Utrecht train service disrupted until at least 3:30 p.m. after overhead line break

Train service around Utrecht remains heavily disrupted Saturday after a broken overhead line caused multiple delays and damage Friday evening.

The incidents have affected routes between Utrecht and Den Bosch, and Utrecht and Arnhem, with fewer trains running than normal. ProRail, the Dutch rail infrastructure manager, said disruptions are expected to continue until at least 3:30 p.m.

The issue began Friday when a section of overhead wiring south of Utrecht fractured. Early in the evening, a train collided with a dangling portion of the wire. No one was injured, but both the train and the overhead line sustained significant damage. The cause of the overhead line break has not yet been determined, a ProRail spokesperson said.

“Last night, machines and materials were delivered to repair the overhead line,” ProRail said. “Now that everything is in place, our contractor is working to make the track available as quickly as possible. New wires are being installed, and the stalled and damaged train is being removed this morning.”

Despite the disruption, Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS) reported that trains heading south, where carnival is being celebrated this weekend, are not unusually crowded. “It is significantly quieter at stations and on the trains than during a weekday rush hour,” an NS spokesperson said. “Travelers take longer to reach their destinations and have fewer trains to choose from, but it is not particularly busy.”