People are traveling by train again, after months of only going out for necessary things, we have more freedom back since the last relaxation. Shops, zoos and amusement parks, among others, are open again, so a day out by train is again possible. The Dutch Railways recently had to adjust the timetable because many staff members are at home due to illness due to corona or are in quarantine. The timetable will be adjusted step by step and will be fully implemented on 21 February.
The NS recently started selling a new train ticket. The Early Booking Off-peak ticket, with this ticket travelers get a ten percent discount if they book their trip outside rush hour and four days in advance. The discount only applies to single and day return journeys of the full rate in first and second class. The discount is given to encourage travelers to travel outside rush hours, especially in times of corona, but the NS also wants to encourage this outside of corona.
"Due to the recent relaxation, we see that more travelers are finding their way back to the train, of course we are very happy about that. Spreading is especially important now, but as far as we're concerned, that also applies after corona. With this new ticket, we want to offer an extra discount to travelers who travel by train outside rush hours.”
Research among almost 77.000 travelers shows that travelers are again more satisfied with their station. In 2016, stations in the Netherlands received an average score of 6,94. In 2020 the score was 7,26 and last year that score was 7,31. This research is commissioned by the NS and ProRail, they do this to see how travelers experience the different stations and where improvements may still be needed. Overveen station in North Holland received the highest rating from travelers, an 8,2. The lowest score was awarded to Rotterdam South station.
Also read: Trial: Travel using GPS on your phone
