Status: 03.04.2022 18:53
In long-distance traffic between Germany and the Netherlands, at least the ICE trains can resume service after a considerable interruption. In Holland, trains are still stopped. The reason is a software failure in the traffic control system.
There were significant disruptions to long-distance traffic between Germany and the Netherlands on Sunday. On the ICE route from Frankfurt am Main to Utrecht, trains between Utrecht and Mönchengladbach were canceled in both directions, a spokeswoman for Deutsche Bahn in Berlin said. In the meantime, ICE trains could run the entire route again.
On the IC route from Berlin via Hanover to Amsterdam, train traffic was not interrupted. However, there were delays, which could still occur, the spokeswoman continued. According to the Dutch state railway company NS, the reason for the interruption of rail traffic was a software glitch.
Train traffic collapsed in the Netherlands
In Holland itself, almost nothing went off the rails. Train traffic had largely collapsed. According to media reports, thousands of travelers waited at train stations after a safety-relevant system for rail traffic failed at around 10 am and no trains from the state railway company NS had been running since around 12 pm.
Railway operator NS said trains would be stopped until 5pm as efforts were made to resolve the issue. However, it was unclear whether the trains would actually run again later in the evening. “We strongly advise against traveling or, if you are already traveling, looking at other travel options,” the NS website said.
“It’s a real shit day”
After hours of not knowing exactly what the problem was, a railway spokesperson explained that a system had failed that coordinated the planning of the trains’ deployment, taking into account incidents such as detours that are currently required. Without this system, security cannot be guaranteed. “And this is essential so that traffic can occur according to the schedule.”
According to the information, the trains of the smaller regional railway companies were running normally. A replacement rail service was not created because it was not possible to use as many buses as would be needed to transport the affected passengers, NS said on Twitter. “I can imagine that travelers don’t know what they are at the moment,” the railroad spokesman said. “It’s a really shit day.”