Travelers who want to travel to Belgium or Germany by train this summer will have to reserve a seat in advance. That NS reports Tuesday. With the new measures, NS wants to tackle the crowds in the trains. The policy applies from June 17 to August 18 for all ICE trains. Booking a train trip on spec this summer is no longer possible.
In addition, travelers who buy an Early Bird ticket for the train to Antwerp or Brussels from 11 June must choose a specific train with a time slot. Previously, these travelers could still take any train to and from their destination. There will also be fewer such cheap tickets available for the time being and the cheapest rate of 25 euros to Brussels will now mainly apply during off-peak hours.
NS has opted for this policy in response to last summer. At that time, a record number of people booked an international trip with NS. The crowds led to major problems on the track; for example, there was often no seating or overcrowded trains sometimes even had to skip stations. In addition, there were considerably fewer trains due to staff shortages.
Read also: A day of public transport: crammed into the train and hoping for a bus
Discouraging train use
The ANWB, Fietsersbond, senior organization KBO/PCOB and traveler association Rover do not agree with the new measures. In a negative advice to NS, the consumer organizations say that NS seems to be focusing mainly on discouraging train use.
The organizations are not satisfied with the adjustments to Early Bird tickets. “The intercity to Belgium is already far too expensive. NS should reduce the fare to the same fare as a domestic train journey. Traveling to Belgium is really not that special anymore,” says Rover director Freek Bos. According to him, the NS policy undermines the incentive to promote international travel.