After a 2-year delay, it is now official. Major changes will take place on train services between Bruxelles and Amsterdam from December 9th, 2012. It will affect plans for anyone traveling on that route and also travelers going to/through Brugge. Here is a summary: 1) The Intercity Benelux trains (not requiring reservation and with mostly fixed prices) running on that route are cancelled from Dec. 9th 2) Thalys frequency is increased (total travel time: 1h 51min) 3) New high-speed FYRA services will start running on a mostly new high-speed line (their call stations: Bruxelles-Midi, Bruxelles C., Antwerpen C., Rotterdam C., Schiphol, Amsterdam C.) (total travel time: 2h 01min). Seat reservation will be required. 4) Rearranged timetable make it possible to travel all the way on a combination of national and regional trains that don't require reservation. It requires 2 transfers, one of that extremely tight (4 min), and will take 3h 56 min to complete the whole journey.
Posted by
New Paltz, NY
9101 posts
Looking at the NS Highspeed site, the direct inter-city trains have indeed been eliminated. But the the Thalys schedule doesn't show any additional departures, and no Fyra trains out of Brussels are listed either. The official Fyra (http://www.fyra.com)site still hasn't been updated; still says "coming soon". I'm sure everything will be updated in the next few days. p.s. I hate the name Fyra!
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32907 posts
I hate the name Fyra ! I absolutely, completely, ... agree...
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
For anyone taking option 4, I hope they add an IC connection between Antwerpen and Roosendaal. Otherwise, that particularly slow IR would be the only non-Thalys/non-Fyra option linking the main corridor.
Posted by
OP
Tilburg, Netherlands
2829 posts
@Tom: I doubt it very much. HSA (the subsidiary that controls FYRA) has paid top-euro for rights of running trains between the countries and NS has all vested interesting in shifting people towards the new, faster and more expensive train service.
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
BTW, how is "Fyra" pronounced? I read that it was based on the Dutch word for proud ("fier"), so is it "FEER-a", or "FEE-ra"? The letter Y is only used with foreign loan words in Dutch, so is it actually "FY-ra" or "FYR-a"? Either way, I predict this to be as commonly mispronounced as Hoegaarden, Overijssel, Nijmegen, IJmuiden or Kortrijk.
Posted by
OP
Tilburg, Netherlands
2829 posts
These are the prices ranges on new Fyra services (second class) Amsterdam - Bruxelles: € 25 to € 54 Antwerpen - Amsterdam: € 23 to € 48
Bruxelles - Rotterdam: € 22 to € 42
Posted by
OP
Tilburg, Netherlands
2829 posts
Fyra is pronounced (at least on Dutch TV news) as iï and not ij.