Is the Dutch rail network actually any good?

The Netherlands is a fantastic little place, but despite its world-leading urban planning, its railways leave a little to be desired. However, is this enough to bring it down, and is there anything to learn from NS (Nederlandse Spoorwegen)?
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Nederlandse Spoorwegen

[@garethking1639]

As a Brit travelling around the Netherlands by train 10 years ago it was great to be able to turn up and buy tickets each day. In the UK you have to buy tickets weeks in advance to get the best prices.

[@RobertDoornbosF1]

It's very expensive though

[@Ed-tx4zf]

@RobertDoornbosF1 Wait till you find out what a ticket for a similar distance in the UK costs

[@RobertDoornbosF1]

@@Ed-tx4zf Doubt it, about €17,90 (which is 19.74 USD as of July 30th, 2023) to go from the centre of Amsterdam to a distance which in American car centered cities would be called a suburb, but in the Netherlands is potentially a whole different city.

[@mouf725]

@@RobertDoornbosF1 Bro what💀I just had a look at the price of a return from Amsterdam Centraal to Weesp (similar distance as my suburb to Birmingham, UK) and it's 5.15 EUR for the Dutch journey compared to 7.25 EUR for the British one. But I guess you must be talking about a longer distance journey perhaps - I don't want to contradict what you said as I have no experience with the Dutch railway system! Seen a few other Dutch commenters talking about the high fares - here in the UK it is a famous problem, particularly with mainline intercity journeys which I guess is a similar issue to you guys. It really does depend on several factors though such as the railway operator for example - e.g. a journey from my local station to London is usually capped at about 36 GBP (43 EUR) no matter what time you buy it, because the operator (Chiltern Railways) is actually quite good - some of their managers are ex-British Rail staff. However, a similar journey from Birmingham New Street (main hub station of Birmingham) to London might easily be in the hundreds of pounds unless bought earlier on because they run along the West Coast Main Line (one of the busiest and most congested mainlines in the UK) and the operators such as Avanti West Coast basically do legalised price gouging which is insane imo. The planned renationalisation couldn't come soon enough! (but is of course being deliberately delayed by the government)

[@k34xy4wmnb]

@@RobertDoornbosF1Really? Because it cost 13 point something euro to go from Lelystad to Schiphol. One way full fare and 2nd class.

[@MrBlueBurd0451]

The main reason for the cleanliness issues in NS trains is without a doubt simple staffing shortages. NS is short quite literally thousands of employees.

[@ChristiaanHW]

​@@mikemainer4679because if you say something against the wrong person/group they might attack you. (Or worse) If the chances of getting caught would go up, more people would be comfortable enough to say something to those walking disgraces. I rather sit in a train next to a little rubbish/graffiti than say something to a person littering and end up in the hospital.

[@TurdBoi666]

​@@mikemainer4679Nederlands is one of the cleanest countries overall

[@666Maeglin]

These cleaniness issues are directly related to the negative side effectgs of the excessive diversity issues. You kmnnow tyhe kind of criminal behaviour by group everybody sees doing the crime but are never addressed for rthis in the statistics.. because that would be racist.

[@krthecarguy5150]

​@@666Maeglinno, it's very much short staffed. The Austrian ÖBB has around 40 thousand employees, while NS has twice as much truck and trains with half the employees, not even 20 thousand.

[@mrvwbug4423]

Well I wouldn't expect the staffing issue to get any better depending on who forms the next NL government. If he of the funny hair does manage to form a government expect the staffing to get worse as NS workers of the incorrect melanin level are fired and/or deported. Rutte was already following the EU standard model of cuts, privitization and austerity. At least you know who being a nationalist isn't likely to privitize NS.

[@jpdegraaff]

Great video! A couple of comments: 1. Cleanliness: this has worsened during the pandemic due to a lack of staff, and still NS is short of hundreds of cleaning staff. I hope this will improve in the future. 2. Comfort: As a Dutch who studied in London, I have travelled also a lot on the British network. I have to say, the carpets are advantageous in terms of noise reduction, but in terms of cleanliness, not so much. Coffee, alcohol beverages and other fluids get spilled pretty easily and it is very difficult to clean them, especially with long haul operations on long distance lines. Though I must respect the British in that regard for keeping the train clean even when it is overcrowded (looking especially at CrossCountry). 3. Speed: Some railway lines have been upgraded with ETCS signalling to increase the speed up to 160-200 km/h (Amsterdam-Utrecht and Lelystad-Zwolle to be precise), but, as The Netherlands is basically a swamp: the ground is too unstable to increase the speed from 140 onwards. Heck, even the highly used corridor between Utrecht and Den Bosch now has some 80 km/h speed restrictions due to the weak ground beneath the tracks. However, I think as busy as the network is, ETCS should be implemented as soon as possible, starting at the most busy sections to improve reliability. 4. Sad fact: the NS is no longer required to wait for a connection due to the high frequency, so you are up to the mercy of the driver (especially late at night) for less frequent routes. 5. The ICNG is an impeccable train and I hope it will bring a lot of improvements, but one thing the NS is going to let go: the compartments in first class. 6. Fares: The NS is trying to raise the fares during peak hours and lower the fares during off peak hours, with some services given an even more discount on sparsely used slots for certain routes (super off-peak), by stimulating more and more people to buy their tickets online... This sounds strangely familiar... 7. Stations: Here I prefer the british ones, especially rural stations. The NS is rather spartan on rural lines: usually a shelter, some benches and a bin, no more. I miss the flower beds, railway communities, gardens and superb coffee stands of some British stations over here, not all is bad! :)

[@jervinmouwen]

Utrecht - Den Bosch has a partial speed limit of 40 kph for months now and yeah, it's due to weak ground

[@ovfan_zuid]

@@jervinmouwen only the part between culemborg and geldermalsen!

[@Jules_Diplopia]

Point 7. there are a lot of rural stations in the UK that have far less facilities than even Dutch ones. And I never had a drinkable coffee on any railway station. The ICNG and the DDNG will be the future, and at least then as a wheelchair use I will be able to get on all trains, not just the sprinters. However from what I see of the UK trains and stations, I would never dare to try to make a journey by rail there any more.

[@tarickw]

I can fully agree with 1-3. I always enjoyed my stay in my Dutch trains. There's always better and worse cars to ride in but overal they are enjoyable.

[@jpdegraaff]

For great coffee, and a great atmosphere I recommend visiting Leamington Spa. ;) And of course I understand that some rural English stations are mere halts serving a pub or a walking route, but the railway community stations and the flower beds on some lines are a thing I miss over here in NL. Concerning accessibility I completely agree though. (But I believe with the many new trains introduced in the UK and more regulation around station this problem is slowly being solved...) @@Jules_Diplopia

[@jeroenstalman3668]

For your information, arriva does not use cars as public transport in limburg. The cars you see in the picture are for transporting bus drivers, among others, from the garage to the bus they Have to drive

[@GWVillager]

Ah, that makes a lot more sense, thanks!

[@hatsjie2]

A lot of it I agree with. However, in my opinion, the Koploper is the most comfortable train for long distances. I love that thing.

[@MrRepsie]

The koploper 😂😂😂

[@mhfs61]

The Koploper is my favourite since its introduction in the seventies.

[@Izithel]

I still mis the old walk-trough heads, even tough they hardly had any purpose (especially when they stopped the onboard catering service) and were a maintenance nightmare.

[@sjoerdvanoudenaren6020]

I think carpet would be an absolute disaster personally, with drink spillages etc.. The 140kmph limit is not only because of the signalling but also due to the fact that the soil in The Netherlands isn’t firm enough to allow for higher speeds, it’ll cause the trains to start bouncing on the tracks. This is why the high speed line (hsl) is essentially one long concrete shell with tracks in it. The graffiti I think is a very big issue in the country to be honest, even restaurant toilets will often have graffiti in them. You’ll also see MANY trains covered in huge graffiti artworks on the exterior. It’s a unfortunate and very very expensive problem for the NS.

[@mdhazeldine]

Carpet works pretty well on British trains. We don't have them on the Underground or high capacity suburban trains but you do get them on longer distance ones and they don't have too many stains on them. They make the train feel much more comfortable and cosy.

[@sjoerdvanoudenaren6020]

@@mdhazeldine I’ve lived in the UK until recently and I did find that on UK trains the carpets are usually very clean indeed. Personally I prefer without mostly because they gather dust which causes my nose to give me hell.. but overall I feel the trains in the UK were significantly cleaner, the floors of dutch trains usually have all sorts of spillages on them by the end of the day.. I don’t want to imagine what we’d do to carpets here 😂

[@mdhazeldine]

@@sjoerdvanoudenaren6020 Do you think Dutch people are just really messy and not caring about their environment or is it just that NS is really short staffed for cleaners? Given how nice the cities are, I think it's more likely a lack of cleaners, right?

