Many trains cancelled in 5 largest Dutch cities on Tuesday over traffic control staffing
Update 9:36 a.m. - Article updated with more information
A shortage of traffic controllers has resulted in fewer trains running on Tuesday, particularly in the Randstad area, ProRail reported at 9:00 a.m. Travelers can expect longer travel times. The staffing trouble means disruptions on passenger trains connecting the five largest cities in the Netherlands, as well as some local routes.
ProRail hopes to have rail traffic control sufficiently staffed by noon, but warned that it could take more time for train services to get caught up and running on schedule.
There will be reductions in Intercity trains operated by Dutch national service NS between the central stations in Amsterdam and Eindhoven, which typically stop in Utrecht. That city’s Intercity trains back and forth to The Hague and Rotterdam will also run less frequently on Tuesday morning.
Those trains also make stops in Gouda and Den Haag HS. The NS Sprinters between Utrecht Centraal and Alphen aan den Rijn will also be hindered, potentially affecting travelers to and from Leiden. Trains connecting Utrecht Centraal and Utrecht Maliebaan will also be disrupted.
Located in the middle of the Netherlands, Utrecht Centraal is among the most-used train stations in the country and serves as a key connection point for rail transport. Disruptions there can have a knock-on effect, with rail managers needing time to unravel problems.
Some 230,000 passengers traveled through Utrecht Centraal on an average day in 2024, including 55,000 people who used the central station to change trains. Just under 1.1 million passenger journeys took place on NS routes every day last year, a figure which was 2.2 percent higher in the first half of 2025.
About 171,000 passengers flow through Amsterdam Centraal every day, according to 2024 data. A total of about 103,000 make use of Rotterdam Centraal, 80,000 utilize Aden Haag Centraal, and under 64,000 travel to, from, or via Eindhoven Centraal.
A ProRail spokesperson told ANP that the staff shortage on Tuesday was caused by multiple train traffic controllers calling in sick. An NS spokesperson told the news wire that travelers can expect longer travel times. Due to the autumn holidays, the trains are less crowded than usual.
