Friesland will also be included in a pilot to provide faster train service between Leeuwarden and the Randstad.
Translation by Traci White
Omrop Fryslân reports that provincial representative Johannes Kramer and the municipality of Leeuwarden insisted on the city getting its own pilot. During a meeting with NS CEO Roger van Boxtel on Thursday morning, Kramer got confirmation that Friesland would be included in the pilot programme.
Currently, there are four trains per hour between Leeuwarden and the Randstad, one of which would become the faster service (likely the first or last train of the day). The pilot would see trains travelling at higher speeds – 160 kilometres per hour, which is 20 km per hour faster – and stopping less often.
The details of the pilot will be discussed in detail on the 18th of January during a meeting with NS, ProRail and Dutch national and provincial government representatives.
Plans for a Groningen pilot were announced in November, and Drenthe lawmakers campaigned for their province to be included as well. The Dutch parliament accepted a motion earlier this week to look into cutting down travel times by up to half an hour between the north and the west by the year 2030.
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