[@sjoerdvanoudenaren6020]

@@mdhazeldine they’re definitely understaffed at the moment in every part of the NS, but I think the fact students travel for free plays a major role as wel. More students on trains causes more off a mess (saying this as a former student). I think even 16 year olds travel for free now.

[@mdhazeldine]

@@sjoerdvanoudenaren6020 Hmm, yeah young drunk people who haven't had to pay anything to use a service are probably going to abuse it. Bit of a shame.

[@joehitchen9311]

"You can also get to Germany, if DB decide to show up" -- brutally accurate commentary there. Would be interesting to see that comparison in detail in future too. As a visitor to NL, it'd be great to see contactless as an alternative to OV like it is for Oyster because just tapping in would be less faffy than trying to got hold of one or buying singles. On the infrastructure side, I've noticed a greater number of flying junctions in NL compared to the UK, which no doubt helps reduce knock-on delays. No doubt a factor in the density of their services they run!

[@GWVillager]

Indeed, Dutch infrastructure in general seems much better developed. I believe you can actually use contactless cards instead of a Chipkaart now.

[@nigiiobi1154]

They just introduced OVpay contactless a couple of months ago, which comes down to the same system London has in place, but nationwide. This payment method is scheduled to replace even our current fare card in a couple of years!

[@kevonvideo]

Tap to pay now works nationwide on all modes of public transport, except international services 👍

[@nanderv]

@@kevonvideo Even some limited international services, for Emmerich, Gronau, Aachen, Weener, Leer!

[@kevonvideo]

@@nanderv I didnt know that! Learned something new today, cheers 🙏

[@tarickw]

Regarding your short conclusions at the end: Carpets will be more dirty, more easily. The hard floors are more easier to clean, and when NS finally starts getting enough cleaning staff again, the cleanliness of the trains should markedly improve. Lighting is already dynamic. (don't forget that are many types of trains, in different states of renovation. Most major ones are: ICM, DDZ, VIRM, SLT and FLIRT. ICM and the unrenovated DDZ are the oldest ones) Tables are provided in the 4 seaters (they might be small so we can argue about them needing to be bigger) I don't really see your idea about the Belgian railways. If we want to improve cross border travel and international connections, a merger of two railways is a short term and short sighted solution. The problem is Europe wide needs to be broadly addressed to make it more appealing overall I do agree with: fares needing to be cheaper, this sadly won't happen in the near term Minor things: the card being ugly to you. Luckily that is just a matter of taste. Do note though that the card printings differ by transport organisation as they have the ability to give out their own versions which are fully compatible. On the spartanness of the trains and it feeling like a commuter train. That is because they mostly are. Many people travel between the cities or from smaller places into the larger ones for work. Those journeys are often at most 1,5 hours. Groningen - Middelburg (one of the longest journeys I could think of) takes 04:42 hours (so a little less than 5) and is a very uncommon route. On the upside it is only a one changeover connection so you can get settled in.

[@pizzablender]

I think NS trains are cleaned wet (with a hose). This can leave dirty looking corners, but I suppose it is cleaner than vacuuming.

[@wilcovanwinden6581]

Regarding your comment about the Koploper looking funny: There's a reason behind that madness. Koploper translaters into "frontrunner" or "head walker" When the trains were new, the front of the train had 2 doors, split vertically. For example, sets coming from the same general direction (Den Haag/Rotterdam) would arrive shortly after one another in Utrecht. There, after they coupled, the doors would swing outward and back (like the passenger entry doors you find on a VIRM). A tubular gangway would extend, mating with the one from the opposite trainset, allowing you to walk from one "head"to the other. In this way, the trains would run together for a portion of their trip in the same general direction (Leeuwarden/Groningen) and then uncouple (Zwolle in this case) before going their separate ways. The advantage of this scheme was that the entire bunch of coupled trainsets was available to the conductor for checking passenger's tickets, and to the onboard drinks/snacks cart (we had those for a while). With normal coupled trainsets, a passenger who has not bought a ticket can get into the trainset that the conductor is NOT in, shortly before the doors close, and be safe from punishment. In service, these systems proved very unreliable and often broke down. The decision was eventually taken to remove these went the trains underwent heavy maintenace and modernization. The gangways and front doors were removed, and the resulting opening being covered with a large fiberglass plate. This saved a lot of weight and made the trains more reliable. VIRMs also had provision for the food/drinks cart but it was removed after modernization: In between each set of stairways (up/down from the entry balcony) used to be a small elevator to move said cart between decks.

[@GWVillager]

Oh wow, a lift on a train is certainly an interesting idea, I'd never considered how they would move trolleys between decks. It's a shame catering isn't provided any more, and a shame that the Koplopers no longer have end gangways, that would be a much smoother experience for passengers and crew.

[@wilcovanwinden6581]

@@GWVillager www.vagonweb.cz/fotogalerie/foto/201501/P7024497.jpg The column in the middle is the lift

[@PauldeVrieze]

@@GWVillager They also had (like 20 years ago) backpack based coffee/tea service on some of them. That way the navigation across the floors was even more convenient.

[@mrvwbug4423]

Yeah, the Koploper was just a very complicated version of an open gangway like you'd see on many British trains, especially the Electrostars. I've heard drivers really like them because the high drivers cab gives very good visibility.

[@MrBliss77]

One thing I never appreciated, untill I used public transport abroad, is how well the information/timetable boards are. I once was in the UK at a small station late at night and the information was limited to the end stations of a line. But there wasn't even a helpfull map for me to figure out which would stop at the station I needed to go to. Also there was no staff around to ask. In the end a helpfull fellow traveler helped figure out which train I should take, but that really made me appreciate the information boards on Dutch public transport. This btw also goes for busses, trams and metro's every stop has the information you need.

[@GWVillager]

Indeed, it's amazing just how flawlessly information is presented, I don't think I was ever once confused, despite not really speaking much Dutch.

[@SGtravelsEU]

As long as you're sticking to the bigger cities the information isn't bad. However when you get to smaller cities and villages, the information is often lacking. Bus stops still having an outdated timetable but no services for years. Or bus stops without any information but the line number of the services. And if you ask a bus driver for help you're often being told to check a website or app, instead of being helped.

[@TurdBoi666]

​@@SGtravelsEUanime pfp detected, opinion rejected

[@Aviertje]

Regarding the antiquated signaling, I believe it is one of those typical 'early adopter' issues. All surrounding nations ended up going with different standards and even voltages than the Netherlands did, and this makes interoperation a real pain. You would think it shouldn't be too hard to just switch over, but combined with how full the railway network itself is and the chain-reaction of delays that can cause, it means that changing this is HARD. Similarly, even if we wanted trains to go faster, there is the issue of many of the old lines simply not being able to support it due to curves being too tight, crossings being too close-by and needing their timing mechanisms changed immensely, and more of that stuff. The Netherlands might be quite unified in how it manages its rail, but when everything is so tightly interconnected, it becomes really hard to switch over only small amounts of track. It is honestly a miracle that ERTMS is being implemented phase-by-phase and planned to be fully implemented nation-wide as early as 2050. For as far the low early-adopters voltage of 1.5kVDC is concerned, there has been research into the feasibility of 3kVDC like Belgium has which will earn back such an investment within 10 years, although no decision has been made on that yet. Switching to the even higher voltages like the HSL route (25kVAC) or Germany (15kVAC) has however been researched in the past but concluded to be immensely difficult to implement since it would require all the above-rail cabling needing to be replaced, which would mean considerable periods during which trains cannot run. Personally, I would prefer the latter: better to just get it all over with than to take the odd voltage only Belgium has and may also prove to be insufficient for future uses. (If Belgium switched too, there'd even be a case to be made for a switch to the 25kVAC that the northern half of France uses, but for NL and its logistical function as a connector with the inland of Europe, matching Germany would probably make most sense on a global scale.)

[@therealdutchidiot]

Quite right ATB was designed in the 50s and introduced swiftly after the Harmelen disaster in 1962. The maximum speed was built into the signalling system because Dutch (quite wet, unstable) soil doesn't really allow for higher speeds without causing issues with stability. We've seen these issues some years ago in the tunnel leading up to Antwerp as well, trains weren't allowed to go faster than 40km/h because the tracks would sink.

[@lassepeterson2740]

True 1500 DC is outdated but works ok as a commuter railway . Shutting down large parts if the railway to "get it all over with " to modernise would cause many people to buy a car to keep their lives functioning , and once people invest in a car they will not return to rail for a very long time .

