His Majesty the King of The Netherlands, and the dutch State Secretary Heijnen of Infrastructure and Water Management, paid a working visit to the NS maintenance company in Amsterdam, and the training center of mobility company Transdev in Haarlem on Thursday May 23. The visit was dedicated to the people working on the accessibility of The Netherlands. During the working visit, the challenges around labour shortages and dealing with aggression in public transport were discussed.
The visit started at NS’ Watergraafsmeer maintenance company, which carries out preventive maintenance as well as repair work on domestic and international trains. The King and the State Secretary talked to mechanics about their work, and during a guided tour the maintenance mechanics showed, among other things, how they grind so-called square train wheels back into shape and how they maintain the latest intercity trains. The visit to the maintenance company ended with a conversation about the increasing tightness in the labour market. It is increasingly difficult for NS to attract technical staff, while technology in trains is becoming more important.
The group then moved to training centre Transdev Academy in Haarlem, on a Transdev teaching bus. During the ride, staff shortages and initiatives to recruit new drivers, to avoid having to adjust timetables or cancel bus routes, are discussed. Along the way, they also talked to lateral entrants who joined Transdev as drivers from another profession.
At the training centre, the King and the State Secretary joined a lesson for new drivers and then spoke with experienced drivers about conflict situations they have experienced, how they deal with aggression and stress and about de-escalation.
Finally, King Willem-Alexander and State Secretary Heijnen attended a lesson on dealing with aggression and talk to the students about their experiences and expectations.
In The Netherlands, Transdev is the parent company of bus company Hermes and bus, train and taxi company Connexxion, among others. At the training centre in Haarlem, employees take both individual and classroom training courses and are also taught in the various vehicles.