Netherlands' BRAND NEW Intercity Trains / ICNG Review

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Hello and welcome back to the Netherlands where we're off to ride a BRAND NEW train... #NS #ICNG #Amsterdam #Rotterdam #Breda
Today I will be taking ICNG, or Intercity New Generation from Amsterdam to Breda. This new EMU will be replacing the older Intercity EMU and loco hauled trains over the coming months and years, so let's go and find out how it stacks up against the competition... sit back and enjoy the video!
Date of Filming: 5/1/24
Camera: GoPro Hero 12 Black
Operator: NS (Dutch Railways)
Departure: Amsterdam Centraal, Netherlands
Arrival: Breda, Netherlands
Cost: First Class - €43.19 (£37.04, $46.80)
Second Class - €26.20 (£22.47, $28.40)
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00:00 - Intro
01:18 - Arrival at Amsterdam Centraal & Tour
03:38 - To the Platform & Route Information
04:40 - Train Arrival & First Impressions
06:26 - Departure & Pricing
07:40 - Seat Tour - Second Class
09:20 - Amsterdam Schiphol Airport
10:20 - Accessibility & Toilets
10:50 - HIGH-SPEED!
11:40 - Rotterdam Centraal
12:15 - Seat Tour - First Class
13:26 - Trip Summary & Arrival at Breda
14:25 - Outro

[@sloththejolteon6472]

Hey there! In the Netherlands, 95% of first class travellers travel on an NS subscription in which you pay for certain tickets on a monthly basis. First class premiums on a ''weekend unlimited'' subscription is about 5 pounds a month! First class here is mainly a ticket for a less busy ride.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Thanks for the information 🙂ℹ️

[@juleangrasmeijer4770]

Exactly. I use a dal vrij subscription bc of my job and even at 15.49, the train i take can be very busy.

[@Catfan12gaming]

The reason for these trains having room for bicycles is quite simple: they are meant to replace the aging ICM and ICR rolling stock on intercity routes. The old, heavy, loc-hauled ICR needed replacing first (as they are technically too slow and heavy for the HSL), so them having bicycle spaces on a service where bikes aren't allowed is just a coincidence.

[@SeverityOne]

Interesting, I never knew they were too heavy. I mean, what's 40/41 tons between friends? 🙂 Still, that's around 10 tons per axle, and lower than the maximum of 17 tons of a TGV. Is the excessive weight to blame for the mechanical problems that emerged recently?

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Interesting!

[@zjanggurup]

@@SeverityOne the problem is that those need 2 locomotives, and they are heavy and the weight is poorly distributed over the whole train

[@b127_1]

​@@SeverityOneThe issue isn't the icr carriages, but the two traxx locomotives used for each train. The icr easily stays within TGV axle load limits, but the traxx certainly doesn't.

[@stefannl_plays]

the ICRmh arent too heavy, its the 186 locomotives that are too heavy :)

[@SGtravelsEU]

just a few insights: - I got a season ticket with the NS. I pay only an additional 20 euro's to be upgraded to first class. That's a month with me using the trains at least 5 days a week. And with all those students have free travel in 2nd class, it's totally worth it to travel first class. It's the limited amount of passengers that's the real upgraded and the additional privacy when choosing a solo seat. - The ICNG is build for the longer domestic services in The Netherlands, from Breda to Groningen and Leeuwarden via Rotterdam and Amsterdam. Comparing them to other dutch trains, is a totally different thing. You tested an ICNG during an off-peak hour service. Although these units offer higher capacity, they offer less seats than the trains they replace. So you reviewed them biased on a shorter distance and during quiet times. There have been moments when passengers couldn't board these trains and even to stand on toilet seat covers to be able to travel. Not just incidentally, almost daily. So your video offers a really nice video of the unit, but not the reality during many times of the day. - The trains are able to run up to 200km/h wherever the line speed allows it. To on conventional lines too! However, most conventional lines have a max speed on 140km/h. A few lines to have a top speed of 160km/h, however the units currently don't go there. So just a minor detail, however when I'm typing anyway.... - bicycles are allowed in IC Direct trains. However there was a time when they were not. The thing is, like you might have notices, the English time is a bit....not adequate. It's just crap and outdated. You are allowed to bring bicycles on ICNG's. Even during rush hours, if you're making an international journey (like from Essen to Rotterdam and making a transfer to an ICD there, you're allowed to take a bicycle with you on the entire dutch network at any time of the day as long as your departure station of final destination is across the border. One of those rules of the EU that's actually useful sometimes). - Does the interior look well designed? Well those seats are failing already, with the padding running thin. But since they are brand new they are being replaced quite often. There are already ICNG's that had seats replaced because the padding had worn out. So not vandalism, just usage. Now wonder how it will be in a few years when they stop producing the seats. Also look at the quiet zones. The walls between compartments don't cover the entire train and the first class quiet zone is on the outer side of the first class. Not well thought about. And there are so many other flaws you will start to notice if you spend some time in these units.