[@daanwolters3751]

The problem with 25kv is not the wires above the rail, you only need to replace the insoluators (at least when switching zevenaar from 1500V to 25kv they only did that). The real problem is that a lot of bridges are too low for overhead wires. Now they manage by placing the cables really close to the bridge and lowering the pantograph a bit. But in a 25kv system you need more distance between the cables and everything else. Meaning the cables will have to be placed even lower, which is a bad idea since you can only lower a pantograph so much (there is a risk they bounce back up and break the cable (which is already happening)). That all being said, with the network becoming more busy, the 1500V system is becoming a problem as the cables can only feed so many trains. In fact in Utrecht they had to alter the schedule to make sure not too many trains leave at the same time, to prevent the cables from overheating. And this is really a limiting factor since newer trains have higher power requirement, and it limits the option of just coupling two emu's together.

[@thetrainspotter43]

A fascinating insight into a railway system that I am not particularly familiar with. Well done!

[@RFGfotografie]

The one thing that is also fun, living near a big station (Gouda Centraal), is that you can, once a month almost, sport very special trains. Which is so much fun to photograph. You get with your bike or car. Check in with a ov chipcard. Take your pic.And it won't cost a thing. Yet it's so easy to do that you can get amazing pictures of trains like a steamlocomotive (Each year around 10 october there is a service to the SSN Depot in Rotterdam), the MAT64. Even Eurostar and Thalys are somethimes traveling though Gouda. I really love that this is possible and so easy to do.

[@RichardRenes]

I know what you mean with the total lack of collaboration between NS and NMBS. I was stuck once at Antwerp Central at 9 p.m. with basically no way to get back to the Netherlands anymore because nothing simply was going there anymore. Eventually I decided I would go to Essen and get a cab there, but lo and behold, there were no cabs there either unless i waited a long time as one had to be summoned. Luckily a nice guy in a cafe drove me to Roosendaal and I could continue my trip back home but man was that a horrid experience. I mean, why not keep trains going to Roosendaal till at least midnight?

[@KaaimanProductions]

Arriva is taking over the services between Liege/Luik and Maastricht in December 2023. And continuing the line to Aachen/Aken. Meaning that there will be a continuous train between Liege and Aachen. Stopping at Maastricht. Heerlen. And all other stations along the way. The line between Antwerp and Roosendaal/Breda is getting a extra continuous service between Antwerp and Rotterdam. Continuing to Amsterdam. There are also talks about re-activating the lines Hamont-Weert. Nijmegen-Kleve. And Groningen-Leer (Which stops just over the border at weener because of a destroyed bridge). Long story short. The cross border services are just having rough times. There are plans in motion to make it much better and reliable than it is now

[@Je_Existe]

Well thats going to change as the trains to Roosendaal will go more frequently and later. Tho there is one last train to Roosendaal which departs at 21:50 from Antwerp Central.

[@daanwolters3751]

Because the nmbs is interested in keeping its monopoly on the belgian rails, not in running international services.

[@SGtravelsEU]

@@KaaimanProductions Reactivating Nijmegen-Kleve has been a dream of quite a few people, but hopeless now new houses have been build on the line. So just forget about that line being reopened in the next couple of decades ;)

[@KaaimanProductions]

@@SGtravelsEU Most of the old route is still there. And the only small section between Groesbeek and Nijmegen that has been removed is located in a forest. So houses weren’t built on the line

[@Trainhub2450alt]

hes back again with another extremely high quality video again, thank you GWV

[@sanderdeboer6034]

I hear NS is very expensive and I mostly agree, especially if you NEED to travel during rush hours. HOWEVER I mostly can work from home and travel during off peak, which saves me 40 percent of fairies. I recently traveled from Friesland to Amsterdam and it cost me a little under 17 euros. For a trip that is a few hundred KM’s and took around 3 hours, that is a bargain. I have traveled all over Europe with trains (my normal way of traveling during holidays) including the UK, and in terms of costs, if you know what you are doing, you can get great deals with NS. As mentioned in another post, they offer many special deals and subscriptions to make your travel much more affordable. Buying a full fair ticket is indeed an expensive undertaking, but there are ways to cut down on cost. Not to mention that I used to have free NS travel through by former employer. Which a lot of people have.

[@SGtravelsEU]

That's a trip of about 150km's. However for normal people traveling just occasionally, that's 30 euro's. That would get you a ticket from Berlin to Munchen with seat reservation (super sparpreis) in Germany. But I think the real problem to many people is that ticket prices are increases while services are being reduced. The number of trains during the weekend here have been cut by 50%, reliability is a great issue here and still prices are going up.

[@lws7394]

@@SGtravelsEU The main cause is staff shortage .

[@ConfusedOxygen]

Crackin video gw- great points and a nice insight into the Dutch railways. Glad we all picked out the thumbnail because it looks fab!

[@GWVillager]

I’ll add a credit in the description, thanks for the help!

[@ConfusedOxygen]

@@GWVillager cheers, no worries!

[@Trainspotter_Tim]

8:27 ,,These um, interesting looking Trains.” Real though 🤣

[@lws7394]

The ICM (intercity materieel) are great trains ! ( just like the double decker after that.). The ICM has been around the greater part of my lifetime and are signature NS trains .. Unfortunately , In 5 years they will be phased out after 45 years and one midlife refurbishment... I talked with some railway mechanics and asked what their favourite train model was... The ICM , because they could repair them on the spot ( rail yard) and put back into service .. The awkward nose is because two trainset could be connected with a (narrow) through passage . This feature was abandoned later ..

[@Tom-Lahaye]

The Thalys is cheaper when you book in advance, strangely also the country of departure has influence on the price, on example I searched for on the Thalys site, a train with departure from Aachen hbf to Paris Nord, can be booked for €50,- return fare, when I book the exact same train (arrival 22:06 at Paris Nord on 28 of sept) but with departure from Liége Guillemins, the next stop after Aachen hbf, the price is €62,- ! So less distance but a higher price!

[@Huub21]

Extra info: You can actually use a debit-/creditcard or phone to pay without buying a seperate ticket. So thats pretty convinient 7:39 only the sprinter trains, not the intercity

[@FirefoxisredExplorerisblueGoog]

A couple of months ago I went to Amsterdam for the first time in ages and tried using my debit card on the trams and I've got to say, it's quite the hassle. It usually took 3 attempts for my card to be accepted. Not ideal for trams which are very quick to depart.

[@lyramsr]

cannot agree with this more. I live in belgium but travel to the netherlands multiple times a month, and travelling by train there is just such a breath of fresh air. I’ve spent a decent amount of time in the uk too and there really is no contest

[@mdhazeldine]

I love the Dutch system. As you said, the only downsides are spartan and dirty interiors and high speed/international options are a bit lacking. Hopefully Eurostar merging with Thalys and the new ICNG trains will improve that. I also really rate the Swiss network and I've just come back from Denmark and was super impressed with DSB. In particular, the IC3 trains were very comfortable. Their standard class seats were better than any first class seat in the UK. Also everything was cheap, clean and punctual.

[@wewillrockyou1986]

I rode the ICNGs a week after their introduction, they were already filthy... Unfortunately while we have cleaned up many of our cities in the last decades, that has yet to expand to our trains and other public transport...

[@Treinbouwer]

You won't have a problem with the interior being dirty. You won't be able to sit anyway.😅

[@TwoWholeWorms]

Eurostar eating Thalys is the best thing that could happen to that operator. Their services were getting seriously unreliable by the time I stopped using them in 2017, and hopefully Eurostar will turn it around back into a good service again.

[@Andrewjg_89]

I do think that the railways in the Netherlands are very good and most of the services are always on time.

[@Srananbloke]

Great analysis. Always nice to hear opinions on the Dutch railway network from a non-Dutch perspective. As for the OV-Chipkaart, now you can travel with a debit/creditcard as well. You can use your bank card the same way as the OV-Chipkaart, just checking in and out. And the validity is also the same: all public transport in mainland Netherlands as well as the buses on the Wadden Islands.

[@AykevanLaethem]

Was about to make this comment! I don't travel by train regularly, so for me or makes much more sense to use my bank card that I have with me anyway instead of having a separate OV card.

[@ronaldvanhemiksem3544]

However, tapping in and out using your debit card is only a good solution if you're a tourist or if you travel incidentally, as you will always pay second class full fare. If you're entitled for discount and/or using a travel subscription that offers a discount fare (or travelling for free) then you can only use the OV-chipkaart on which the subscription or discount right has been loaded. Also travelling in first class is still not available for debit card users. Debit cards are always charged second class full fare.

