Germany’s “Third Track” project, vital for the Rotterdam-hinterland corridor, will not be finished within the next ten years. This poses a significant obstacle for the Dutch, who have no idea what the Germans are up to. Now, the Netherlands’ own planning is in question.
The Third Track project takes place right across the border from the Netherlands. A planned closure of 80 weeks in total is a necessity to complete its work. Afterwards, the upgraded railway should help boost capacity on the route.
80 weeks of paused operations is a lot, but the Dutch had to adapt. The work started in late 2024.
Since then, there have been diversions along other routes and a reduction in capacity. The Netherlands has had to run many thousands of trains less than previously. Naturally, last year’s announcement by Germany that the Third Track connection wouldn’t be completed in the coming decade came as a major disappointment and setback.
German unclarity hinders Dutch infrastructure planning
Germany does not have the capacity to work on the Third Track project. The country is working on a major overhaul of its entire rail network. Other projects are higher on the priority list.
RailFreight.com’s sister publication SpoorPro reported that the Dutch infrastructure manager ProRail still has no plan on how to cope with this situation. “It is still too early to say exactly what impact the works in Germany will have”, spokesperson Marcella Wesseling told SpoorPro. “Whether additional freight trains will be diverted depends on the nature, scale and schedule of the works in Germany. The German side has not yet provided this overview.”
Clearly, coordination between the Dutch and German infrastructure managers is lacking. This puts rail work in the Netherlands in question. ProRail and DB InfraGO had earlier agreed on a timeline that would allow the Dutch to work on ERTMS implementation and renovations in Eindhoven and Venlo.
Political games?
The head of the Dutch rail freight association, Hans-Willem Vroon, told SpoorPro about his suspicions that there are some political games going on. “Perhaps Germany is also sending a signal to The Hague that it believes the Venlo-Kaldenkirchen and Oldenzaal-Bad Bentheim border crossings should be used more frequently.” These are alternative border crossings that could facilitate diversions from the Third Track works.
“Moreover, I suspect that DB InfraGO is deliberately holding back the growth of rail traffic because their rail network simply cannot cope. It is striking, after all, that in Switzerland the complaints about the German feeder and outbound lines are even greater than here, and Switzerland does operate with multiple border crossings.” These include Basel, Schaffhausen and St. Margarethen.