[@bartderijk5600]

Spot on. Another odd thing: one of the two 1st class quiet areas is elevated on top of one of the engines, so you can hear them loud and clear. And they also have vis-a-vis chairs, even though you're not supposed to speak. Silly mistakes in my view.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

That's fine, but not helpful for tourists

[@maartendekleine4905]

Just a note: Amsterdam is not a 'shared capital'. Amsterdam is the Capital, the Hague is the seat of government and the location of pretty much all political institutions. It has no status of capital (other than that of its province Zuid-Holland.) In fact, though Amsterdam is the national capital, Haarlem is the provincial capital of Noord-Holland. The major strength of the Dutch railway system is, as you noted, not in it's on-board facilities, luxury seats or extremely high speeds. Its true value (esp. for daily usage) lies in the network design and frequency. Domestic services are planned as half-hourly train series and combined on busy lines to create frequencies of up to every 10 minutes. This makes the ns network function like a nation sized metro (or more aptly, s-bahn) network. Aditionally (cross-platform) changes are extremely well-planned in some tactical places, such as Amersfoort Centraal on the trains to/from the North/East and West/Southwest respectively, creating a seamless transition in lieu of direct connections on the lower-frequency routes. With very few exceptions almost no NS station is served less than every half hour per direction on domestic routes. The service you traveled on runs every 30 minutes between Amsterdam amd Breda, but combined with 2 other trainseries on the Amsterdam-Rotterdam trunk it creates a 10 minute frequency. Trough the project PHS (high frequency railway) Prorail ans NS have been workign on creating a number of 10 minute frequency services, which have been realised on Amsterdam-Utrecht-Den Bosch-Eindhoven and Schiphol-Amsterdam-Utrecht-Arnhem intercity services. Work is underway on extending the latter to Nijmegen, the Alkmaar-Amsterdam Corridor, The Amsterdam/Schiphol-Almere-Lelystad Corridor, The Hague-Rotterdam-Breda Corridor and the Breda-Tilburg-Eindhoven corridor. In addition a 10-minute frequency local train is realised between Rotterdam and Dordrecht. NS is testing the airportsprinter concept, creating a 7,5 minute frequency local train between Amsterdam CS, Schiphol airport and Hoofddorp, and it's planning for a possible future 5 minute frequency on the 'old line', between Leiden-The Hague-Rotterdam-Dordrecht including building new stations. The dutch railway network might not be the flashiest, fanciest or the fastest, and as Dutch people we love to complain about it. But in reality it's truly one of the greatest railway networks in the world in my opinion, competing with the likes of Japan and Switzerland in many regards.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Thanks for sharing 🙏🏻

[@Eurovision-OLD]

It warms my heart when someone from abroad calls us 'friendly' 🧡 I'm sure not all of us are, but I do try! And I loved being on this train a few months ago, finally hitting 200km/h between Amsterdam and Rotterdam.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

One of my best friends is Dutch and he's super friendly 😁

[@winwinwin282828]

I have been to a few European countries as an Asian , my experience with the people in Netherlands is the best, in my short stay there.

[@sirremusrobinson1070]

Those trains are nice.. There's a couple of train drivers with their own KZbin channels that not only give a tour of those trains when they were testing, but giving cab rides in service..

[@MacerzRS]

As for the bike spaces in the trains; The units will also be used on the HRN lines (regular lines), so that's why the bike symbols are there.

[@Iamwatchingyou75]

I think the ban for bikes in Intercity Direct trains will be lifted when all the locomotive hauled sets are phased out.

[@ArticSpy]

We did have a cateringservice on board on longer train services (Nijmegen - Den Helder and Maastricht - Schiphol/Schagen per example), but since most passengers don't travel more than 1 hour it wasn't that popular anymore and they scrapped the service altogether. Best way to get some food/drinks is to change trains and grab a bite from the Kiosk ;)

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I do 😁

[@antoniovitellaro]

Seeing the seats beeing so well padded makes me even angrier that Trenitalia chose rock hard seats for their new coradia regional trains (pretty much the same spec as these, just limited to 160kmh)

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I agree!!!

[@martinc.720]

The only route I've been on in the Netherlands is Amsterdam-The Hague. The train was clean, comfortable and on time. I don't ask for much more haha I got to Amsterdam on an overnight DB train from Berlin. Also, I know, you have to mention those things in a review, but in my opinion, anyone who expects food service on a 1-hour train journey should not be travelling in the first place ;) (I understand that the journey is longer for some passengers).

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Yeah, it was more just a summary 🙂

[@nanderv]

Well, given the first class ticket price they could have included a complimentary cup of coffee... Perhaps just adding a coffee machine would have been nice. If Voralpexpress can add a coffee machine to a regional train, NS could add one to a longer distance train.

[@Nadia1989]

No graffiti? That's a miracle!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Ikr 😂

[@SanderEvers]

Give them 2 months 🤣

[@said4075]

I'm guessing NS doesn't allow bikes on the Intercity direct services due to how crowded they can get, even outside of rushhours. These trains do run on other non-direct intercity services too, so the bike spaces aren't a waste. For now they run between The Hague and Eindhoven on regular IC routes. For the future NS is planning to use the ICNG to run to the north of the country as well. I'm sure they have more plans for regular IC services with the ICNG.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Good point!

