It might be a new week, but the Dutch train strikes aren’t over quite yet! August 29 sees the third day of strikes hitting the province of North Holland, with Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS) once again warning that the strike action will affect train travel across the Netherlands. 

Day three of Dutch train strikes hit North Holland

Starting at 4am on August 29 morning and running through to 4am on Tuesday morning, the strike has practically brought all train travel to a standstill in and around the Dutch capital and in cities like Alkmaar and Haarlem, and has also affected public transport services to and from Schiphol Airport. 

NS and travellers’ association Rover have warned passengers that they should prepare for “longer journey times and more frequent transfers,” advising them to make use of the NS travel planner and adjust their travel plans accordingly. The fact that the province of North Holland plays such a vital role in NS’ wider timetable also means the strike will “have consequences for train traffic in the rest of the country.”

Limited services around Amsterdam, Haarlem, Alkmaar, and Schiphol

Once again, the rail company will not be implementing any rail replacement bus services. Trains will be running from and between Voorhout, Almere Oostvaarders, Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA and Utrecht Central Station. A limited number of services will be running between Schiphol and Utrecht.

Unlike on previous strike days, the strike in North Holland will also be affecting international rail services, meaning the Intercity service between Amsterdam and Brussels, and Thalys, Eurostar, and Nightjet services won’t be running on Monday.

No trains in the Netherlands on Tuesday due to NS strikes

Since trade unions confirmed that NS workers would be staging a walkout after negotiations over salaries and benefits had broken down, employees of the Dutch rail company have held strikes in the northernmost parts of the Netherlands and in the province of South Holland. 

Another two strike days are planned before the end of the month. NS has already confirmed that Tuesday’s strike in Utrecht will mean that "no trains will run in the Netherlands all day, with the exception of the Amsterdam Centraal - Schiphol route." This will also affect some international services. The last day of strikes - August 30 - will see workers down tools in the eastern and southern regions, affecting train travel in and around cities such as Eindhoven and Maastricht.