[@sanderdeboer6034]

The problem with cleanliness is obviously and never the strongest point of the NS. However they never truly recovered from covid and still have hundreds of job openings that need to be filled. Also they still haven’t got the level of passengers they had pre-covid back, creating a large deficit in their revenues. I disagree with putting carpets in trains, as I feel they are harder to (keep) clean and maintain. (Especially with the shortage of staff now) But they could improve the interiors, although I feel the newer trains did achieve this to some point. I really like the new interiors with more luxurious materials and benches to sit on. One great idea you suggested is to use the led lighting they have in a more dynamic way. This would be a cost effective way to improve interiors and make them feel more modern. One aspect I missed in the video is the FACT the Dutch rail network is the busiest in Europe and even in the world. The Netherlands has some legacy issues indeed, but the fact Rotterdam is the main port for Germany and even Europe which moves a lot of freight by rail, should also be informative. Just like in the USA where cargo trains are hugely important because of a lack of water ways, and therefore passenger trains have a scheduling problem, so does the Dutch rail system has this problem. However here passenger trains in general do get priority and most cargo trains run during the night. However much our country is a bike friendly country and has a descent public transport network, we are still a car centric country. Most people still commute by car to work, and this has increased dramatically because of Covid. People that bought cars during that time will not easily get rid of them, especially since the NS had to cutdown on their service because of fewer travelers. They are in a downward cycle that is hard to beat. And our right wing government(s) don’t help here either. They LOVE the car and HATE public transport. For example they keep on delaying rail projects to Friesland, Groningen and most of the eastern provinces. Even though the investments are not that high considering our GDP and the revenues the government received from the Groningen gas field. I do hope that we will get a more left leaning government who sees the value of good public transport once more. (But little change, considering most Dutchies are extremely right wing (by European standards)).

[@GWVillager]

This is one thing that did strike me, the Netherlands seemed surprisingly car centric outside city centres, with huge roads and lots of car parking, far more than you'd get in Britain.

[@RFGfotografie]

The fact that you can take the bike with you for me was the reason one day to finally dare to go with the train. (Autistic) I wanted to go to the International Fireworks Festival Scheveningen. But with a car that was just a disaster and the trams where also a disaster. So I took my bike with me and since then I always took it with me. It wasn't fun that you needed to get a separate ticket for it which was quite expensive. But it helped me on the way very nicely. Though the "level boarding" wasn't really possible on double decker trains though. So when I got an e-bike, this was quite hard to get into and out of the train.

[@robcherry6734]

You could get a folding bike? I have a Brompton and it’s free on NS as long as it’s folded.

[@lws7394]

​@@robcherry6734 First wait and see ! VIA Rail must be the worst railway operator in oecd countries. You have to weigh your luggage and pay extra for too much weight . It's a train, not a plane ! 😱👿

[@aidanmccarthy9249]

I like that you can just show up to the station and buy a ticket without worrying about schedules. First class in the double decker trains is pretty nice. There was basically a couch I rode in one from Eindhoven to Amsterdam. In Canada, along the Windsor-Quebec corridor, you have to look at the schedule and buy your ticket in advance. And you better not miss it because you'll be waiting a few hours for the next train if you're lucky. Also, only 5 trains a day.

[@SGtravelsEU]

actually that's going to change in a few years. Plans are to make tickets only valid for certain connections, with prices depending on which connection you're traveling.

[@EastMidlandsDUTCHess]

Having travelled a lot in both the UK and the Netherlands I must say I didn’t realise how lucky we are in The Netherlands until I started travelling in the UK. Stations often look tired, dark and depressing. Most of all unsafe. NL has filthy toilets and graffiti is a long lasting issue in all kinds of places. However, in the UK the toilets as well as the actual trains are filthy. Perhaps it’s to do with the fact that the government sold the railway to investment companies whose priority is making a profit and not investing in the infrastructure of the net, accessible stations for the elderly and disabled or replacing the tired old trains. Prices of train tickets are so high that it’s more affordable to go to the Audi dealer and get a new Audi A5 then it would be to pay for a daily commute by train in most cases.

[@puikepuck]

Just a few remarks: You don't see any 4x4 with table seating in the double decker shots in your video because you've only shown the upper decks of the VIRM EMUs. The upper deck has 2x2 settings only (with a foldable table in the seat in front of you), the 4x4 with table setting is downstairs. This is done to provide a "quiet" area upstairs and a "social" area downstairs (the "quiet" area not to be confused with the silence compartment where one really needs to be silent). As for the old ICR rolling stock which you've seen on the Intercity Direct service, these trains are indeed currently being replaced by ICNG EMUs. This was supposed to happen ten years ago but then the Fyra happened (I'm sure most train fanatics know that story), which is why the ICR rolling stock had to stay for longer than anticipated. Next time you're here, there's no need to buy a paper ticket. You can use any credit or debit card as if it were an OV-Chipcard. So just check in and out like everyone else :) Greetings from a Dutch train driver!

[@GWVillager]

Interesting, I didn't know that about the tables, coming from Britain I always went straight upstairs for the novel experience of riding a train from the upper deck! Good to hear about the cards, it's always great to not have to worry about getting the right ticket.

[@spoorwegenTF2]

@@GWVillager it's funny, because most passengers in the NL will naturally run downstairs for a more comfortable ride. usually when the bottom deck is full there will still be 50% of seats free upstairs.....

[@GWVillager]

@@spoorwegenTF2 As I found. Upstairs was quite nice and relaxing.

[@bembs0256]

I lived for one year in the Netherlands, and yes, I agree that cleanliness is a major issue on the Dutch rail network. Vandalized restrooms, sticky floors, and dirty seats are common sights on Dutch trains. Things may be better on private railway companies like Keolis or Arriva, but that doesn’t necessarily mean their trains are 100% cleaner. I come from a third-world country (Indonesia), and I can tell you that our trains are MUCH cleaner than the Dutch ones. As for the price, I agree that the Dutch rail network is extremely expensive. However, if you live in the Netherlands for an extended period, I suggest getting a personal OV-chipkaart, as it will save you a lot of money compared to buying tickets from the machine. Oh, and I pity that they are retiring the Koploper. Yeah I know they are old, but so far they are the most comfortable trains in the Netherlands. I hope the newer ICNG will offer the same or even better comfort as the Koploper.

[@lukek8522]

The only thing that's good is the network. The rolling stock, the speeds (or lack thereof), the cleanliness and the performance in winter make this a less than ideal rail network to ride on. It's a shame, because I think with enough funding, the country could have a system that can compete with SBB (Switzerland).

[@GWVillager]

Certainly, there's a huge amount of potential.

[@zipzap8937]

Doesn't matter if it's good or not, couldn't be fucked to spend that much on a train.

[@jarivanmarrewijk9951]

One of the best recent innovations is the fact the ov chipcard is not even necessary anymore. All you need is a contactless payment card or even a phone with an NFC chip. Just hold your phone up to the reader and you’ll be able to pay instantly! Came in quite handy as my card expired last month

[@ronaldvanhemiksem3544]

Only if you have to pay full fare and travel in second class. If you are entitled for discount, or have a subscription, you still need your OV-chipkaart. If you want to travel in first class and have to pay full fare, you can either use your OV-chipkaart or buy a single-use contactless ticket.

[@Tramspected101]

The reason that Most dutch trains cant go over 140 kmph Is due to the fact that the train system ATB Does not count over 140 And The soil of the netherlands is not good enough for 160 and higher without special ground work under the tracks, but so far there are a couple of lines rated for 160 and even 200

[@Izithel]

Now if only they will actually allow the ICNG to actually go 200 on the Hanzelijn.

[@chuckmaurice3646]

Dutch rail has come a long way, looking at these pictures, it has come a vary long way and getting better each year.

[@kirankok6845]

i didn't expect a video about the NS but it is deffinantly a welcome one seeing an outside perspective on NS! great video.

[@GWVillager]

Thank you, it's certainly an interesting system.

[@kirankok6845]

@@GWVillager agreed, I use it almost daily for my college commute and the fun thing is that as a student you get a government issued subscription on your OV-chipkaart that allows students to travel for free.

[@GWVillager]

@@kirankok6845 That's amazing, a few cities have done that in Britain but a nationwide free card is unprecedented.

[@kirankok6845]

@@GWVillager it's free either during week days or in the weekend depending on if you live with your parents or on your own

[@thegreenelephnant8100]

Just commenting to help you out because your vids are awesome!

[@blodekont5458]

4:14 ..didn't do homework well... In north Netherlands the lines out of Leuwarden and Groningen are also trained by Arriva..