[@Zuuu40]

Another amazing video your videos keep getting better every week

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Thanks! Will do!

[@theobrattinga500]

Great video from this great train in my country !!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Indeed it is! 😎

[@Fan652w]

Thank you for a very interesting and informative video about a type of train I am likely to want to use in the future!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@naturallyherb]

So amazing! Can't wait to check this train out the next time I am in the Netherlands later this year! Been there in November 2022 but obviously these weren't in service yet then.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Have fun!

[@hendrikdevries9725]

One benefit of first class is, for someone who struggles with crowds and noise, that it's a bit quieter and less people . When I travel from Belgium up into the Netherlands, I always book first class for a usually 10-15 euro surcharge on a 4 and a half hour journey. Well worth that. Love this new train ! Am travelling into NL end of May, hope to be on one of these!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Very true!!

[@jeroen2535]

12:45 But trains in the Netherlands operate in a sort of metro service. The NS is known for short lengths during rush hours. So often Dutch trains are overcrowded. First class is perfect to escape the crowd and have a seat even if it's crowded. With a subscription, you can easily change classes in the NS app

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Good points!

[@Corolley]

I frequently use the Rotterdam-Breda route for my college and work commute. The new trains are nice, but they have their 'new train issues'. Occasionally, the doors (indoor and outdoor) fail and trains are either cancelled or severely delayed. Also, the Vmax of the train (200 km/h) versus the max line speed (320 km/h) is interesting. Anyway, the trains are a leap forward and are pretty comfortable. In the future they will take over the Amsterdam-Brussels route, and they will become a budget friendly (high speed) alternative to Eurostar. Much looking forward to that!

[@paulwhitear545]

Very interesting. Nice to see other countries railway.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Thank you very much!

[@christafranken9170]

As a wheelchair user, very happy to see the level boarding on an intercity train. Using trains can be a hassle otherwise

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Definitely, that's a great thing!

[@user-ep2eq5wd8p]

Thank you!!

[@rezaalan3991]

Great trip, and yeah great train.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Yes it was!

[@JackTorr]

Nice video Mate

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Glad you enjoyed it my dude xx

These trains aren't revolutionary, but I love the boarding experience so much. Finally a train with wide doors, level boarding and its not a double decker.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Absolutely agree 💯

[@samtrak1204]

You are nfomative and articulate per usual.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Thanks very much Sam 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@paulthiel5145]

Nice trip report and also very welcome to my home town of Breda. I really hope you had some time to check out our lovely city as well 😊

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I did, and I loved it 😄

[@paulthiel5145]

@@NonstopEurotrip Excellent, you're most welcome 👍

[@gab_v250]

It's interesting to see this. The Coradia Stream is used in Italy as stopping regional (commuter, with a max speed of 160kph) trains by Trenitalia (ETR 103/104 Pop). And there are plans for a longer version (with a higher max speed of 200kph), being used in interregional (Regionale Veloce, less stops) routes, replacing the old loco-hauled stock. I think that the Pop 200 will be similar to these ICNG.

[@michaelhall8586]

Incredible

[@Hurricane2k8]

There are tons of those parked across various yards in Germany, waiting to be delivered to NS. The thing is, they've been parked there for years already.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I wonder why that is?

[@ypoora1]

These trains are pretty neat, a welcome modernization though i hope the classic, iconic sets stay in service for a good time to come still. 1st class in NL is usually not very different; the reason it sells even for the insane prices they charge is purely due to the often, seemingly standard, extreme overcrowding these trains see in the mornings and evenings. overall my main complaint with our Dutch trains is that they tend to be filthy and interiors ill-maintained, though that can be sadly attributed to the rampant "not my property, not my problem" culture here, which causes anything public to just get completely trashed.

[@scotty241991]

Then again, I have a "weekend free" subscription and for 6-7 euro's extra I have a standard first class upgrade. This is 42/month. So you could have done the AMS-Breda trip, and travel for free every every other weekend day.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Couldn't agree with you more!!

[@ypoora1]

@@scotty241991That is true! If you travel frequently there are great ways to cut the cost.

[@peterdowden7694]

The level boarding of these is impressive and praiseworthy ❤ ♿️

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Absolutely!!

[@Panda-er4nd]

Any upgrades to the public transportation is a money well spent.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Absolutely 💯

[@JulesStoop]

0:37 more like 14% 😊 The country is approaching a population of 18 million souls and the 2.5 million you mention, is about 14% of this total.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I was never good at maths 👊🏻

[@SpotterCrazyperson]

It's a great train!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I dont even know where to start with this, apart from thanks for the very detailed comment 😂 Ive been told off for calling Amsterdam the capital before, so thought id take the other play this time 🙃

[@MrBlueBurd0451]

Anyone who tells you off from calling Amsterdam the capital is wrong. Amsterdam is the legal capital of the Netherlands, as defined in the Dutch Constitution.

