Customer satisfaction

To provide a high-quality passenger experience, three core needs of passengers must be satisfied: they must feel that they have control over their journey, are free to make their own choices and are appreciated. We meet these core needs by providing high-value and personalised services.

Customer satisfaction with the main rail network and the high-speed line

Since 2021, we have measured general customer satisfaction levels using the Public Transport Customer Barometer (OVKB). The figure for 2023 will be published on the CROW (new window)website in late February 2024.

IT outage at ProRail in June

On 4 June, there was a failure in the ICT systems of ProRail’s traffic control centre in Amsterdam. As a result, from 5 pm on that day until 9 am on Monday 5 June there were very few train services to or from Amsterdam. Despite the efforts of staff from NS, ProRail and our partners in the chain to fix the problems and assist passengers, the impact of this disruption was huge. Many passengers were unable to travel or did not arrive at their destinations. Around 4,000 passengers were stranded in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam, The Hague or at Schiphol on the night of 4–5 June. This was obviously far below the level of service that passengers are entitled to expect from us. NS and ProRail have evaluated the events and are taking measures.
Both will implement improvements to reduce the risk of a recurrence, improve forecasts, resolve IT failures faster and inform and accommodate passengers more effectively.

Clean trains

Passengers expect to travel in a clean train and are dissatisfied when they find the train to be dirty. Unfortunately, in 2023, both the interior and exterior of the trains were not always clean. This was partly due to the limited availability of cleaning staff and of the staff who take trains to the right place for cleaning, prepare for work to be done on a train or manage the logistics. We are also struggling with yards that are full to capacity, while several train-washing facilities are in need of an upgrade. Labour market shortages in the cleaning industry will remain a challenge in the years ahead. Together with our cleaning partners, we made a commitment to hire and retain more cleaners. This resulted in an increase in available capacity from September. Since then, we have been cleaning more often and in a more targeted way within the timetable.

Customer service and social media interaction

In 2023, 74% of customers gave our Customer Service department a score of 7 out of 10 or higher (2022: 77%). Major disruptions in train services and higher passenger numbers compared with 2022 put additional pressure on Customer Service. Because of our desire to support our passengers as much as we possibly can, we decided to invest in self-service solutions. Examples include the implementation of a chatbot and the automated handling of refund requests in the event of delays.

Refunds in the event of delays

In 2023, NS refunded passengers when delays occurred and reimbursed the costs of alternative transport, taxi fares and hotel accommodation. Occasions in 2023 when NS compensated passengers included the outage at ProRail’s traffic control centre. In total, NS accepted 288,345 refund claims due to delays in 2023 (totalling €3.1 million). Compensation for alternative transport, taxi fares and hotel accommodation was granted in 142,175 cases (totalling €3.6 million)