It would already be there in 2023. But after years of delays, it is now also available in the north: the new NS intercity. Starting this week, the new train will run between Groningen/Assen and Amsterdam Zuid/Schiphol.
The nickname is The Wasp. Because of the head of the train that looks a bit like the insect. At NS itself it is called ICNG or Intercity New Generation. It is the replacement for De Koploper, the well-known train that was the backbone of the Dutch intercity network for forty years.
The first reactions from travelers traveling from Assen to the Randstad are positive.
The delivery of the new train series was significantly delayed. And then the ‘rollout’ on the Dutch railway as well, because there appeared to be a number of teething problems and disruptions in the new intercity trains. NS Director of New Equipment Roel Okhuijsen: “It started with the corona crisis when everything came to a standstill, the blockade of the Suez Canal, trains that were not delivered as we ordered them. The parts of these trains come from all parts of the world.” In other words: a crisis turns the entire construction upside down.
And the teething problems such as doors that don’t work properly and climate control? “Teething problems are part of it. Trains like these are mobile computers. You will have to update them in the first few years to make everything better. We have chosen to tackle the things that bother travelers first and we have already come a long way with that.”
The first travelers who travel from Assen on the new intercity find that it runs very smoothly. An older lady is happy that the connecting doors now open automatically at the touch of a button, and you no longer have to push a door handle. “And lots of light and large windows.”
Travelers also like the seats, as can be seen from a quick tour. “The seats are nice and soft,” says a man in his thirties on the way to Amsterdam South. “And the layout is different, some parts are a bit coupe-like, which I think has a nice effect.”
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