NS Sprinters: Sprinter Nieuwe Generatie

This is the third installment about Sprinters in the Netherlands. In the first post we’ve taken a look at the emergence of more regional, sprinter-like services in the 1970s as the Dutch moved towards suburbanisation. This required a new trainset designed to provide stop-train services, which was called the Stadsgewestelijk Materieel (SGM) and was first purchased in 1972. After three decades of service, between 2003 and 2006, the fleet of 90 SGMs was renovated, extending their lifespan to 2021. We also touched on the failure of the Stoptreinmaterieel ‘90 (SM ‘90), which was supposed to be the successor to the SGM. In 2005, the plans for the Sprinter Light Train (SLT) were developed based on the proven Baureihe 425, following the failure of the SM ‘90. A total of 131 sets were ordered, containing four and six-part lengths, and delivery began in 2008.

Throughout all the new rolling stock purchases, tests, and deliveries, from the 1970s to the 2000s, the Mat ‘64, which was introduced in the 1960s, was still operating on sprinter services. To replace the aging Mat ‘64 rolling stock in the early 2010s, SLTs were used. Also looming on the horizon was the end-of-life of the modernized SGMs, so in 2012 NS began looking for a new sprinter train. The tender and contract for the SLT worked well enough, and a few lessons were learned along the way, which would play into the new purchase. A year later, in 2013, an official tender was published for a new sprinter under NS’ creative name “Sprinter Nieuwe Generatie” (SNG).

The Tender

With the new tender for the SNG, a few notable additions were included based on prior experiences. According to the tender on Mercell, NS was looking for a train “based upon an existing concept with proven technology”. The purchase of the SM ‘90 and its mistakes with its cutting-edge technology that failed to work come to mind here. Reading further, “containing a toilet” and “fit for use in Dutch weather conditions” tie this back to some of the initial issues with the SLT. Although the SLT was based on the existing Baureihe 425, issues with Dutch winter conditions became apparent, as well as the pushback from passengers and staff regarding the lack of toilets. Both issues were later fixed with the SLT rolling stock.

In 2014, it was announced that CAF won the tender, with Stadler and Alstom withdrawing their offers. The SNG was to be based on the CAF Civity family of trains. CAF Civity was available in an EMU variant capable of 1.5k VDC to run on the Dutch rail network. The family of trains was also capable of level boarding from the platform and could be equipped with an accessible toilet. The trains also made use of Jacobs bogies, so a wide and open connection could be made between units, allowing passengers to move throughout the train. One might say the Civity family fits like a glove.

However, two points still stand out: whether it would work well in Dutch weather and if it was really “proven technology”. At the time, CAF had signed to deliver 8 Civity EMUs to the Friuli Venecia Giulia region for use in Italy and 4 with dual voltage for Austria and Slovenia¹, although they only started delivery a year later in 2015². A few years prior, in 2011, CAF signed a contract to deliver 3 EMUs to Montenegro, and 34 electric and 7 diesel multiple units to Lithuania³. In all fairness, CAF has a rich history of manufacturing trains. Even though the Civity family was somewhat new, the technology may be considered tried and true.

First Order(s)

An order of 118 trainsets was placed by NS, of which 68 were three-part and 50 were four-part. The trains should be manufactured, tested, and delivered in time to enter passenger service by 2018. A little over a year after the order, CAF had already started preparing the trainsets for test runs in Velim and climate tests in Vienna to evaluate their performance in different weather conditions⁴.

So far, all seems to be going well with CAF’s preparations. However, within NS’ 2014 annual report⁵, they mentioned a few times that customer satisfaction was declining due to increasingly crowded trains. Keep in mind that the Mat ‘64 has reached its end and is now completely removed from passenger service, and Dutch rail ridership is seeing an increase. AOne part from the report stands out:

The Spanish train manufacturer CAF won the tender for delivering approximately 120 new train sets. NS will already need additional Sprinters by the end of 2016 because of growth in passenger numbers and various other factors.

Well, it looks like they won’t be able to get the SNG soon enough. It seems like they should have tried to negotiate an earlier delivery date on that tender back in 2013. I wonder if another manufacturer would have been able to provide trains quicker… The report continues:

To meet that need, NS plans to order around 60 additional Sprinters (FLIRT trains) from the Swiss manufacturer Stadler.

Oh. So Stadler returns. It makes me wonder why they withdrew from the 2013 SNG tender to begin with. Anything I could think up now would be pure speculation as I’m unable to find any sources for their decision. Together, 58 FLIRT3s were ordered in 2015, 33 three-car sets and 25 four-car sets⁶. The expectation is that they would arrive by December 2016⁴, two years before CAF’s Civity ‘SNG’ would enter passenger service. Apparently, internally the project was called Flirt Fast Forward or FFF, with FFF-3 being the three-car trainsets and FFF-4 being the four-car trainsets. In the meantime, before the FLIRTs or SNGs arrived, NS mobilized 11 double-decker DD-AR trains previously in reserve to meet passenger capacity.⁵

The FLIRT family of trains produced by Swiss manufacturer Stadler probably doesn’t need an introduction. Their EMUs and DEMUs come in several different variants depending on the use case and have been around since 2004. Even in 2012, when the SNG tender was first announced, the FLIRT EMUs were used across Europe and abroad. Today, you’d be hard-pressed to travel through Europe and not see (or even ride) a Stadler FLIRT.