[@keizervanenerc5180]

Official capital: Amsterdam De facto seat of the government: The Hague Capital of the province of Noord-Holland (where Amsterdam is located): Haarlem

[@passantNL]

There's only one official capital and it's Amsterdam. It even has a royal palace. The background, AFAIK, is that there was so much hostility between the rich and powerful of Amsterdam and the royal family, that the king preferred to live in The Hague, far away from his enemies in Amsterdam. That's why parliament and other institutions were established in The Hague and not in the capital.

[@dhsadara7363]

Try Wikipedia

[@discogareth]

Whenever I use NS services I always pre book a 1st class ticket. I don’t think I’ve ever paid more than €10 for the upgrade. It’s well worth it. Always much quieter. Even on services on the busy routes.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Interesting!!

[@kailahmann1823]

Something like this between Groningen and Bremen would be a dream.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Amen 🙌🏻

[@EpicThe112]

Do you mean the Wunderline Bremen Oldenburg Leer (Ostf) Groningen 173km distance? If yes there has to be a portion to be electrified 15kv 16.7hz to Bad Nieuwschans afterwards to Groningen 3kv/1.5kv DC.

[@jptv5726]

there are plans for a train between Amsterdam and Kopenhagen via Bremen and Hamburg somewhere in 2026 i believe, but that wil be operated bij the danish railways.

[@kailahmann1823]

@@EpicThe112 exactly that one, imagine doing that in 1:30. That way Groningen would have around 2:30 to both Amsterdam and Hamburg.

[@EpicThe112]

@@jptv5726 there is a problem with it it has to take the longer route via Flensburg & Rendsburg hochbrücke. Between Amsterdam and Copenhagen is up via this line Vogelfluglinie Bahnstrecke Hamburg Lübeck Puttgarden Rødby since it reduces the distance.

[@manuellangius2896]

Nice tram!!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

It's a train.

[@manuellangius2896]

​@@NonstopEurotrip i looks inside same as a tram..i know i live in the Netherlands😂

[@ki5739]

A very small country with comparatively fast rail network, practically all trains are regional. They don't need any extras above the ordinary basic service when it comes to domestic travel.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

As mentioned in the video

[@Dutchfootballediter3Hd]

Amazing train. Now we have a real high speed train, the old trains were just doing 160 and now 200!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Zoom zoom 💕

[@SeverityOne]

'...and along with The Hague, one of the shared capitals of this small Northern European nation.' It's a bit complicated. 🙂 Amsterdam is the capital, mentioned in passing in the Dutch Constitution of 1983: "Upon assuming the royal prerogative the King shall be sworn in and inaugurated as soon as possible in the _capital_ _city_ , Amsterdam, at a public and joint session of the two Houses of the States General." That's it: that's how Amsterdam is the capital city. Before that, it was implicit: everybody just _knew_ that Amsterdam was the capital city, no need to make all this fuss about it, especially since the Amsterdammers already think the sun shines out of their... anyway. With the exception of the Dutch Central Bank, which resides in an ugly 1960s structure in Amsterdam, the Dutch parliament, government, supreme courts, and the King, all reside in The Hague. The Dutch call it the Residence (Residentie). Also, I'd argue that the Netherlands are Western European. When you're talking about Northern Europe, people tend to be called 'Sven Johansson' and such. "Now I'm British, so I'm used to a bit of rain, but I swear it rains in the Netherlands even more than back home!" Depending on where you're from in the UK: most probably, yes. In fact, there's more annual rainfall in large parts of Europe than there is in London. The key is how far away from the west coast you are. London is quite a bit towards the east coast, and therefore large parts of France and even Spain get considerably more rain than London. Given that the Netherlands consist largely of west coast, it rains an awful lot. "Standard Dutch lines are electrified at 1.5kV." Nominally, yes, but actually it's 1.8kV these days. One thing you missed, because it's unclear to everybody including the Dutch, is the three different kinds of 'zones': meet, silence, and work. From what I gather, the layout is a bit different between the different zones. They can be told apart by the different lighting. Blue stands for work and (work) meetings; purple stands for silence; orange is for talking and meeting others.

[@busouting]

Thank you for the information. I learned something new.

[@MulticulturalNL]

Nice review, and I can clarify the bike issue. Those ICNG sets are going to be used on other classical mainline routes and gradually replacing our ICM “koplopers” sets. For that reason bike spaces are created to reserve in the future if you are taking a train from Amsterdam to Groningen or Leeuwarden for example.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Sorry I thought I replied the other day... I thought I'd go at the whole Dutch capital debate from the opposite direction this time 🤣

[@SeverityOne]

@@NonstopEurotrip You did reply, but it was in a separate post. Happens to me all the time.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

@@SeverityOne silly me 😆

[@mavadelo]

Nice review as always. If you want the Dutch CC announcement to be grammatically correct a next time, use either "Spreek je" (informal) or "Spreekt U" (formal) instead of only "spreek". so either "Spreek je geen Engels" or "Spreekt U geen Engels" First vs Second class. Only worth it on busy trains during rush hour (higher chances to a seat) but really in general it is a wate of money. Never waste money on First Class, there is nothing "first" about it.

