Motorists, rail commuters face long delays

7 October 2004

AMSTERDAM — Dutch motorists encountered long delays on Thursday morning due to road works and rail commuters had their share of problems also.

Road works that are behind schedule caused havoc on the A2 motorway between Den Bosch and Utrecht very early in the day. A 17km long tailback developed at the Everdingen junction by 6.30am with two of the three lanes closed due to the road works.

Motorists were advised of an alternative route, but most decided to stay on course — right into the traffic jam, traffic information centre TIC said. The tailbacks continued right through the morning rush hour.

Meanwhile, train travel between Roosendaal in the south of the Netherlands and Essen Belgium has been disrupted since Wednesday evening when a train hit a delivery van.

The 55-year-old driver of the van was admitted with serious injuries to a hospital in Roosendaal.

Also, train services from Schiedam and Delft suffered considerable delays on Thursday morning when a cow walked onto the rail line.

The crew of an Intercity train tried to persuade the animal to leave the tracks, but their efforts failed. Eventually it took 10 police officers to get the cow to return to a field nearby and train services resumed at 9.45am, Novum Nieuws reported.

Spokesman John Krijgsman of Dutch rail operator NS said cattle on the tracks was an increasing problem and this incident in particular had “considerable consequences” given that it had occurred on one of the busiest rail lines in the Netherlands.

He said the NS would investigate if the owner of the wandering cow could be held responsible for Thursday’s delay.

Subject: Dutch news