[@GWVillager]

I didn't say it exclusively, I said "for example". Of course, Arriva does also operate elsewhere.

[@crimson_fire_Dragon1]

nice to see things from other parts of the Netherlands instead of always Amsterdam with other channels

[@lassepeterson2740]

A major reason Dutch trains limit at bellow 140 kmt is because of the out dated electrical system . Dutch trains require heavy gage copper overhead wire . Mind you it was state of the art in 1938 and is suitable for commuter trains but higher speed trains generate alot of heat and losses . So the signal system alone is not the limiter in this case .

[@pizzablender]

Indeed on 1500 volts DC. High currents needed. Even the UK seems to be mostly at 25 kilovolts AC.

[@MissBTarot]

I grew up travelling on the Koplopers and the Hondenkoppen (much older Sprinter trains that are rarely seen anymore) and I actually don't like the double deckers much. Particularly the first batch of double deckers made this weird whining noise as they sped up and slowed down. They also sway a lot on the top floor. The Hondenkop trains, if you were to catch one in operation, are super loud and rattle all over which, while not very comfortable, is nostalgic. The Koploper is my favorite type of train although the new Sprinters are definitely very convenient

[@Abel_DG]

4:23 those cars are for Arriva personnel to get to and from work, so those are not up for rent.

[@Oli414]

Interesting point about the interior. I think the Dutch are quite different in that regard. In most Dutch homes white walls and light laminate flooring is the norm as oppossed to the off-white walls and beige carpets of the UK. For example, I personally see carpets as hard to clean and making spaces feel smaller, and I'm sure a lot of Dutchies will feel the same way

[@GWVillager]

Yes, a few people have said that. It never occurred to me, carpet feels very natural here.

[@Oli414]

@@GWVillager As a Dutchie living in the UK it is quite the culture shock! 😅

[@mhfs61]

Nowadays you don’t even need an OV-chipkaart. You can check-in and out with a Dutch debit card. Now I check in with either my iPhone or Apple Watch, both linked to my debit card. Even works in busses and trams.

[@pizzablender]

Foreign cards work as well if they are Maestro, V Pay, Mastercard or Visa.

[@lws7394]

8:57 The 140kmh maximum speed is not only because of the train management system , but also because of the soil conditions ! The West, North and along the main rivers the soil consist of alluvial clay sediment and (former) turf moor marsh soil. Especially the turf moor is tricky. When a train rides faster than 140kmh the soil becomes as unstable as gelatine ! Sparks com from the rails .. not good. Near Zwolle they would build a 160kmh speed line, but it prooved unstable. To overcome that it would need hammering 6m stabilisation pillars to a stable undersoil , like is done with high rise building. doing that for entire stretches is very expensive. Most of the main lines pass larger stretches of turf marsh. Those lines cannot handle the speed, higher frequency and weight of current train traffic. Between A'dam and Utrecht they doubled the tracks 2 to 4 , but it can't really stand the intensity ... And even the HSL to Antwerp has some issues .... So aside the HSL there are only 2 regular stretches (in the north/east) that can handle 160kmh ..

[@eenrandompersoon221]

4:37 you can now also use your credit/debit card (atleast dutch ones i don't know about foreign cards you have to check your self)

[@daanwolters3751]

The problem with your idea of merger is mainly politics, Belgium is mostly interested in adding more freight rail to the netherlands to use the Dutch network to get freight from its ports to Germany (netherlands has 6 railways into germany (4 usable for freight), Belgium has one), being less interested in passenger rail. While the netherlands is not intetested in freight rail, but mostly in passanger rail, both to Belgium and towards France. Main issue is that both want the other country to pay for the nessecary railways. The netherlands paid 800 million gulden (400 million euro) to Belgium for the 20km stretch of belgian high speed line from Antwep to the dutch border. Meanwhile Belgium wants to reopen a freight line trough the Netherlands to Germany. But both countries cannot agree on who pays what (for the dutch section) As the old line is build by belgium but sold to the netherlands, Belgium argues this means the netherlands has to pay all of the costs, since they are the owners. While the Netherlands argues Belgium has to pay the costs of modernization and to build in additional measures to lessen the noise and other disruptions caused to the nature the line crosses trough, since they want the line to reopen and would be the ones profiting from it. And disagreements like that (dutch trains are more puntual but more expensive) make a merger (mostly politically) impossible.

[@larswillems9886]

5:32 You can also check in using your debit card, which every Dutch citizen has. Although, I don't remember whether that was the case when this video was uploaded.

[@GWVillager]

I believe it had just been introduced. I remember seeing posters for it at stations.

[@battedtomcatnlnl153]

4:37 now you can use your debitcard

[@wisehat_yt]

as a fellow french man, thank you for visiting us in spain. on behalf of everyone in norway, thank you - sweden

[@ConfusedOxygen]

you’re so cool bigfanofbigfanofskidmarks6

[@tammo100]

About being Dutch railways expensive: you can buy an 40% discount card from NS. This will pay off really quickly. It is basically like the Swiss Halbtax, but only on trains, so no busses. The max speed is indeed low, but the policy is based on frequency and clocktime departures and not on higher speeds. You are right about the litter though, it's very disgusting.

[@twillems2285]

You dont need an ov travelcard anymore. You now can "check in" with a debit- or creditcard!

[@pizzablender]

MasterCard or Visa wireless cards.

[@diedertspijkerboer]

You can call rail travel in the Netherlands expensive, but it's actually quite cheap if you decide to not own a car and just use public transport. Just owning a car can easily be more expensive than a year pass for all public transport. I commute by bike and own a discount card for off peak train travel and spend about €600 a year on public transport.

[@jesperPLZ]

Dutchie here who travels by train daily. The main idea I think is that as long as you stay on Intercity trains the service is world class. Unfortunately the route I travel is covered by sprinter commuter trains which are notoriously unreliable. I have more days on which the train is either delayed or outright cancelled than days it isn’t, not even speaking about being able to get a seat. Adding to this is an issue that plagues both Intercity and Sprinter trains which is absurdly high ticket prices

[@GWVillager]

The ticket prices are indeed expensive, but at least they’re relatively consistent, unlike the unpredictable British system.

[@SGtravelsEU]

The real problem with the cleanliness and anti-social behavior is that the members of staff aren't visible enough and are not doing anything substantial against it. There are hardly any members of staff checking tickets or even aware of people's behaviour in trains, yet alone doing something. Also with the low turn-around time of too many trains the trains aren't being cleaned or even bins emptied. The NS now depends on roving teams of cleaners, who empty some bins while trains are running. But since nobody is really overseeing them, they often spend time just sitting in trains with garbage bags and not doing anything. Another problem is the new bins on new trains. They are placed in the vestibules rather than near the seats. People aren't taking their trash with them and people aren't going to give up their seat to trow stuff in the bin during busy services (not to mention lazy behaviour or even being able to reach the vestibules sometimes).

[@therealspixycat]

You forgot one major major aspect and that is the de- cluttering of the network itself seperating intercity and sprinter trains giving them their own tracks around major hubs thus eliminating switches and increasing speed all the way to a hub improving the reliability of the services dramatically.

[@Treinbouwer]

Op de veluwe is in 30 jaar de bevolking verdubbeld en het aantal treinen gehalveerd. Naar de uni is drie kwartier met de auto, maar ik zit ruim anderhalfuur in treinen en een bus om geld uit te sparen door het gratis studenten-OV te gebruiken. Ik ben niet bijzonder positief over de prestaties van de spoorwegen en al helemaal niet over het openbaar vervoer als geheel. Als je geen studenten-OV hebt, zoals de meeste mensen, dan is het ook nog eens stik duur.

[@TootlinGeoff]

My ,admittedly limited experience travelling on Dutch inter city trains is that their fares are considerably cheaper than here in the UK.

[@AudieHolland]

Most people travelling by train regard all trains as commuter trains in The Netherlands. The fact that you're in your car, stuck in morning rush hour or in the afternoon, is in my opinion the greatest motivation to travel by train. As far as I can recall, Dutch train interiors were always quite Spartan. Perhaps because it's state subsidized. I don't think we will see more luxurious trains in the future. For instance, the ICE international train that connects Amsterdam to Berlin is quite luxurious and looks like plane or spaceship. The downside of ICE is that it depends heavily on DB...

[@GWVillager]

Depending on DB is about as large a downside as you can get!

[@mhfs61]

We Dutchies don’t have much to complain, however, we like to do it a lot.

[@EastMidlandsDUTCHess]

Speed limitations will remain even if a new signalling system is put in place. The ground in The Netherlands contains high levels of clay, making it soft and subject to shrinking and expanding. This affects the stability of the rails and driving trains at high speed might cause it to derail.

