No more bags on seats on Dutch trains? NS wants bags on laps as the 'new normal'

Dutch national railway NS is hoping it can find a way to stop passengers from placing handbags and luggage on the seats inside their railcars, a spokesperson said on Tuesday. Confirming an initial report by broadcaster NOS, the train company said it comes down to passengers who take up extra space even during peak moments.

Keeping a bag on a seat is not prohibited on trains regardless of how busy it is, unless a passenger wants to sit there. Current policy stipulates that bags only need to be removed from a seat when somebody requests it.

"We are hearing that people no longer dare to speak to each other about it. With this, we aim to ensure that passengers no longer have to ask each other to remove a bag from a seat at all, because the seat will already be empty," the spokesperson said.

For the time being, the NS does not plan to issue fines. The company's conductors also do not plan to other punitive measures to enforce the rule when passengers do place a bag on a seat.

"This is only intended to rule out discussions about this subject. We want it to be seen as the new normal that bags are placed on laps or in the luggage rack."

The NS must also receive feedback on the matter from Locov, the organization that protects consumer interests on matters related to public transportation. Once the request for an advisory decision is filed, Locov will review the policy change.

In the event the organization reacts negatively to the proposed change, the NS is not allowed to implement the new bag policy, the spokesperson stated.