a solution between workers and employers last month, but this was after several other labor actions, including those by police officers who refused to issue traffic tickets in May or provide security services outside of contentious football matches.
