Malfunction halts train traffic to Schiphol; Many train issues in Netherlands today
A myriad of issues on the Dutch railroad system caused delays and headaches for Wednesday morning commuters. An electrical malfunction meant trains were not running to or from Schiphol Airport during rush hour. Problems between Amsterdam and Utrecht also continued into a sixth straight day, with more issues popping up in Zuid-Holland.
A difficult day of disruptions was already announced in the north of the Netherlands due to cold weather. Residents woke up to a Code Red weather warning, where many train routes were down due to frozen switches and other infrastructure issues.
“Due to a short circuit at Schiphol Station, trains are not running to and from Schiphol,” said railroad infrastructure firm ProRail. The cause of the problem was still being determined.
Train service at the airport was not expected to resume until at least 10:15 a.m., four hours after the problem was first announced. National railway NS advised passengers to use other forms of transport while the issue was being assessed by ProRail technicians.
But the situation was compounded by problems on the roads around Amsterdam, with a portion of the A9 motorway closed near Amstelveen due to a truck accident, an accident on the A8, and a stalled truck near the Coentunnel on the A10.
The airport was busier than expected, but there were no significant crowds affecting operations, an airport spokesperson told ANP. "I cannot rule out the possibility that some travelers will miss their flights because of this, but we certainly hope not," said the spokesperson.
ProRail is also still struggling to fix two switches near Duivendrecht, which is resulting in fewer trains running between Amsterdam Central Station and Utrecht Central Station. The switches broke on Wednesday last week. They’re still partially functional, but ProRail has had to implement speed limits over the switches, meaning that less train traffic is possible
NS reports on its website that the issue should be resolved by 7:30 p.m., but that’s also what the Dutch rail company said on Monday. ProRail has not given an estimated time of repair.
“Permanently repairing the switches is very difficult,” the rail manager said in the latest update on its website on Monday. “Firstly, because there is a lot of train traffic in this area. The switchers are also very large and contain many parts, which we don’t have in stock. We hope to find the parts soon so we can repair the switches.”
As a result of the Schiphol response, fewer trains were also running between the central stations in The Hague and Leiden. That issue was separate from the planned maintenance work already happening between Den Haag Centraal and Den Haag HS.
Passengers were advised to use the Haagse tram instead of the train when traveling to Leiden, at least until 10:15 a.m., they should account for an extra 15 minutes of travel time.
A broken train track was also impacting train traffic between Rotterdam Central Station and Breda. Fewer intercity trains were running on the route. NS warned travelers to expect the trip to take around 15 minutes longer than usual. Trains will likely also be more crowded. NS expects this issue to be resolved by around 10:45 a.m.
Complicating matters further, the cold weather in the north also affected rail operations. Dutch meteorological service KNMI issued its most severe Code Red warning for icy conditions and snow in the northern provinces of Drenthe, Friesland, and Groningen. The alert was extended to the end of the morning.
“Trains will not be running in the three northern provinces until noon,” the NS said. “Regional carriers are also not running; check their websites for more information.”
There were also serious warnings issued in Flevoland and Overijssel. Black ice had caused numerous problems on the roadways over the course of the morning.
