The information added to the signs comes from travelers from a customer survey.
The Dutch Railways is constantly innovating, developing and improving. For example, they are currently working on the further development of the platform signs. We all know them, platform signs with the time and destination of the train. These boards are getting more and more extensive in terms of information. Where previously only the destination and the time of the train were listed, it now states, for example, what kind of train it is, in which direction the train departs and how long the train is.
From now on, the departure time of the train can be seen alternately with a minute counter at the top left of the platform board. The minute counter indicates how much time travelers have until the train departs. On the platform signs, the minute counter counts down from 5 minutes. On the signs at the escalator, this is from 7 minutes, to inform travelers on the escalators earlier about the number of minutes they have left before the train departs. From 59 seconds before the scheduled departure time, travelers will see “0 minutes” on the platform sign.
The platform sign at the top right shows what kind of train is departing with the logo of the relevant carrier. The final destination of the train is shown below the departure time. It is possible that there are two place names with an arrow in between. The first place name is an important intermediate destination where the train stops. The second place name is the final destination of the train. The place names listed under the intermediate destination and final destination are places where the train stops. Below the place names is an image of a train, here you can see how many parts and compartments the train consists of and how long the train is.
There are letter signs above the train, which correspond to the signs on the platform and where the train will be parked along the platform. Currently, 20 stations are equipped with these letter signs. What is also very useful is the arrow that is in front of or behind the image of the train on the platform board. This arrow indicates in which direction the train is departing when you are standing directly in front of the train. The NS is not yet finished with the signs, for example they are still working on displaying features of a compartment (toilet, wheelchair spaces, etc.). The information added to the signs comes from travelers from a customer survey. The extensive information on the signs should offer travelers more certainty and peace of mind.
