Because all in all, train ticket prices have risen relatively much less than inflation or the price of driving in the past five years. This is because part of the inflation has not been passed on. Train ticket prices may rise with expected inflation. Next year it will be 2.3 percent. The higher price increase is because part of the overdue inflation is included. NS also praises the ‘lack of structural financial agreements’.
That is a pointer to The Hague. Inflation exploded, especially after Russia unleashed a war in Ukraine. But you didn’t notice that in the train tickets. As a result, price developments lagged behind actual costs, which resulted in NS’s red figures.
The government decided to make a one-off cut in 2024 to prevent a huge price increase. However, this mainly meant a postponement: without a structural solution, the price increase will come a year later. Last year it was six percent, and it could have been much more without intervention.
Means of transport within the Netherlands are very expensive: this way you can travel cheaper
But the government is now keeping its doors closed; There will be no more financial assistance from The Hague. And so NS is cutting costs. The youth card will disappear, first class will partly become second class and maintenance will be put on the back burner. In this way, NS managed to prevent a price increase of 12 percent; it will definitively be 6.52 percent. First class becomes extra pricey during the week and cheaper on weekends.
In addition, NS has numerous subscriptions for target groups to keep travel affordable, says Commercial Director Bertien de Baak. On the other hand, NS is discontinuing the Weekend Voordeel and Altijd Voordeel season tickets.
‘Further cuts are not feasible’
Because NS is also struggling with increased costs. Wage costs have risen, as have the price of electricity and maintenance. However, within the NS it is heartfelt that much further cuts are hardly possible. All kinds of costs have been or are already being cut, such as personnel, maintenance and innovation.
An NS train at Almelo station. Traveling with the carrier will become more expensive again next year. © ANP
Critics see it differently. They wonder why NS is involved in renting public transport bicycles, selling hamburgers and organizing nature walks. Mobility as a Service (MaaS) providers, who sell door-to-door transport, are also loudly banging the drum about NS’s advertising expenditure. Why does the train giant have to spend a lot of money on all kinds of extra activities and ticket sales, while other parties can also do that, they wonder.
Report: Cutting costs is possible
Frequent reference is made to a report from last year stating that NS can save 239 million euros if NS focuses on its core task. The point, however, is that NS has a separate financial household. Commercial activities and expenditure on the daily train service should not be mixed.
Wi-Fi on the train costs the NS millions per year, but streaming a series or listening to music is impossible: ‘We have been overtaken’
The NS is also struggling in another area. It is not possible to get the same number of people on the train during the week who also chose the railway before corona. In addition, NS will receive 100 million euros less from the Ministry of Education next year. Because students travel less, the train giant receives less compensation from the student public transport tariff.