[@barvdw]

I quite like 1st class, there's a bit more legroom, and it's quieter. But the price difference is steep, yes, so I only do it because I have a discount, I would probably rarely use 1st otherwise.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Thanks for the tip!

[@Lefaid]

I am pretty sure kids travel free on NS. Otherwise I have been breaking a few rules when I go on this route once every month or two.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

You have 😂

[@Diddistuffs]

@@NonstopEurotrip Yeah kids aren't free, you need to get a ticket for a child too.

[@nigiiobi1154]

Actually, kids can travel for free with the Kids Vrij supplement, which can be loaded upon a child's personal OV-chipkaart! If you don't want to purchase an OV-chipkaart for your child, you can buy the 2,50 railrunner 😎

[@Lefaid]

@@nigiiobi1154 Yeah that has been what I was doing, more because my son likes to tap in. I did not realise it was actually needed.

[@none-id3lj]

Dont forget that it's a 1-2 config in first, instead of a 2-2. Meaning you have more space on your side which is nice. I think it's the best train we have right now in The Netherlands.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

As mentioned in the video

[@melaniedrogr951]

I think you are confusing the number a bit, the netherlands has 17 million inhabitants, making 2.5 million people about 14% of the countries population. However the amsterdam metropolian area is about 7% of the countries total surface.

[@truebrit3578]

Good video. On the inter border trains my experience has been that the current loco hauled trains are very full (one reason to pay that first class supplement). How are these new trains going to compare in capacity terms? Any more overcrowding would take much of the benefits, for passengers, of these new consists. I do love NS trains and have travelled twice in the past year from South America to ride the rails in the Netherlands and Belgium.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

There's much more interesting trains everywhere else in Europe, especially Poland, Czech etc. I'd go there next time.

[@truebrit3578]

@@NonstopEurotrip there may be more interesting trains but NS allows you to get around the Netherlands easily, reliably and at reasonable cost. There’s a lot to see in the Netherlands and the rail services make it easy. I stay in Haarlem, charming and much cheaper than Amsterdam, which has great connections and one of the best train sheds in Europe. As I am British I keep thinking about doing the same type of trip in the UK. But trains are less frequent, the services more unreliable and the costs much higher. The Netherlands is low stress and with great connections to bus services you can easily get off the beaten track if you want to.

[@BobTravellin]

Looks decent - though I still prefer the Kopplopper (or however you spell it). Always fancied a cab ride in one..... Ah, well - never mind!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Me too Bob!!!

[@rikschaaf]

9:00 I think they mean that normal bikes aren't allowed, but that folding bikes might be ok, if you put them in this designated location. I don't know for sure though.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Ah ok!

[@Gerrie_de_B.]

I hope you went into Breda city center after you got there. The city has so much more to offer than the very bad designed station.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Of course I did 💕

[@jefwisse1957]

In the Netherlands it's not possible to reserve a seat. If you travel outside the rush hour periodes it's perfectly allright to buy a second class ticket. However if you have to travel in the rush hour periodes you will be better of with a first class ticket if you have to travel longer than a half hour because you only will get a seat in first class during rush hour. .

[@RealConstructor]

I travelled for almost a year between Gouda And The Hague and I have a NS Business Card for 1st class, but a seat in 1st class was maybe half the time available. I had the bad luck that between Gouda and The Hague the Intercity hasn’t got a station where it stops, so no one leaves an empty seat and I had to stand, but at least I stood 1st class!😂

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Thanks for the information ☺️ℹ️

[@jefwisse1957]

@@RealConstructor Thats bad luck. I also had to stand sometimes even in first class but that was the result of a power failure so there were not enough trains available at that moment. Fortunately, I no longer have to travel by train and I don't want to because the NS has too few trains. Now they are trying to convince travelers to travel outside rush hour.

[@kai4824]

Future Coradia Stream of DSB will be one of the best intercities ever..

[@NonstopEurotrip]

👀

[@berberbro]

I am still not sold on how these trains look from the outside, and probably never will, but good grief their riders comfort is so good. But maybe because of the shrill contrast with the old units comfort wise . If possible I tend to pick up specifically a service which feature these new sets (also the ones that run between The Hague- Eindhoven).

[@mtc]

What are your opinions on the FLOW livery's exterior?

[@berberbro]

@@mtc I have to admit, that livery is much nicer! on the whole I don't think the ICNGs will become as iconic as the Koploper etc. but alas , at this point we should be happy we have a (somewhat) reliable new IC!

[@mtc]

@@berberbro Agreed! Koplopers are unique in a way that other trains (and especially modern trains) cannot beat.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

That's great to hear 😊

[@surtec3660]

Hello, I remember I asked you when the Taiwan High Speed ​​Rail will be broadcast, but I haven’t seen it after waiting for several months... I don’t know why?

