NS-Olanda

In 10 years by now, I think that a lot of people (especially seniors) from Belgium, Holland, France, Germany, England will move in Romania or Bulgaria, in small villages. They will come here for silence and cheap life, many of them in Transylvania, but also in Danube area, or even on the Black Sea...

In 10 years Romania will have also a new face, because a great part of infrastructure will be ready...

About the railways, I've noticed 8 years ago that in the Holland-Belgium border area , the old line was very slow and even with wood type. What is the situation now on this line?

The same as than... The problems with the speed has nothing to do with the quality of infrastructure, but with the fact that the railtracks are allready almost full with other trains. It was the intention to go with Traxx and Dutch coaches via the Highspeedline to Brussels from Netherlands with 160kmh. But there are software problems with the Traxx, Den Haag will loose his stop (500.000 people and the seat of our government) and blocks the highspeedline option for that and several other problems. Sindce the idea for the HSL failed, there was no space anymore for this classic train between others.

Wood under the tracks is common here, even on 160kmh sections it functions fine...

Romania has some other things to improve before seniors will live there, such as the healthcare system. Especially elderly people need more healthcare and I think the hospitals in Romania are not the western standard at this moment. Maybe thats also the reason why some patients from the Bucharest fire were onder treathment in Netherlands hospitals for special needs.
Also a college of mine died in the hospital in Tirgu Mures some years ago. The doctors said there that in this case they had simply not the equipment to save his live and the way to Bucharest was too long for him...

Caspar a scris:

Romania has some other things to improve before seniors will live there, such as the healthcare system. Especially elderly people need more healthcare and I think the hospitals in Romania are not the western standard at this moment.

Yes, if you are talking about the public (state) standard, but the private ones have some speed here and there are a lot of developments (private hospitals) especially in the big cities.

Caspar a scris:

Maybe that's also the reason why some patients from the Bucharest fire were under treathment in Netherlands hospitals for special needs..

No necessary. In fact , the patients were transfered outside Romania just after that the relatives asked that becouse of the pessimistic statesment. It was something like ,,I try everything including outside''...Unfortunately many of them died in other countries as well. In Romania the conditions are not the greatest, but the doctors are well prepared, that's why you find romanian doctors all over the Europe...

Caspar a scris:

Also a college of mine died in the hospital in Tirgu Mures some years ago. The doctors said there that in this case they had simply not the equipment to save his live and the way to Bucharest was too long for him...

I'm sorry to hear about this, but in Targu-Mures the health sistem is one of the best from the country (old school), so if you can give me some details I'll appreciate...Cluj also has a good standard and it's close to Targu-Mures, so Bucharest wasn't quite the best decision in that rush.

The doctors are good, but the hospitals are dirty... you can get anything, starting from fleas and lices and up to deadly bachterium. Disinfection is a joke and patiens' relatives walks inside the hospitals with no protection, so they can bring anything from outside.

Dr2005 a scris:

The doctors are good, but the hospitals are dirty... you can get anything, starting from fleas and lices and up to deadly bachterium. Disinfection is a joke and patiens' relatives walks inside the hospitals with no protection, so they can bring anything from outside.

The new private hospitals are clean, that's my point, but the public one just if there was a rebuilt/modernization. The prices at private are high level, 20-30 Euro just for one examination but better option that if you put some money every month for national budget (assurance contribution for national healthcare) and just for nothing...

If you ask people from the state about this situation they easy answer that there are not money in the budget, but just the National Stadium cost almost 300 million Euros, and in every region one stadium at 30000 places will be build, no matter if the hospital is renewed or not..

I was talking about state hospitals, I couldn't afford a private one.

Dr2005 a scris:

I was talking about state hospitals, I couldn't afford a private one.

And I was talking about both situations, because in west of the Europe you have also the right to choose... You cannot afford the private healthcare because you are bound to contribute to the national healthcare sistem, which is crap and stupid.

Otherwise, if you keep in your pocket all the money that you contribute in 20 years, definatelly you can afford a private sistem when you are a senior, when you really need the healthcare.

With a healthcare insurance from the Netherlands its not wise to go to a private hospital. When I need medical assistance in for example Romania I need to go to public hospitals if I want money from my insurance. Only public healthcare is included with a standard Dutch health insurance, and only with the maximum level of costs of a treathment comparable to the niveau of the Netherlands. Going to an hospital in Scandinavia or Switserland cpuld be expensive with my insurance. For other costs in private companies you have to pay by yourselves.

I saw the first ''new'' VIRM NS Intercity, near the main NS Nedtrain maintenance site in Haarlem on a bike trip yesterday.
All the VIRM trainsets will me modernised the next years in Haarlem. It's their large halve-lifetime revision.





I like the original color scheme better... :


Amother thing you might see: in the front car of the old trainsets there is a place reserved om the roof for an extra panto for 25kV, which these trainsets where prepared for use that tension. (For driving 200kmh on the high speed line, ideas of the 90's years) but in the revision, it looks to me that the space under the roof has been filled up with other stuff.

Ce bine era si la noi facute EMU din 2-3 etajate si ramele TE pentru trenurile până în 150-200 km fără să le mai târii cu o epavă de 120t care se mai si defectează dar na noi muncim noi nu gandicu

It will be the first train with an urinoir/pisoar wich I know. The legroom seems to be oké but the seats are not really comfortable. The red seats in first class are pretty hard. Before the refurbishment the 1st class seats are much softer, like a "canapea de pluș"


This was an elevator for railcatering trolleys in the train. Sindce 2000 or something, there is no longer a railcatering trolley in the NS train, so the elevator for it is now a luggare store place.

Adrian78 a scris:

Ce bine era si la noi facute EMU din 2-3 etajate si ramele TE pentru trenurile până în 150-200 km fără să le mai târii cu o epavă de 120t care se mai si defectează dar na noi muncim noi nu gandicu

Asta chiar ca e o idee interesanta.

3 trenuri NS, astăzi, între Amsterdam și Hoorn.

Railway maintenace works

The tracks between my hometown and Alkmaar are being renewed. 18 kilometers of all railway trakcs + the wooden sleepers + the ballast will be renewed in 2 weekends time period. There are no trains running after the last train friday evening till the first train monday moring, in that period, only 53 hours, there will be 13 kilometers renewed. The first 5 were last weekend.

In the meantime there are a lot of preparings happening alongside the track, so the pessenger unfriendly period with no trains can be as minimal as possible. In the weekend there are running NS touringcar busses on this section every 30 minutes.

Loading of new concrete sleepers at a temporarely yard at a farmers field.


The new rails are in the left, next weekend they replace the current ones.






This is a relative small branchline. The speedlimits are 100km/h.


Another temporarely yard. Some days ago, it was fulled with the old tracks and ballast from the sections wich are allready renewed.
In just 3 days everyting (from 5 km railway) is brought away with trucks. 3 days ago, the brown floors were fulled up to 5 meters height of old tracks and sleepers.




Here is the border between the old section with wooden sleepers and the new section with new tracks and concrete sleepers which is renewed last weekend. I've travelled 3 times sindce then here, and the transition between the old and new part is not so good at the moment. The trains are dancing havy there. But could still ride 100km/h.


New equipment waiting for next weekend.


Some more new sleepers. Normally the roads here are very rural, but now there is much traffic with heavy trucks.
The new ballast comes with trains.

I will continue next weekend!