Rail transport in the Netherlands

The Netherlands
NS VIRM double-deck train at Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA Station.
Operation
National railway	Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Infrastructure company	Railinfratrust
Major operators	NS International Arriva Connexxion Syntus Veolia
Statistics
Ridership	438 million per year
Passenger km	17.1 billion per year
Freight	36.5 million ton per year
System length
Total	3,223 kilometres (2,003 mi)
Double track	1,982 kilometres (1,232 mi)
Electrified	2,321 kilometres (1,442 mi)
Freight only	158.5 km
High-speed	125 km
Track gauge
Main	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
High-speed	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Electrification
1.5 kV DC	Main network
25 kV AC	HSL-Zuid, Betuweroute
Features
No. tunnels	13
Longest tunnel	Groeneharttunnel, 7160 meters
No. bridges	4500 (of which 76 are movable)
No. stations	408
Map

Map

Rail transport in the Netherlands uses a dense railway network, that connects virtually all major towns and cities, counting as many train stations as there are municipalities in the Netherlands. The network totals 3,223 route km, (which represents 6,830 kilometres of track as there can be a line running both ways, or two lines running each way on important routes) three quarters of which has been electrified.

The Dutch rail network supports predominantly passenger transport and also most distance travelled on Dutch public transport is done by rail. The national rail infrastructure is managed and maintained by public task company ProRail, and a number of different operators have concessions to run their trains. The entire network is standard gauge.

The Netherlands is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC Country Code for the Netherlands is 84.

Public transport authorities in the Netherlands issue concessions for collections of lines.

A few Dutch railway stations are serviced, even for journeys within the country, from foreign railway operators using the NS authorization:

Nationwide a common fare system applies although operators tend to use separate tariffs due to the concession system.

Most trains consist of both 1st and 2nd class compartiments; Syntus and occasionally Arriva only offer 2nd class compartiments.

The largest cargo carrier in the Netherlands is DB Schenker, others are ACTS, Crossrail, ERS Railways, Häfen und Güterverkehr Köln, Rail4chem and Veolia Cargo.