In the past year, more and more Sprinter services have been added between Groningen – Assen and Breukelen – Amsterdam, amongst other routes. The Dutch trains company NS is planning on increasing the frequency of train services, especially Sprinter services, even more in 2018.
In 2017, 58 new Swiss Flirt Sprinters were added to the NS fleet of trains to accommodate the increase of passengers. Now, another 118 New Generation Sprinters (SNG), made by the Spanish manufacturer CAF, have been ordered and the first SNG test train was presented on Thursday in Amsterdam. These SNG trains will take to the tracks in the autumn of 2018 and will provide 20.000 seats.
This year, around 100 train journeys were added to the daily train schedule and NS expects to tack on another 83 Sprinter services per day in December.
This means that passengers will be able to catch the train every ten minutes on busy routes such as Geldermalsen – Den Bosch, Leeuwarden – Meppel and Utrecht – Houten Castellum.
Unlike the older trains, the new Sprinter trains are equipped with a toilet. Plug sockets and UBS ports will also be available to passengers travelling in first and second class.
In addition to these tech upgrades, the Sprinters will offer WiFi and LED lighting that adjusts to outside light. Cameras will be installed to ensure security and safety.