Faster train connection to cut 45 minutes off Amsterdam-Brussels route
The new fast train between Lelystad, Amsterdam Zuid, and Brussels South will cut 45 minutes off the Amsterdam-Brussels journey. The train will be called EuroCity Direct, NS International confirmed to the Treinreiziger.nl. The new route will launch on December 15. Testing started this week.
The timetable is still being worked out, but Lelystad will not be the starting or ending point of every journey. “At certain times in the timetable, the train will have Lelystad as the starting point instead of Amsterdam Zuid and will then travel via Amsterdam to Brussels. That is good news for passengers from Lelystad,” the NS spokesperson said.
The EuroCity Direct will run every hour and 16 times a day. From Lelystad, the train will stop at the stations Almere Buiten, Almere Centrum, Amsterdam Zuid, Schiphol, Rotterdam Central Station, Antwerp Central Station, and Brussels South. Several intercity stations will be skipped to save time.
The train will travel from Amsterdam to Brussels in two hours - 45 minutes faster than the current trip.
The Intercity Brussels will continue to run under the name EuroCity Brussels and will also run 16 times a day. However, this connection will be shortened and run between Brussels and Rotterdam, not Amsterdam.
NS and the Belgian NMBS will operate the new connection together and run the Intercity New Generation (ICNG) trains on the route. The new Intercity trains have been adapted to work on the Belgian railways.
