Many trains between Netherlands and Germany scrapped this week over 6 day rail strike

Dutch national railway NS confirmed the cancellation of all ICE International, Intercity Berlin and Nightjet services for a six-day period as the result of an upcoming German rail strike. Trains on the ICE International and Intercity Berlin lines will not run from January 22 through the end of January 29. Nightjet cancellations start and end one day earlier.

Passengers who were scheduled to travel either to, from, or via Germany with tickets valid on those dates may instead use them flexibly on all daytime Deutsche Bahn trains once the strike has ended until the end of February 5, the NS said. Those who want more certainty can either cancel their tickets or reschedule them with their carrier with no additional fee. "Because we expect customer service to be very busy, you can cancel your ticket by phone up to one month after your original travel date," the NS said.

The ICE International and Nightjet trains connect the Dutch cities of Amsterdam, Utrecht and Arnhem to destinations across Germany, including Cologne, Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt and Munich. Scheduled services also include stops in Basel and Zurich in Switzerland, and Vienna, Austria. The Intercity Berlin also stops at five Dutch cities and seven German cities aside from Amsterdam Centraal Station and Berlin Hauptbahnhof.

The six-day strike will be the longest in German rail operator Deutsche Bahn's history. Officially, the strike by the GDL labor union will begin at 2 a.m. on Wednesday, and will continue until 6 p.m. on Monday, with freight train drivers starting their strike eight hours earlier. Workers went on a five-day strike at Deutsche Bahn in 2015, the previous record.

The current dispute over a new contract dates back to November, when GDL demanded its workers receive the same pay for working 35 hours instead of 38 hours. The rail operator offered new contract terms late last week. GDL rejected that proposal, the third offer submitted by Deutsche Bahn. The two sides appeared to be at an impasse, with the GDL accusing Deutsche Bahn of not actually improving their offer, while the rail operator accused the union of being unrealistic.

"Anyone who does not even come to the negotiating table with a new offer of up to 13% (wage increase) and the possibility of a 37-hour week with the same salary is acting absolutely irresponsibly," a Deutsche Bahn spokesperson told Reuters.

Passengers departing from the Netherlands were advised to monitor the NS International website's travel planner for up-to-date information.