[@obelic71]

The Dutch rail network must more be seen as a Urban overground metro system. On the most busy parts of the network they are upgrading the lines to 4 track width so that every 10 minutes a train can run. On the less busy parts they use a half hour schedule f.e. an Intercity at the hour and a sprinter at the half hour. Abroad its very strange for us that there are trains who only run 2-3 times a day of every 2-4 hours! Complaining alot about our rail operators is normal. But maybe we are just to spoiled in comparacence whit other countries.

[@MK--]

Great video 👌🏻. I do think that the preference/love for carpet is a British cultural phenomenon and, also quite apparent from all the Dutch comments, quite the opposite is true for the Dutch.

[@GWVillager]

Yes, I think I’ve got the idea! It is interesting, though, I’d never have thought of carpet as a particularly British obsession.

[@drdewott9154]

Interesting video. Honestly a lot of it is similar to Denmark where I'm from but with something thats done better here and some things that are worse, but a lot of similarities, both to the Netherlands, and the UK. Maybe its worth a visit some day. Especially as we're right in the middle of massively modernising our railways here and are gonna introduce brand new trains from Talgo in 2024 and Alstom in 2025 which are very similar to the ICE L's and Dutch ICNG's respectively, while upgrading many bits of infrastructure to 200km/h.

[@Taverntomfoolers]

Can you do a video on the Hamburg system? I went recently and its world class!

[@therealdutchidiot]

The signalling system was designed around soil stability issues. 140km/h is generally the max speed a train can go without causing rails to sink. Lines that have higher speeds (either with ERTMS or ATB-VV signalling) are almost invariably encased in concrete.

[@Thomas_TdK]

Atb vv heeft niks met hogere snelheden te maken en is een toevoeging op atb eg. Atb vv ligt door heel het land bij seinen. Plus ertms ligt ook op een aantal traject die niet onderbouwd zijn met beton en daar zijn de snelheden ook hoger. Neem bijvoorbeeld Utrecht Amsterdam. Daar ligt atb en ertms. Dual signalling heet dat, treinen die op atb eg rijden hebben een max van 140 en treinen met etcs mogen max 160. Zelfde situatie op de Hanze lijn, en daar mag je met etcs zelfs 200

[@therealdutchidiot]

@@Thomas_TdK Feitelijk onjuist. Kijk bijvoorbeeld in Flevoland waar de spoorligging stabieler is omdat e je op de zeebodem bevindt. Daar kan ERTMS worden toegepast en kunnen de snelheden omhoog. Daarbuiten zijn alle trajecten voor veel geld verstevigd en is de VMax nog steeds niet boven de 160km/u.

[@Samuel-dd7fi]

i was literally in the netherlands last weekend, and I thought the trains were definitely reliable, and regular, which is brilliant! my only big criticism was on the intercity services. i was in a large group and we were all travelling with large rucksacks. we found no space sufficiently large to store most of these rucksacks. a few fitted between seatbacks but other than that, i found my heavy rucksack on me, something rather uncomfortable for a long journey haha

[@RFGfotografie]

For me the seating has never failed me. As a fat person, seating and space is always an issue everywhere. But in the NS trains even on long trips, it's comfortable, spacey and nice. (I never used first class btw, always second class). So I was always satisfied and happy. And this, certainly after also using ICE/Thalys. And learning how it is on trains. Made me make up my mind to always use a train if I am travelling abroard. At least untill I got a car that is. Now I just drive anywhere. Which is even more comfortable.

[@spoorwegenTF2]

Interesting insight, i'm skinny leaning towards underweight and I've always thought the second class seats were so small and cramped I couldn't get comfortable. First class is quite a bit nicer on NS trains but not always particularly roomy either.

[@klontjespap]

love the "if a bit clinical" as a dutchman i second that :D although i'm not 100% convinced the spartan interior plays that big of a role, i think the fact it is kind of a commute because the country is small just makes the use case a bit different, quite some of teenagers go to school by train and just piss about i used to travel 20 minutes to gouda everyday (and back) for the 4 of my school years in teh 90s, not sure how common that is these days

[@ovfan_zuid]

Sadly ProRail (the company that owns the railway) has decided to remove many switches this will mean when there is a Breakdown train the other trains will be having much problems because they cant pass the broken train.

[@1guitarlover]

I lived for two years in the Nederlands. Their trains are old and should invest in new units. But, the service offered as well as the customer service is EXCELLENT.

[@MaverickHunterDaniel]

*I have been summonned lol* I was in Holland last week to film more trains and buses around there and as I've alluded to several times in my videos, the Dutch transport network does effortlessly what the UK could only dream to do. Yes some of the fares are on the dear side, but the intergrated ticketing just works sooooo well. I love being able to buy one ticket and go pretty much anywhere I want instead of having to buy a ticket to Manchester, buy a Chesire Ranger, then buy the right bus ticket for the area (and make sure the operators would even accept it) like what I have to do here. Suprirsed you didn't cover station track layouts like Utrecht Centraal, which was designed to minimise conflicting movements and more of the ICD service from Amsterdam to Breda, which I find exceptionally smooth on the HSL sections but that's OK, pacing and all. Also I do disagree with you at 11:50 with interworking from BE to NL being diabolical. There's pretty much 4 trains an hour between the two countries (2 on HSL-4, 1 from Roosendaal and 1 from Maastricht) and there are buses from the likes of Tilburg and Maastricht into Belgium too. The only thing I'd say is that it would be nice if the Maastricht - Liege service was 2 an hour but other than that, I'm perfectly fine with it. Far from diabolical, especially if it means riding an MR80 :). Good video/10 buddy :)

[@GWVillager]

I was actually staying in Belgium to avoid the exorbitant prices in Holland, and if I ever have to ride an MR80 again I will likely collapse into a fit of rage, I can't think of a train I despise more! I would say the worst part of Dutch/Belgian connections is the severing of sensible links, for example the Charleroi-Antwerpen trains extend once an hour to Essen, when logically they should run through to Roosendaal. This doesn't happen, however, so cross border traffic is directed onto the very tired, 1tph S-trein from Puurs. It feels quite similar at most other border lines, with travel seemingly being made awkward for the sake of it. This is nothing unique to the Lowlands of course, but it's a pain nonetheless. I had planned to include more on the ICD, but the video was getting a bit too long regardless, I had to trim a lot out for the final cut. I didn't know anything about the track layout though, that sounds great. A bit like the King's Cross simplification perhaps?

[@MaverickHunterDaniel]

@@GWVillager Ohhhhhhhhh! THAT makes more sense now, gotcha! OK in that sense, I do agree, it would be nicer if those services went to Roosendaal. In think in that case it's something due to homologation and power issues. NL's lower voltage means that the NMBS trains crawl out on reduced (25% to my knowlege) power. I am also unaware if the trains that run on those services and the coaches are even allowed into the NL for those aformentioned reasons, since the Charleroi - Antwerpen service uses pretty much anything goes from what I've seen. 3 car Desiro ML, 4 car MR75, HLE 18 + M4s or if you're lucky, 9 car double decker lads. But yeah, I do agree with that. Would be nice, but voltage. Yeah, so Utrecht's layout was redone so that the station is split up in a unique way. Platforms 1 - 4 are for Sprinters heading to Baarn, Amersfoort and Zwolle, Platforms 5 and 7 are for Northbound Intercity and ICE to Amsterdam, 8, 9, 11 and 12 are dedicated for the Den Haag/Rotterdam to Amersfoort IC services which reverse at Utrecht and are set up so that two trains can depart simulaneously without conflictions, 14-15 are the Amsterdam/Breukelen - Rhenen Sprinter services, 18-19 are southbound IC and ICE trains towards Den Boch and Arnhem and 20-21 are Leiden/Woerden and Tiel Sprinters. It works really well and I love it! Well, until there's disruption which in that case case LOL. Also sad you didn't like the MR80s I love having personal air con vents and the window alignment :(

[@GWVillager]

@@MaverickHunterDaniel I prefer my trains to not have giant gaping holes in the seats (seriously, what were they thinking with that refurbishment?). In the specific case of Charleroi-Antwerpen trains, they're a *lot* more consistent than they used to be, I think it was entirely HE18s and M6 coaches when I was there (this might just be a Summer thing, I don't know, those 9 coach trains can mop up platforms better than a 700). There's nothing really to hold up between Roosendaal and Essen, so the reduced power would probably be manageable, it's not exactly far. I am no engineer though, it's likely not as simple as that, and as you allude to there are almost certainly reasons. Either way, that Utrecht layout sounds brilliant, I wish there was more of that sort of planning in Britain - Birmingham New Street springs to mind as one desperately in need of something similar.