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Next week 😁

[@surtec3660]

​@@NonstopEurotrip謝謝您！

[@Megaverser]

I still feel like this is a local stopper train with a speed upgrade. Just the construction quality, overall look, the fact that it's noisy inside, the huge windows. The fact that you can't reserve a seat... The seats also look cheap and flimsy and the first class seats don't look good at all. There is no way they can do any meal service on this train. It's just the inhospitality of NS which runs its system as a metro. There is nothing wrong with a metro system but they should up the quality for the long distance routes.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

👀👀👀

[@Abnerbandanovotempoinscrito1mi]

Boa viagem ai de trem mas estranho 4:16

[@HZF-de5bh]

Hey there!The CR450 series will be operational this year,which has a maximum speed of 400km/h🎉!You must come and try it!❤

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Can't wait!

[@timbounds7190]

Well, the layout within the 2nd class carriages looks a bit of a muddle, with seats seemingly randomly scattered around, sometimes the corridor is low, so the seats are on a platform, whilst elsewhere there seems to be steps in the vestibule up to a higher corridor! I guess it's designed to meet every individual need, but I can't help feeling that I'd prefer something neater. I guess if you pay for 1st class, you pay to be seated away from the riff-raff!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I don't agree. I like it! Makes best use of available space ☺️

[@timbounds7190]

@@NonstopEurotrip Obviously you've seen it and I haven't! From your vid it looks like there's a lot of wasted space in there - you could pack in loads more seating if the seats were all airline config (ie like a Shinkansen!) And from other comments it seems that the trains do get very overcrowded so more seats would be a bonus! One thing you could say for classic UK commuter stock was whilst it wasn't luxurious or spacious, the carriages were as crammed full of seats as it was possible to get!

[@DrErikEvrard]

I totally disagree with your assessment that 1st class isn't worth it. You only looked at the seats and space. But the value of first class is that it's a lot less noisy and that there's more available seating space. You took a train that was almost empty, but try that in rush hour!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Fair enough!

[@special5513]

Please do the Talgo ICE T in Germany. This will come out in 2025.

[@Lolwutfordawin]

Dang, thought they were gonna enter service this year. Ah well

[@special5513]

This would be nice 😁

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I will

[@special5513]

@@NonstopEurotrip Nice I will be exited.

[@JulesStoop]

I can almost always get work done in first class and rarely ever in second. Which makes it worth per hour whatever I earn per hour. Which is a lot more than the price difference.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

That's good to hear!

[@mashavandenbeer1960]

First class can make absolute sense at rush hour, when the trains can be full to the brim.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

True true 👍🏻

[@ikbenpascal]

The "koplopers" were in the past be able to be connected to each other and you could walk true it. Thats why the name is koploper--> head (true)walker

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Indeed yes

[@jag19966]

I would travel 2nd class just because of the seat colour… That red looks very cheap.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

😂😂😂

[@Diddistuffs]

Are these trains by any chance by Alstom/Bombardier? Why I ask this is because they have similar door sounds to the Aventra family in the UK.

[@alaindumas1824]

They are Alstom. I believe they usually buy doors form Faiveley or other specialists.

[@Diddistuffs]

@@alaindumas1824 Ok, thanks!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Exactly this

[@DAANoontje]

The only reason why you'd purchase a first class ticket is if you want 'peace' while travelling. The 1st class cabins always have space, while (especially during peek hours) 2nd class doesn't. So you'd pretty much have a guaranteed seat, and the potential of passengers standing next to you, because it's so crowded, is also very low. The seats are mostly the same on 1st and 2nd class (only with some slight differences).

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Only worthwhile at certain times of the day

[@mobyhuge4346]

With that price difference and seats, second class does look far more appealing

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I agree!

[@passantNL]

There are so many 1st class seats on most trains that even during rush hour, you can usually get a seat in 1st class. 2nd class is often packed during rush hours and it's common to see people standing in the aisle. That way 1st class seats can still be worth it at the right time of day, because you're almost guaranteed to find a seat.

[@hoej]

No sun shade? Oh no, I hope DSB ordered their Coradia Streams with shades. The glare can make it almost impossible to work on the train (one of the huge upsides of commuting on train)

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Me too!

[@denizleventyuruyen4774]

Do you know on with trackw New IC will be rolling?

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Sorry?

[@japsurdejjvvhh7635]

The first class is mainly there for business travellers, buying a seat in a less busy area. It isn't meant as more luxurious as in other countries, but if it makes sure you can work for an hour instead of just scrolling your phone, it is worth 17 euro's for your employer to let you work another hour 🤐

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Good point!

[@theblazingangels4286]

As a NS ambasador, i would say travel first class, way beter 😛

[@theblazingangels4286]

if u wanne take your bycele in our trains u need a special ticket :)

[@NonstopEurotrip]

💕💕💕

[@starbase218]

"The water, soap and hand dryer all worked, and the toilet paper was stocked up." "On the whole, it was grafiti-free." Are you sure you were on a Dutch train? ;) Ah, but you know what it normally looks like. Good, wouldn't want you to miss an authentic Dutch train ride experience. ;)

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I was as surprised as all you Dutch guys 🤣

[@andreafire27]

They are the same model as the "pop" trains in Italy, right?

