sels: life after Fyra O
NE year ago the Dutch-Belgian Fyra high-speed operation collapsed. Belgian National Railways (SNCB) and Netherlands Railways (NS) were so dissatisfied with the performance and reliability of the V250 high-speed trains supplied by AnsaldoBreda that they withdrew them from service, leaving hardly any Dutch- Belgian train services in place. Now both operators have made new arrangements for cross-border operations: Thalys will be the sole provider of high-speed services, while conventional inter-city train services will be reinstated. Abandoning the V250 trains means the end of Dutch domestic high-speed before it even started and the end of the original concept for the HSL-South high-speed line. NS has been aided by a change in the concession structure, while competition still does not get a look in. With the withdrawal of the V250 trains, it suddenly became extremely difficult to cross the Dutch-Belgian border by train in the first part of 2013. Thalys, a service aimed primarily at the Amsterdam - Paris market, suddenly became the most convenient way to travel between the Dutch and Belgian capitals, and the trains have been fully booked since the Fyra catastrophe, leaving many passengers searching for alternatives. Some relief appeared with the
introduction of an improvised two- hourly service between The Hague and Brussels, but this is a shadow of the former hourly-interval Amsterdam - Brussels Benelux service, which was withdrawn despite much criticism when Fyra was launched in December 2012. Recognising this short-term solution is unacceptable in the long term, SNCB and NS have been forced to implement a new structure for cross-border services. With its reputation ruined, the Fyra brand will disappear, and NS has started to develop plans for 200km/h inter-city services. In future passengers will have a choice between fast and expensive or slow and cheap services. The solution cannot be implemented in a single step, so there will be a phased approach to reach the final desired 16 high-speed and 16 conventional trains a day between
Amsterdam and Brussels by 2016. As Thalys is now the only high-speed player between Amsterdam and Brussels the current frequency is no longer sufficient. On October 7 Thalys added two round trips between Amsterdam and Brussels to provide 11 trains per day, with an additional round trip on Fridays. A third daily Amsterdam - Brussels Thalys service was added last month with the start of the 2014 timetable. In April two of these trains will be extended south to Lille Europe.
Thalys is a joint venture between SNCB and French National Railways (SNCF). German Rail (DB) recently decided to sell its stake, while NS is effectively only a partner assisting with operations, staff, and catering in the Netherlands, although NS does own four of the Thalys trains. Given the new situation, NS can hardly be called a real high-speed operator on HSL-South as it is playing second fiddle to SNCF and SNCB.
Ambition
In 2016 Eurostar will fulfil a long-held ambition by introducing two daily direct services between Amsterdam and London using its new Siemens e320 high-speed trains. However, several operational aspects have yet to be agreed, such as security and customs/border control because Britain is not part of the Schengen agreement which eliminated border controls between member countries. The journey time should be around 4 hours. For running into the Netherlands,
Eurostar will conclude a partnership agreement with NS for network access, operating license, safety certificate, and logistic support. NS expects that Dutch staff will work on the trains between Brussels and Amsterdam.
When NS and SNCB decided that the V250 trains were inadequate for commercial operations about one month after they entered service, a conventional train service had to be re- established as an alternative, and this temporary measure now appears to be permanent. However, the conventional service cannot run north of The Hague as there is no spare track capacity
between there and Amsterdam until the December 2014 timetable change when it will be possible to extend the trains to Amsterdam. The trains are being operated by SNCB four-voltage Traxx locomotives and NS ICRm coaches, which are restricted to 160km/h. The service will run via Roosendaal until 2016 when it will switch to the high-speed line. The Benelux train will then make an intermediate stop at Breda, requiring a reversal, so it is likely that driving trailers will be used. Both locomotives and driving trailers, many of which are currently stored by NS, will have to be equipped with ETCS Level 2 for operation on the high-speed lines.
With its reputation ruined, the Fyra brand will disappear, and NS has started to develop plans for 200km/h inter-city services.
NS is looking for more Traxx locomotives, and plans to purchase around 24 units equipped with ETCS Level 2 directly from Bombardier without going out to tender due to the urgency of the situation. Again this is a short-term solution as NS intends to acquire a fleet of 200km/h trains for inter-city services. The trains will be equipped with ETCS Level 2 to enable them to run on both the high-speed lines and new or upgraded lines equipped with dual signalling such as the Lelystad - Zwolle Hanzelijn, which opened in December 2012, and Amsterdam - Utrecht. This will allow these trains to operate at 200km/h, as traditional Dutch signalling and the ATB train protection system do not allow speeds above 140km/h. The new trains are not expected to enter service before 2018, and will replace ICM emus and ICR coaches dating from the 1980s sooner than originally planned. The new set up might have an impact on an initiative by The Hague, which was by-passed by HSL-South, to have its own direct service to Brussels. As cross-border passenger services have been liberalised in the European Union, the city went out to tender to find an
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