[@MaverickHunterDaniel]

@@GWVillager Holes in the seats? Nah, that was an MR75. The MR80s are the shorter, faster (and better) versions of those trains which I've reviewed already. Don't blame you for getting the two mixed up though. When I was there last week, it was a mix. I saw HLE 18s + M4s, M6s and I got a 4 car MR75 which was packed to the brim from Antwerpen to Brussels. Even earlier in the year when I went to Luxembourg and was passing through, I got trolled with a 3 car Desiro ML and could only handle riding Brussels South - Eigenbrakel. I'll accept the summer period being more consistent but yeah, that's what I saw. Honestly, Birmingham New Street could seriously benfit with a better layout like Utrecht. One other thing I forgot to say was that due to the improved trackworks, the speed limits on all tracks (except Platforms 1 - 4) was raised to 80kph, so trains can arrive and leave fast. Something impossible with BHM's poultry 10mph speed limits.

[@kevonvideo]

​​@@GWVillagerNS and NMBS just this week announced they are doubling the service frequency from 16 to 32 a day by 2025. Just between Amsterdam South and Brussels though. It will be 45 minutes quicker too, because they'll use the new fast ICNG's and skip Amsterdam Central and Brussels Airport.

[@Abel_DG]

Merging NS and NMBS/SNCB would be pointless. Dutch trains and Belgian trains don’t even share the same catenary voltage. Good news however: NS have ordered ICNG units which can travel to Belgium. These will cut down travel times by 45 minutes and increase frequency from 16 trains a day to 32.

[@Ed-tx4zf]

This ill basically turn the citis of Antwerp and Brussels into hub for a train journey from the Netherlands into Belgium. Not idea, but at least an improvement with the 32 train a day schedule.

[@adamevans1989]

VIRMs tend to get really horrid after about 30 mins if you're anything over 1.85m. Also fun to see my current place of residence's station.

[@Abel_DG]

🙋1,97 here, never had problems with a VIRM, except onto the unrefurbished units.

[@daphunman]

Great comment! (I'm Dutch). One thing, carpets .... I always wonder when I'm over in the UK, why there are so many carpets, even on the trains .......

[@GWVillager]

I'm not sure, but they seem to work quite well. They don't get dirty as often as you'd expect, and keep noise down.

[@daphunman]

​@@GWVillager In the Netherlands, carpeting is not popular at all. Even in homes, most floors are made of wood, laminate or another hard material. It has been a few years that carpeting have made a small comeback, indeed for the warm, luxurious appearance. I have to admit, it's been a few years since I've visited the UK, but I've always marveled at the widespread use of carpet, such as in the bathroom, and, in public places. In the Netherlands you will never find carpeting in public places, with the exception of hotels. By the way, I don't think one is better than the other, but you have unknowingly touched on a cultural difference with your remark about carpeting in the train!

[@jemoeder5347]

Although as a Dutchie I agree with most of what you say, you're making some generalisations that don't actually apply. Enough stations are NOT step-free, although elevators and escalators are always there, and all InterCity trains other than the ICNG do NOT have level boarding. Interior design is more a matter of taste, but I rather appreciate the simplicity in the InterCity interior design. No attention drains. Just all you need, and not more. The seats are comfortable, which is the single most important thing, and there are foldable tables literally everywhere (which are not in the way when you don't need them). Personally I find the Koploper / ICMm the single most comfortable train to travel with, best chairs. Final thought to share is that while the NS are a great company to travel with and indeed you feel like they're there for you even if you made a mistake, this is much less the case with the regional train companies; speaking from experience about Arriva and Blauwnet. Forgot to check in with your free student OV? They'll fine you, whereas NS will waive it a couple of times. At Blauwnet, with the conductors marching through the train in a group in semi-military outfits multiple times on a one-hour journey in very brightly lit trains with separating doors broken as a rule, I more than sometimes feel like an unwanted guest.

[@GWVillager]

That last bit reminds me very much of Britain - whilst guards are generally friendly and sympathetic, the dedicated "Revenue Inspection Officers" are ruthless and will dish out fines and court callings for even the slightest technicalities.

[@andyh-u2b]

Arriva is owned by DB the German national rail operator which also operates in Friesland You can use a bank or credit card from any country to pay for your journey just like on the London underground check in and check out no need to buy a ticket but you miss out on any special fares on line On Dutch trains you can pass through the cabin to find a seat with heavy luggage unlike in the UK Many older trains do not have phone charging facilities Thalys is now owned by Eurostar and supplements connection to the Eurostar in Brussels I live in the Netherlands for 35 years and use trains all the time, which is something I avoid when in the UK

[@SGtravelsEU]

in a way it's Eurostar now being owned by Thalys as well ;) Eurostar and Thalys have had the same stakeholders for years and years. Thalys didn't merge into Eurostar, both operators have been merged into a new company that's using the Eurostar brand name, but it isn't the same company. In fact, it will take quite a few years to smooth out everything, especially with the well-established Thalys brand name on the french side.

[@richardtalbot8769]

the heavy luggage is an interesting one as the VIRM has quite steep steps to get onboard and lifting heavy luggage is not fun. ICNG will solve this after their teething problems have been sorted. when i have luggage i use a sprinter. the other thing i noticed during my holiday - i never had my ov checked whilst on board.

[@ricardostomp538]

The NS has always been a commercial compagny with the Dutch govermentas as the largest shareholder(99%) so thats wy they were responsible for the losses of the NS so there were no subsidies like now. In1991 the compagny was split up in diverrent compagnies and they have to upparate indenpandant. The reason for subsidies now is to keep ticket prices affordable for the common person. Due to the soil conditions, the trains can travel at a maximum of 140 km unless a special high-speed line is build then they can go faster but that will be much too expencive to do so.

[@Times69]

the thing u gotta appreciate tho is that they can fit services between 14+ plaform stations onto a 2 track railway 🤣

[@abelenthoven8192]

I personally wouldn't opt for carpet in trains. It may be cosy, but cleaning it would be a nightmare

[@notmyrealnameify]

I live in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, we have no railway, nearest trainstation is Goes, that is a 1 hour bus drive. Since we privatized the company in the early 90's prices went up by a lot (more than inflation). It's so high that it is almost always cheaper to go by car, even if you're alone in the car. In the past it was cheaper to go by train if you were alone or with one other person. For me to go from Goes to Amsterdam and back it's 60 euro by train. The fuel cost for the car is only 50 euro, if you already have a car it's almost always faster and cheaper to go with a car. If you are with 2 persons the car is a no brainer if you want to save money.

[@GWVillager]

60 Euros is ridiculous. Is there no demand based pricing several weeks before travel?

[@pizzablender]

Yup railways are required to be "profitable" by our government. An nobody is asking whether a new highway overpass is bringing in any money. Hint: it causes no money to come in, so it isn't.

[@papaschlumpf332]

12:32 "there are many aspects in which the British network outperfoms the Dutch" please name a few!

[@GWVillager]

1. Train decor. British trains are generally much more pleasing to the eye internally, making them quieter and more enjoyable to travel on, particularly on long distances. 2. Catering. NS provides no catering whatsoever, whereas most Intercity services in Britain have a full meal service, at least in first class. 3. Stations. Rural stations in Britain are usually much more homely and well-preserved than their Dutch counterparts. 4. Safety. The British rail network is extremely safe, and whilst the Dutch one is by no means dangerous, accidents are not unheard of. 5. Speed. Whilst it's not entirely NS' fault, line speeds are much higher in Britain. 6. Freight. There is notably more freight provision in Britain than the Netherlands. Of course, these things are not the be all and end all, I do on the whole think that the Dutch network is better, but there are certainly areas where Britain outperforms it.

[@papaschlumpf332]

@@GWVillager thanks for the answer!

