Train travelers between Meppel and Assen must take into account extra travel time from Thursday for two weeks. Due to work on the track at Hoogeveen, there are no trains, but buses. And that should go better than last year.
“We use stop buses and express buses. We learned from last year, the process is better organized,” says a spokesman for the Dutch Railways.
Last May, work was also done on the track. There were times when travelers could not reach the next station because buses did not run or did not run as planned. “That had to do with a national staff shortage. We have more intensive contact with the bus organizations, we are closer to seeing whether we can manage all journeys.”
The work will start Thursday night and last until Thursday 22 June. TT-goers should therefore be able to visit Assen by train.
At Hoogeveen, work is going on for fourteen days day and night on bends in the track on both sides of the station. By relocating the track curve, trains will have to brake less in the future, which saves time for intercity trains between Zwolle and Groningen and the sprinter from Groningen to Zwolle.
Last year, rail manager ProRail failed to complete the work within the planned time. Materials for the signal installation were not available in time. The corona period and the war in Ukraine disrupted the production processes of parts. Due to the high energy prices last winter, concrete plants started running less, which also had an effect on the planning of the completion of the project.
The expected extra travel time between Meppel and Assen is up to 45 minutes. Buses run from the stations in Meppel, Hoogeveen, Beilen, Assen and Zwolle (south side, Hanzelaan). Express buses also run between Zwolle and Assen.
NS advises travelers to use the journey planner. At stations you will find information about where the buses depart. “We advise travelers between Zwolle and Groningen to travel by train via Leeuwarden,” says the NS spokesperson.