Track subsidence to disrupt Groningen train taffic until at least Thursday

Subsidence under railway tracks in Groningen will disrupt train traffic in the city until at least Thursday, a spokesperson for NS told RTV Noord on Monday. No trains will run between Groningen Central Station and Groningen Europapark, the route where ProRail discovered subsidence early Sunday morning, for all that time.

Groningen trains will run on an adjusted timetable in the coming days. “This means there will be no extra sprinters running between Groningen Europapark and Assen during rush hour,” the spokesperson said. Buses will run between Groningen CS and Groningen Europapark, departing every five minutes.

NS urged travelers to keep a close eye on the travel planner in the coming days.

“We are going to see how we can fix this. The recovery plan is not ready yet, more research is needed,” a spokesperson for rail manager ProRail told the regional broadcaster. “We are doing everything we can to get the trains running again on Thursday afternoon, but it must be safe. We hope to be able to provide more clarity in the course of the day.”

ProRail discovered the track subsidence at the new Esperanto tunnel - a bicycle tunnel being built under the railway in the new Zuiderplantsoen. The subsidence significantly impacted train traffic in the region.

For some time, it seemed that no train traffic would be possible between Assen and Groningen Europapark, but on Sunday afternoon, NS announced that these trains could run after all. NS trains between Zwolle and Groningen Europapark are also running on Monday.