[@Catfan12gaming]

yes, they are. although the trains themselves are essentially just souped-up stoppers, NS and Alstom made sure to upgrade the interior to intercity standard.

[@andreafire27]

@@Catfan12gaming thanks

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Indeed yes 😁

[@zephyros256]

I suspect some of the internals (and for example the doors) are different due to the difference in top speed (200 vs 160), but otherwise they should be the same.

[@ageoflove1980]

For clarification on the prices: Almost nobody pays full price here. Almost everybody who doesnt apply for the many other discounts (like junior and senior travelers, students, reimbursement by employers etc...) owns the 40% off peak hours discount card. Its only 70 euro per year so youll make it back quickly and its even worth it when you travel by train once a month. The great thing about the card is that people who travel with you can also apply for the discount. I do think they need an NS account for this. The rules are changing at the end of the month so you cant just load it at a ticket machine anymore unfortunately. But its great when you ahve visitors from abroad and want to take them on a little daytrip. And a neat little extra : The 40% discount also applies to the Intercity Direct supplement. So, ive heard a lot of complaints about the high NS ticket prices, but these almost always adress the full ticket price which again, nobody really pays. Still, its not cheap by any means and yes, they should do a lot better job of keeping the toilets clean. :D

[@NonstopEurotrip]

That's ok, but not helpful for tourists

[@ageoflove1980]

@@NonstopEurotrip No not really, but it is important to place an "*" with ticket pricing in the country. Most tourists will only use the NS to get from Schipol to Amsterdam CS with at 5,90 Euro is certainly on the cheap side when it comes to airport transfers. And like I said, it is helpful when you are a tourist and visiting a friend or relative. Because you can use their 40% reduction card, which they will probably have, as long as you travel together. Its just free money right there if you take a couple of minutes to set up the account, so surely worth mentioning, right?

[@bobbybannerjee5156]

To my third world standards (India), the second class is first class itself. A food pantry would be a good addition.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

No need on such short trips

[@subrataroy9226]

Brother waiting for more Indian trains vlog.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I hope to back later in the year!

[@iyt6407]

The trains are nice, but they scrapped many seats compared to the old trains. Breda - tilburg - eindhoven is almost always standing.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

For similar length trains the seating capacity is almost identical

[@markachternaam5207]

But not improved…

[@_autom]

who are 'all the ppl' whining about you not travelling 2nd class?? lol agree that the communal sofas are nice to see (noticed this immediately) also agree that it's not worth considering 1st class, virtually similar to 2nd

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Many many every week 😂

[@_autom]

glad you have a good sense of humour lol

[@Noviano05]

So what will they name the newer generation after this?

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Ultra generation 👀

[@Noviano05]

@@NonstopEurotrip fr

[@stijnVDA1994]

Yeah dutch first class train services have cheapened heavily sadly, intercity travel in Holland has cheapened as a whole since there is no more drinks services for most distances... And it's very rare that you would find a first class train with actual coupe's wich is a damn shame honestly...

[@drijfkip1]

There are no reading lights... ( 08:25 min. ) Obvious... We all have a backlight in our reading apparatus nowadays..

[@NonstopEurotrip]

The book I'm currently reading doesn't have one?

[@ihaka3925]

The main problem with these trains is that the old trains they are replacing have a lot more capacity - like double the capacity per carriage. So its fine if its not so busy, but nl already has a capacity problem and these trains only add to that problem.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Untrue. Like for like sets have similar capacity

[@ihaka3925]

@@NonstopEurotrip if ns was doubling the icng-5 trainsets, then you would be right. The capacity per carriage is much lower, so the trains should be longer. That still isn't happening and forgive me for being sceptical that this will actually happen! Current icng-5 capacity per train set ~250. The current capacity of the intercity direct trains is more than 500. So no, the capacity is only decreasing, especially when the frequency increases, like in the peak, when double icng-5 have to be split. I don't see where the extra capacity will be coming from, do you?

[@HolgerJakobs]

Amsterdam is in North Holland, but not in North Europe. Only the Baltics, Finland and the Scandinavian countries are considered to be Northern Europe.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I disagree.

[@markellis6413]

Liege station is another designed by Santiago Calatrava Valls. Same architect behind Lisbon Oriente station & City of Arts & Sciences in Valencia - amongst others. Dutch train decor reminds me of rented office space.. Clean lines and clinical.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

He's been a busy boy 😂

[@camotech1314]

They really need to do better on the 1st class

[@francesconegrini_]

Similar to Italy's trains

[@BengtHansves]

Elch-noses ! ;-)

[@davebutlarge7458]

Don't forget that, using a free subscription, children up to 11 can actually take the train for free

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Probably not for tourism tho

[@renevaanhold]

2.5 million is 14% of the Dutch population.

