The superfast 350-mile train journey linking two European capitals is set to receive a massive boost.
Eurostar has announced this week that its high-speed train between Amsterdam and London will resume at the start of next year.
The Franco-British rail company confirmed the news on its website and announced it will reopen a larger departure area in Amsterdam.
The route between the UK and the Netherlands was suspended in June this year to allow for vast renovations at Amsterdam Central Station.
The current work at Amsterdam Central Station prevents customs checks from being carried out. This forces passengers to get off at Brussels for passport checks when heading to the UK.
Gwendoline Cazenave, Eurostar’s director, threatened in September to cut the connection with the Netherlands, doubting the reopening date of the terminal.
“The accumulation of restrictions is pushing Eurostar off the map in the Netherlands,” Cazenave said in an opinion piece for the Financieele Dagblad.
“Without clarity on the Dutch rail network and guaranteed access to the necessary infrastructure, Eurostar is forced to suspend services from Amsterdam and Rotterdam to London and Paris in 2025.”
Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant reported that the first train will depart on February 10, “a little later than what was planned for January.” A Eurostar spokesperson reportedly said that “not all work will be completed by then”.
The train will also have more capacity, almost doubling the number of people that can get on in the Dutch capital, the Volkskrant reports.
A reported 4.2 million passengers were transported between the Netherlands, France, Great Britain, and Belgium in 2023.
Eurostar trains have room for 900 passengers, but only 250 could board in Amsterdam. Thanks to the renovations, 450 passengers can board in the Dutch capital starting in February.
And “somewhere in the spring” that will be increased to 650. “Then the work on the terminal will be completed,” the spokesperson said.
