Train Cab Ride NL / Den Haag - Leiden - Haarlem / SGM Sprinter / May 2017

Train Drivers View on the sprinter service from Den Haag Centraal to Haarlem via Leiden Centraal. On our way to our destination we’ll make stops on all stations. Today we get to run an SGMm train. Two actually: a SGMm3 and a SGMm combined (total of 5 carriages). At the start of this video you can see a sprinter arriving at Den Haag Centraal with a 3 minute delay. This is the reason why we have a 2 minute delay on our departure.
It’s 11.53 and after the train manager has closed the train doors it’s time to speed up the train to its maximum speed. As you might know SGMm is the oldest train NS has still in service. One of the downsides of this train is its maximum speed, which is only 120km/h. So on the tracks where other trains speed up to 130 or 140km/h, our speed limit stays on 120km/h. Really unfortunate in situation like this where we already have a delay on departure time.
On all our arrivals at the stations the time and delays are displayed in the right corner of the screen. As you can see it’s kind of hard to get back in our timetable. It's important the train driver keeps the train on its maximum speed all the time. And on a stopover the train manager tries to make the stop as short as possible by shutting the doors right after everyone is on board of the train. But you already understand that when travelers have questions it takes longer before we can depart again. A good example of that is our stopover in Leiden.
Because of our delay in this video I can’t tell anything about how to drive economical. Simply because our first priority is getting back in our own timetable ASAP. On our arrival in Heemstede-Aerdenhout we’re finally back on schedule and as you can see in Haarlem we even need to wait for another train crossing in front of us. This train has a 2 minute delay. Good example of how a small delay like that can infect other trains in the area.
All stops in this video:
Den Haag Centraal - Den Haag Laan van NOI - Den Haag Mariahoeve - Voorschoten - De Vink - Leiden Centraal - Voorhout - Hillegom - Heemstede-Aerdenhout - Haarlem.
I hope you’ll enjoy this new video!
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