First Delivery

By December 2016, 24 FLIRT trainsets were delivered by Stadler and entered service in 2018, allowing NS to take some DD-AR and SGMm trains out of circulation. By 2018, all Stadler FLIRTs had entered passenger service without any major incidents. Nice!

With a stream of FLIRTs being delivered by Stadler, CAF delivered the first Sprinter Nieuwe Generatie on 14 September 2017⁷, which then entered passenger service in December 2018⁸ when the new timetable came into effect. The first routes on which the SNG was deployed were between The Hague and Haarlem⁹. NS produced a video showing one of the first trainsets arriving from CAF, in Spain, to the port in Rotterdam. They’re then loaded onto trailers and transported to NS’ workshop in Amsterdam Zaanstrat, where the trainsets are assembled. After the influx of deliveries, in 2018, the order was then extended to include an additional 50 three-part and 38 four-part SNG trainsets, bringing the new total to 206 units to be delivered by 2023.¹⁰

SNG Livery

Onboard the new SNG trainsets, NS created a video with 360 shots showing off the various features, including the sliding steps for level entry, wheelchair accessible seating and spaces, as well as the driver’s cabin. In the opening of the video, you’ll notice that the front of the SNG is blue instead of the yellow we see today.

On a foggy afternoon in Hooghalen, Drenthe, two-coupled SNG trainsets destined for Groningen collided with a trailer at a passive railway crossing. The trailer detached itself from the tractor, saving its driver, but the train cabin, according to a report by ProRail, was destroyed. Unfortunately, this resulted in the death of the train driver. Both the tractor and train driver saw each other too late given the weather conditions, resulting in the collision.

As a result, a year later, NS started introducing SNG trains with yellow ends to improve visibility ¹¹. Existing trainsets had their blue heads re-wrapped in yellow, and new SNG trainsets had the yellow livery moving forward. The Wikipedia article has more details on the aftermath of the crash with many citations to dig into if you’re interested.

Some FLIRT sprinters can also be seen with a yellow front, but not all have been converted to the updated livery.

New Technology

All SNG sprinters were equipped, on delivery, with ATB-EG (Automatische treinbeïnvloeding - Eerste Generatie), which is the train protection system used on all Dutch passenger lines with the exception of the High-Speed Line. In preparation for the future move towards ERTMS (European Rail Traffic Management System), the new European digital standard for train management, the sprinters are also capable of using such infrastructure¹². A component of ERTMS is ETCS (European Train Control System), a standardised train protection system, implementations of which allow for the second grade of automation (GoA2). This form of Automatic Train Operation (ATO) enables the train to accelerate, decelerate and stop on its own with the presence of a driver to take over in cases of unexpected situations and during departure while locking the doors. GoA2 is adopted to better utilize energy and increase capacity on track, and this is usually seen on closed metro systems. This is still a relatively new space for heavy rail, although there were some early adopters and pilots at the time. On the night of 10 December 2019, CAF Signalling, a subsidiary of CAF, and NS tested ATO over ETCS without passengers from Swifterbant to Kampen Zuid with a scheduled stop at Dronten.¹³¹⁴ This was on the Hanzelijn, one of the rail lines that are ERTMS-equipped, as it rolls out.

Two years later, NS began another pilot with the SNG aboard the “Airport Sprinter”. NS runs frequent services between Amsterdam Centraal and Hoofddorp that transport passengers to and from Amsterdam and the airport. For six weeks on Tuesdays and Wednesdays starting 16 August 2022, SNG sprinters equipped with new software and cameras will be used where the train driver is now responsible for the departure process instead of the train conductor. This allows the conductor to help passengers enter and leave and reduce overall dwell time at the platform with the intention to run 8 trains per hour on this route in the future.¹⁵

Fin

The 206th and final SNG trainset was delivered by CAF and entered passenger service on 9 May 2023. Only a few months ago! Slightly unrelated, by chance I rode SNG number 3037 which, at the time, had been delivered and in service for roughly 5 months. It still had the new shoe smell I experienced when riding the first ICNG in passenger service. Currently, the SNG trainsets are deployed across the Netherlands on sprinter routes and, much to my surprise, just like the SLTs, they are also occasionally used for Intercity services when required. The FLIRTs are deployed in the south of the Netherlands, with the exception of the route between Ede-Wageningen and Arnhem Centraal.

With all that said, here’s a timeline that outlines the introduction of sprinter rolling stock into passenger service. I’ve also included the Mat ‘64, even though it wasn’t originally designed as a stop-train or sprinter. It did, however, play a significant role in sprinter routes in the later years of its existence.

I plan to provide updates on the most recent tender by NS for sprinters in 2022. According to NS, a decision on the purchase is expected this year. NS forecasts an increase in passenger growth over the next few years, and the delivery of these trains is anticipated in 2027.¹⁶ I’ll be looking forward to more information as it becomes available!