THE troubled procurement of regional train and bus services in the Dutch province of Limburg overcame its final legal obstacle on April 14 when incumbent operator Veolia Transport Nederland dropped its appeal against the decision to award the concession to Arriva.

DUTCH rail freight operators achieved high levels of growth last year according to a new report from infrastructure manager Prorail, which shows volumes increased 6% by both train-km (9.3 million) and tonne-km (13.6 billion) in 2015, with most of the growth occurring in the second half of the year.

FIVE public transport associations have sent an open letter to the Dutch minister of infrastructure and the environment, Mrs Melanie Schultz van Haegen-Maas Geesteranus, urging her to include rail and public transport on the agenda of a meeting of European Union transport and environment ministers.

NETHERLANDS Railways (NS) has directly awarded Siemens and Bombardier a contract to upgrade its fleet of 131 Sprinter Light Train (SLT) EMUs, which were originally supplied by the two manufacturers in 2007-2012, to comply with the Technical Specification for Interoperability for Persons With Reduced Mobility (PRM-TSI).

THE first Stadler Flirt 3 EMUs for Netherlands Railways (NS) arrived in the Netherlands on March 29, when three sets were moved by rail from the Dutch-German border station at Herzogenrath to Maastricht.

NETHERLANDS Railways (NS) has unveiled a new company strategy for 2016-2019, entitled 'Better at full speed,' which aims to regain public trust and secure NS's position in the Dutch railway market up to and beyond 2025.

THE driver of an Arriva Stadler 2/8 EMU was killed after the train hit a mobile crane on a level crossing at Dalfsen on the Zwolle-Emmen line at 09.00 CET.

NETHERLANDS RAILWAYS (NS) is to operate peak-hour bus services from today in an effort to relieve overcrowding on its busiest rail services.

A new water-based system developed in the Netherlands has undergone tests to prove its effectiveness at overcoming poor railhead conditions caused by leaf fall. Margreet Beuving, consultant at Dekra Rail, which carried out the tests, profiles the Water Spray Installation.

With at least two sets of national rules and numerous location-specific technical considerations to contend with, cross-border ERTMS deployments can represent a daunting challenge for infrastructure managers. Keith Barrow looks at two key projects which are seeking to streamline international train movements on the Rhine-Alpine Corridor.