Some of you may have been concerned when it was announced that Eurostar might vacate Amsterdam Centraal for a less convenient terminal.
The full story can be read here:
Eurostar’s Amsterdam-London service threatened by station works
The good news is that a compromise has been reached.
Netherlands’ Het Parool [NL] reports that Eurostar has been able to secure its place at the city’s Centraal station, but its terminal (this is used to pre-clear UK-bound travellers) will be moved.
The terminal is currently located on of the station’s platforms but in the future it will be relocated to a passageway underneath Centraal.
Amstelpassage will be capable of handling 600 travellers – a big increase on the 250 passengers the terminal currently handles.
From last month Eurostar was operating up to four services daily to London stopping in Rotterdam and Brussels.
No timescale is currently available for when the transition will take place.
I ought to point out that the chances of Eurostar having to relocate from Centraal were somewhat remote.
I say that because the Netherlands’ government, Schiphol airport and national airline KLM are all environmentally aware.
For its part, the government wants more travellers to take the train (in line with EU policy) while both Schiphol and KLM would rather short distance travellers use surface transport to make more slots available.
Schiphol’s capacity cap is now extended to March 2023 and this means KLM is having to cancel a number of flights on a daily basis. From previous experience, the capacity cap could be extended as Schiphol continues to suffer from a lack of ground staff.
Business Traveller will report later on plans for the new Centraal terminal.