For two days in a row, ProRail found objects in Drenthe that were placed on the track. This afternoon, train staff found a bicycle on the track between Assen and Onnen. Last night a train bothered between Beilen and Assen on shelves that were placed on the track.
In both cases the train traffic was disturbed. “That causes a nuisance for travelers. That is very annoying,” says Aldert Baas, spokesperson for ProRail. “And it leads to a huge shock for train staff. You feel a blow, but you don’t know what it is. You have to go from the worst.” Last night it turned out that the blow was caused by boards that were placed on the track.
“The police are being investigated to get the perpetrators,” said Baas. “We are not served at all of these kinds of things. It is very annoying and it is a lot of shock.” Moreover, it can also cause a lot of damage to the track or train, Baas explains. “Fortunately, that was limited last night.”
This afternoon, trains between Assen and Onnen had to stop again for material on the track. “This afternoon it was a bicycle. The train was able to stop on time, but research was also done whether there are no people involved.”
That turned out not to be the case. The perpetrator is known to the police and it appears to be individual incidents, says Baas. “That the perpetrator is known is nice. Then such a person can be approached and held responsible.”
In addition to the shock for train staff and the nuisance for the train travelers, travelers in subsequent trains on the route also suffer from such incidents, says Baas. “It all has consequences for the people who travel on that process and for safety.”