We now know a little more about the timetable for the gigantic renovation work to be undertaken at Amsterdam Centraal station, which is squeezed between the city and an inlet, as part of its expansion. This will have a major impact on Eurostar trains from Amsterdam to London, with the suspension of services between June 2024 and early 2025announced the national railway company Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS). During this period, the company will no longer have the space required to carry out identity and baggage checks on departing passengers.
However, as these checks are always carried out before boarding, trains in the London-Amsterdam direction will nevertheless be able to continue to circulate during this period. " Negotiations on the subject are intense between Eurostar, NS, the infrastructure manager ProRail and the Dutch government." Eurostar CEO Gwendoline Cazenave told us last October. This six-month interruption may therefore seem like the lesser of two evils for the carrier, and a relief for frequent travellers who, just a few weeks ago, feared that the work would take a whole year. Let's hope that nothing goes wrong to disrupt this timetable...
A fallback solution from Rotterdam?
To get to London by Eurostar, business (and leisure) passengers will therefore either have to take a classic train from Amsterdam to Brussels-Midi to pass through security checks and board a Eurostar train. Another option is to board from Rotterdam station, where Eurostar plans to operate some departures. " Eurostar is entering a new phase of discussions with its partners to ensure that this decision is implemented. as little impact as possible about our customers and find the best possible solutionssaid a company spokeswoman. Answers should be forthcoming in the next few weeks" . And in particular the exact dates of this interruption. Eurostar currently operates 4 daily round trips between London and Amsterdam and 9 between Brussels and the British capital.
The Amsterdam Centraal expansion project will see the future Eurostar terminal located underneath the historic building, which dates back to 1889. With larger spaces adapted to its services, Eurostar will be able to increase the number of its daily rotations from 2025 and break the current limit of 250 passengers per departure (whereas the e320 trains can hold up to 889) due to the current capacity of customs and security controls. The aim is to be able to embark 400 passengers as soon as the work is completed in January 2025, and to gradually increase to 650 passengers per train during the same year.
Launched in 2020 after a two-year operating period without direct trains from Amsterdam, this direct service has been a success. a great success with over 1.6 million passengers carried last spring. Hence the disappointment of the parties involved at this temporary return to the situation prevailing at its launch in 2018. " It's a disappointment because we've worked hard over the last few years to make Eurostar an attractive alternative to air travel." The Dutch railways stressed this in their press release, as the Netherlands is particularly committed to reducing carbon emissions from transport.
There's a good chance that travellers will be back on the move. the way to Amsterdam-Schiphol airport to London rather than making a long connection at Brussels-Midi. However, the alternative solution from Rotterdam, a 40-minute train journey from Amsterdam, could allow some 160 passengers to board Eurostars. In the longer term, however, the Eurostar terminal at Amsterdam Centraal is only scheduled to remain in operation for a decade, since an international rail station is due to be built at Amsterdam Zuid, to the south of the city, by 2036.
