Railway tracks in port of Rotterdam up and running again after flooding
Flooded railway tracks in several port yards in Rotterdam have been recovered since Sunday evening. The flooding occurred on the afternoon of Thursday, 12 January, following heavy rainfall and caused disruptions to freight traffic. However,...Read more
Next of many problems for ProRail: railway tracks in Rotterdam under water
Railway tracks in the port of Rotterdam have been underwater in various places since the afternoon of 12 January. According to RailGood, the Dutch employers’ organisation for the rail freight industry, a large part of...Read more
ProRail is failing the Dutch rail freight sector, says organisation
RailGood, the Dutch employers’ organisation for the rail freight industry, is claiming that ProRail, the Dutch infrastructure manager, is failing the sector in the Netherlands. The main issues pointed out by RailGood are excessive increases...Read more
Dutch railway companies get 25% of siding and shunting costs back
The European Commission approved a 28-million euro support scheme in the Netherlands to encourage freight transport to shift from road to rail. This will, among others, support rail freight companies to pay for the significantly...Read more
Dutch rail industry criticises ‘incomprehensible’ state investments
The Dutch rail industry association RailGood and DB Cargo Netherlands claim that investments planned by the Dutch government leave rail freight out of the picture. Specifically, the two parties criticise the cabinet’s investment of 7,5...Read moreDutch rail freight carriers outraged over lack of government support
Rail carriers in the Netherlands are not compensated for the 12 per cent increase of track access charges, nor for the cost involved with the transformation to ERTMS. State Secretary for Infrastructure and Water Management...Read more
Dutch network up and running again after track deficiencies
UPDATEThe emergency repairs on the Dutch railway network have been completed. This is reported by rail freight operator DB Cargo. Last night, several rail routes had to be closed as deficiencies were discovered in five...Read more
New route to Rotterdam successful, but harbour line not there yet
The port of Rotterdam is celebrating 10,000 trains passing through the Theemsweg route, which opened a few months ago. The new line, constructed explicitly to improve the port’s rail freight operations, seems like a great...Read more6-day closure of Rotterdam’s Harbour Line starts today
Starting Tuesday 2 November, the Harbour Line to the port of Rotterdam is closed for all traffic. This will last until Monday 8 November. Throughout this week, the newly constructed Theemsweg route will be connected...Read more
The Netherlands concludes: railway cannot cope with extreme weather
The Dutch rail infrastructure cannot cope with extreme winter weather. It will require billions of euros to keep the rail infrastructure available under all circumstances, such as extreme heat in the summer, or winter weather...Read more
Dutch track access charges under the microscope again
The Dutch infrastructure pricing regime is under examination. Track access charges in the Netherlands are way higher compared to Germany. Simultaneously, rail is more expensive than road transport. These differences hinder a level playing field...Read moreDutch railway workers on strike this week, starting Wednesday
Railway workers in the Netherlands have announced a series of strikes from Wednesday to Saturday this week. The strikes are organised by trade union FNV Spoor, because no agreement could be reached with infra manager...Read more
How long until using longer trains?
740-metre trains have been tested on Dutch and German tracks for a few years now. The expansion takes place at a slow pace since infrastructure needs time to adapt to their use. However, according to...Read more
Rhine valley still closed-DB Netz urged to act
The landslide in the Middle Rhine Valley on 15 March continues causing significant disturbances on rail freight operations. After the incident, restoration works have been going on for more than three weeks now, while there...Read more
Northern branch of Betuwe route essential for Dutch rail freight
Public transport needs to become more resilient in the coming years. For the Dutch rail freight sector, the central issue is making a choice regarding the routing of goods trains from Rotterdam to North-East Europe....Read more
Bad management cause of rail infra problems port of Rotterdam
An investigation report with clear recommendations and concrete points for improvement to tackle the infrastructure problems in Rotterdam’s Harbour Line has been presented to the Dutch government. Infrastructure manager ProRail fully embraces the report and...Read more
Dutch rail operators want all damage in Rotterdam compensated
Rail freight operators are fed up with the infrastructure problems on the tracks in the Rotterdam port area. They want ProRail to take responsibility and compensate all damage suffered. The damage is about 6 million...Read more
Column: Follow the Germans to be an important rail theme in 2020
In 2020, ‘Follow the Germans’ will be an important theme for the Dutch rail sector. If the Netherlands works more with Germany by harmonising the specifications of ERTMS with Germany, to convert trains to ERTMS...Read moreRestrictions hazardous goods in Port of Rotterdam remain until January
To the annoyance of rail freight operators, freight trains with hazardous substances cannot be shunted on the intermodal yard of Rotterdam Waalhaven in the coming weeks. In September this year, these activities were forced to...Read more