ANP People board a train at Amsterdam CS
NOS Nieuws•gisteren, 23:08
Preparations for a rush hour charge on trains appear to have been canceled for the time being. The government does not rule out a levy, but wants the NS to re-examine the plan and the criticism thereof. This is what outgoing State Secretary Heijnen (Infrastructure and Water Management) said in the House of Representatives.
The NS wants to eventually introduce a charge for travel during the morning and evening peak hours of a maximum of 2.50 euros per train journey. The levy should come into effect in 2026, but Heijnen said that she will include in the new concession for the NS that a new fare system may only be introduced after the explicit approval of the cabinet and the House of Representatives at that time. The concession therefore does not automatically give the green light to a rush hour charge.
Heijnen said that higher prices at the busiest times could be beneficial. People who can avoid rush hour then travel at different times, and the extra money allows extra trains to be deployed. But it can also make the train more expensive for people who have no choice.
Other options
There may be other options to make it a bit quieter during rush hour, such as cheaper partial season tickets outside rush hour. The NS must now investigate this in more detail.
A majority in the House is against the peak tax. VVD, GroenLinks/PvdA, D66, CDA, PVV and the Christian Union argue that many people, such as teachers and nurses, do not have the choice to travel outside rush hour. Traveler organization Rover said this summer that it did not see anything in the plan.
2023-09-26 21:08:24
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