[@MaverickHunterDaniel]

@@GWVillager I disagree with points 4 and 6. With 4, there have been plenty of times across the years where BR has cut corners in terms of safety and not upgrading the safety systems which would've prevented the tragic accents at Watford, Purley and Clapham depsite reports and the coroner suggesting them to do so multiple times. Also the less we speak about Railtrack the better. And in terms of 6? The Netherlands has a dedicated line called the Betuweroute linking directly from the Port of Rotterdam straight into Germany without getting in the way of passenger trains. It's also futureproof with double stack container provision as well as signalled with the potential of 10 freight trains an hour. There's even freight trains direct from Switzerland and Italy into The Netherlands that don't need to swap locos because they use Vectron Locos. In fact, most locos running freight are electric. Meanwhile, Felixstowe is a single line branch nightmare, Southampton forces careful threading with the timetables due to it's capacity, Trafford Park has the same issue except worse with the Castlefield corridor and DB Cargo have recently shoved all their 90s into storage and are relying on 66s for their freight services. The rest I agree with :)

[@GWVillager]

@@MaverickHunterDaniel Fair enough about the freight, I'd vaguely heard about a freight only line but didn't realise it was so significant, I stand corrected! As for safety, the Railtrack era/90s are firmly behind us, and what I'd say sets the British network apart now is the learning from mistakes. Where accidents do happen, there are detailed reviews, and similar sorts very rarely happen again. The general 'culture' is better too, from what I've observed. Again, though, that's not to say it's *bad* in the Netherlands - it has some of the best statistics in Europe - but it still has twice the number of fatalities per billion km than Britain.

[@dykam]

@@GWVillager I'd argue that comparing the number to the number of km's isn't fair, as accidents tend to happen at conflict points (crossing, branching tracks, stations, etc). Which I suspect are significantly more common in the Netherlands, the tracks are quite interconnected. Though I guess the area around London might compensate for that. Most accidents in the past have been one off, and a deep review absolutely happens. ProRail has actually been hard at work putting fences around all track, and removing crossings, but it's a slow and expensive process.

[@timdiggle5090]

Thalys is OK provided you get one of their refurbished trains. If you get one of their older ones between Paris and Rotterdam/Amsterdam then it can be a grim experience as they are getting very shabby now with clouds of dust rising if you slap the seat. I have yet to catch a Thalys from Rotterdam to Paris on time as it is always late despite the short trip from Amsterdam and it is not a cheap service. (I say to my fellow Brits who want a European level of service and price in the UK to be very careful what they wish for ... DB is particularly bad)

[@SomeoneThatIsCool]

As a dutch person that has to go to school by bus and train everyday it's really really bad. Every morning when I go to school there are too many people on the train and it's completely full because they can't use a longer train for some stupid reason. And when I arrive at the station and I want to take the bus to school I have to wait for more than an hour because there are so many people that want to take that same bus. And they only send a bus every 15mins or so. Yeah public transport sucks

[@diedertspijkerboer]

I find it hard to call Dutch trains expensive if the comparison is done with countries with way higher subsidies. A more objective comparison would be to correct prices for the percentage of subsidies given.

[@DataStorm1]

You don't need the OV Chipcard if resident and having a local bank debit card. You can just use your bank card. But for tourists, we have that OV Chipcard.

[@pizzablender]

Foreign bank cards can be used as well. Credit cards too. As long as they have the wireless payment mode enabled. OV chip card is for residents who want a discount arrangement, or for kids who do not have a bank card yet.

[@MrCrackerplays]

personally I would hate having carpet in trains just thinking about how absolutely disgusting they'd be and as good as impossible to be cleaned

[@SIG442]

Tables are removed a while back, which is indeed sad but also has advantages. Now for carpets... Well in city to city, I can see the reasoning there. However there are plenty of small villages on it's route and there for people drag their dirty shoes in with mud or even cow poop. I don't think it will be a smart idea to use a carpet for that reason. Now for the more expensive routes like high speed ones. Sure, you don't expect the kid of a farmer to appear. Let's be fair in that. Koploper units, although you can't really name them that according to the NS, they can get angry for some reason. Are not the trains you would like to travel on for many reasons, and i'm not even referring to the toilets for very obvious reasons. But actually they are decent trains regardless. They are going to get replaced soon though. Cleanliness issue resides in how the train operators treat their own trains more. If they can't be bothered, then hardly anyone will. So it's their own fault in that regard. That however doesn't mean thats all there is. The major issue is kids traveling alone, specially teens, that litter everywhere and think it's cool. And that also includes the graffiti. Another huge problem, even bigger then the kids, is foreigners and specially those that are called "refugees" who come from the middle-east or Africa. No idea why this is so bad in the Netherlands compared to other EU countries, but it's a thing that you can see very often. 10:40 Netherlands does own a few of these, ICE 3neo since 15 June 2024, see article (in Dutch). There are however older ICE 3 units from the Deutsche Bahn that used the NS logo in green. I do not know the specifics of those units, but it could have been a test for the NS to see if it would be viable or not. ICE 3neo source: nieuws.ns.nl/nieuwe-ice-treinen-tussen-nederland-en-duitsland/ Source NS Info: www.ns.nl/kaartjes/toeslag-ice Now I do have to clarify the statement you made about "it all works". While indeed there are improvements, there is so much more to do and little to no action is being taken by public transportation companies. It makes things seriously a bad system if you add the fact that trains are very often 5-10 minutes late and thus making you miss your connection or when they stop completely you are stuck as no alternative is offered. Any shelter from the elements is taken away, specially in more rural areas. And to make it worse for the rural areas, you often have 1 train per hour, so losing that train you can wait an entire hour. No apologies are made, no alternative travel is offered, You are just royally screwed if you pardon my words.

[@jacktattersall9457]

Interesting fact for your North American audience. Canadian forces, warmley welcomed by the long-suffering Dutch, liberated the Netherlands in 1945, entering Amsterdam triumphantly to be met by tulips (a tradition continue by the Dutch government's annual gift of tulips to Canada's capital Ottawa), flags, and a lot pf people celebrating.

[@JermoMetGames]

I think in a country like this, carpets will not help with changing the peoples behaviour. Tho the newer looks on the train also helped a lot if you compare them with the older ones. The hospital theme make them look cleaner so people keep them that way.

[@KajiRider1997]

one petpeeve is how they now call the stop trains ''sprinters'' as if they are faster somehow. I always skip them for the intercities.

[@IAFYE]

my personal best about our railnetwork is that Students get a student OV with which they can travel free of cost by train, bus and metro. if you than get your degree within 10 years of the first use you'll owe the government nothing

[@GWVillager]

That is a very nice perk.

[@austinpowersfasjer]

Most people here use the train to get from one place to another. We wont be picknicking, dining or sleeping in it. In most countries, the train is either a niche or for the somewhat wealthy and above. Thats not the case here. As the train is for everyone, we cant afford to have the luxuries talked about in the video. The the train would be relatively as expensive as it is in the UK. Its about finding a balance. The UK apparently choose for more comfort, we choose for efficiency and inclusiveness (tho we still use a class system... Unbelievable). We choose for the liberal, progressive path. Thats real future urban planning.

[@ix.cryo1]

You should a video on Amtrak and commuter rail in the US

[@anoukk_]

You can now also use your debit card instead of an ov chipkaart

[@diedertspijkerboer]

I've used public transport in Britain a lot and find it much worse than in the Netherlands. Quite a few services are so infrequent in Britain that you can't even leave a place every day. There are some places that seem impossible to live in without a car. I' ve never seen that here. Actually, in the Netherlands some public transport companies use taxi services on infrequently used lines, which might be a great solution in parts of Britain as well. In the end, it's political will that determines the quality of the network.

[@suchcone]

I wonder if the Dutch public also try and take far too much luggage with them, like the Brits do. It's so common in the UK to see people with multiple gigantic suitcases, pillows, children, pets, kitchen sinks, spare kitchen sinks etc, all shoved into a rattly voyager, all competing for space, and with the 800s competing for space with bikes.

[@GWVillager]

In my experience, there did seem to be a similar number of people with huge amounts of luggage, however this was much more manageable as they could sit in the spacious vestibules with their bags.

[@JaccovanSchaik]

Only to and from Schiphol Airport 🙂

[@patrickreuvekamp]

@@GWVillager There is an issue with a lack of luggage space, especially on the double deck sets.

[@haisheauspforte1632]

DB is basically the same, just with nicer long distance trains, worse stations, worse reliability and FAR cheaper prices. The Dutch IC trains really remind me of the double deckers here (Hamburg-Kiel), even though ours are RE trains and can be used with the incredibly cheap 49€/month Deutschlandticket valid on all public transport in Germany except for high speed rail. And most Dutch IC trains would be classified as regional here, so yes, this ticket is incredible

[@cptnkrenon]

The Dutch aren't really into carpets, they are relatively rare in Dutch homes. Hard floors are much easier to keep clean.

[@plutoniumpie]

I remember the good old days of the NS, the 60's and 70's. The trains were wonderful, the old MAT 46 and Mat 54, beautiful streamliners with comfortable seats and windows you could open at the top. And they would run on time with simple schedules every half hour. It's all gone to shite now since privatisation. Beautiful old train stations have been torn down or altered into horrible shopping malls. And no train runs on time or makes a logical connection anymore. And the new train sets all look like shite, butt ugly.