Despite being the capital city of the Netherlands, Amsterdam does not have the busiest train station in the country. That honour goes to Utrecht.
In 2017, on average, the total number of train journeys on a working day was 1,3 million. The increase in passenger numbers was larger during peak hours and particularly concentrated in city areas.
According to figures from NS, in 2017, Utrecht Central station was the busiest of all train stations in the Netherlands, with 186.000 people hopping on and off trains on workdays. That is three percent more than the previous year.
Amsterdam is, of course, not far behind, with an increase in passengers of six percent and an average of 184.000 travellers per workday. Following Amsterdam, the busiest stations can be found in Rotterdam, with 93.000 passengers, The Hague, with 87.000, and Schiphol, with 86.000.
The average number of passengers increased by five percent on average for these stations. Schiphol experienced the greatest increase in passengers, with nine percent more than the year earlier. The reason for this increase is the growth of the airport.
Amsterdam Zuid station is getting busy very quickly. The station saw an increase of 20 percent in passengers, meaning that around 54.500 people used the station each workday. NS expects the numbers at this particular station to increase even more with the opening of the North-South metro line.
Not all stations in the Netherlands experienced an increase in passenger numbers, some had dramatic decreases, such as Dordrecht Zuid, which saw an 18 percent decrease in passenger numbers. Because of service changes, Dordrecht Zuid only had among the 1.000 or so travellers. The stations with the least passengers were Soest with 218 per day, and Eijsden with 182.