[@AMEHOELA]

Hahaha.. yeah right. Dutch NS. Hardcore expensive..

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I like that it's always the same price

[@bomcabedal]

The name for these is a bit puzzling: it'll be weird to call this a "new" generation further down the line when they're forty years old, won't it? Why not just number them? The Koploper would be IC Mk. III or whatever, and the ICNG IC Mk. VI (?). Also, I have to make the somewhat partizan point that the Amsterdam metro area is not the country's largest; that honour goes to Rotterdam-The Hague at slightly over 2,6 million.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

I agree with part 1. But I never said it was the biggest metro area. I just gave the population

[@bomcabedal]

@@NonstopEurotrip I stand humbly corrected; it's just that I usually equate any declaration of a city's size with that of the Metro area.

[@jackjackmillar]

Are these replacing the double decker trains NS currently use?

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Mainly the older EMUs and loco hauled Brussels services initially

[@weetjeweetje4054]

Being Dutch, I have used them a couple of times now. I can't be enthusiastic about them. They are far too noisy. I prefer the old ones.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Interesting!!

[@JulesStoop]

I sincerely believe in-train noise requirements get less priority nowadays as most people wear noise canceling ear-/ headphones while traveling.

[@markachternaam5207]

The noise in the train I hear, are annoying people going through “feeds” with their speaker on full…

[@Robot3_14]

They're waaay too wasteful with space. So many tables is completely unnecessary, people just want to sit!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

And work

[@Robot3_14]

@@NonstopEurotrip 99% van de reizigers heeft helemaal geen behoefte om te werken in de trein, en de 1% die dat wel wil kan lekker in de eerste klasse. In de tweede moet je gewoon lekker veel zitplekken maken want dat is waar echt vraag naar is (en wat capaciteit oplevert)

[@markachternaam5207]

Also, people work on laptops 90% of the time, and these tables are useless for laptops. Better keep the laptops on its name-giver.

[@feniksmaster]

Hehe, koplopper

[@RanadeS]

Compare it to Delhi RRTS, distance wise and speed wise looks comparable.

[@SeverityOne]

The Delhi metro area has almost twice the number of people of the entire Netherlands. 🙂

[@RanadeS]

@@SeverityOne looking at speed of development RRTS will reach all parts of NCR soon.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

When it's finished...

[@mirzaahmed6589]

$28 for 72 miles is exorbitant.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

America says hello

[@markachternaam5207]

Unfortunately NS wants to increase prices… we need more capacity and lower prices, but are getting neither and so people are using the alternatives: vroom-vrooms.

[@parmentier7457]

Most Dutch people who often travel by train have a discount card (40% discount). A discount subscription costs €5 per month and can be requested or canceled every month. Students travel for free and employers often reimburse travel expenses for their employees. So for the occasional traveler, train travel in the Netherlands can be expensive.

[@liamtahaney713]

I just wish they prioritized capacity above all else. Live in Antwerp and regularly ride either to breda or brussels airport on the NS trains and my god theyre ALWAYS rammed. I think a double decker for the international servies would be very warrented. Or doubling frequency on the Brussels Amsterdam route. Or both!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

The capacity of a double decker isn't massively more than a single and it's way more flexible

[@51bikerboy]

Brits would be happy to even have our old trains!

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Some countries, yes. But not Dutch trains.

[@CristanMeijer]

I think this train could well be the beginning of a new era. The thing is: we're still on 1500V at our overhead line, which is the lowest in the entirety of Europe. This is hugely inefficient, limits speed and hampers international travel because we're the only country with such a low voltage, except from some parts at the south of France. This train is prepared to go to 3000V, so my guess / hope is that they will switch to 3000V once all the trains have been replaced. 3000V is still pretty low, but it will still be much better and at it will allow trains to go directly to Belgium without issues.

A big part of France uses 1500V and they do 200km/h under it. With modern technology 1500V isn't that big of a problem, but switching the whole county over is, and probably not worth it.

[@NonstopEurotrip]

Good points made ☝🏻

[@alaindumas1824]

3000V is better but TGVs used to run at 220 km/h under 1500 V on the old P.O. line to Bordeaux.

[@CristanMeijer]

True, you can go fast at 1500V, but it's hugely inefficient. I've read that so much electricity is wasted on basically heating the overhead line that upgrading to 3000V pays for itself in only 8 years. It also really helps with accelerating and the number of trains who can go per hour on the same track. The latter is quite the issue with the busy tracks in NL.

[@alaindumas1824]

@@CristanMeijer Under 1500V, Tokyo's 20 km Yamanote Line carries 3 times as many daily passengers as the "busy" 3000 km NL network, TGVs run at 220 km/h, and the RER A double-deckers outrun the newer Aventras on the 25 kV Elizabeth line. This shows that the problem is not with the voltage per se but with details like contact wire diameter, distance between poles and tension in the catenary, number and power of substations. Upgrading to 3000V may indeed be the cheapest way to fix these issues.