Dutch rail freight volumes have dropped significantly in 2023. The overall number shrunk by nearly 12 per cent to 39,3 million tonnes. The setback follows record year 2022, when 44,5 million tonnes of freight traversed the Dutch railways. 

The 12 per cent decline is reported by the Dutch statistics agency (CBS), and is even worse than the 10 per cent decrease reported by infrastructure manager ProRail earlier this year. The latter attributed the negative trend to a “return to normal”, citing lower demand for coal after European countries replaced Russian gas for other sources. It also cited the end of diversions from Belgium, infrastructure works and global economic trends as factors explaining the decline in volumes.

The majority of freight on the Dutch rail network transits the country on the way to the European hinterland. With a decline of 12 per cent, the volume of transiting freight shrunk by the same amount as the total volume and amounted to 24 million tonnes. According to CBS, it was the volume of coal travelling to Germany which shrunk in particular, at 22 per cent. This data seems to corroborate ProRail’s earlier report that the replacement of Russian gas plays a significant role in the decline of Dutch rail freight.

The total volume of transported coal showed a similar decline at 22,1 per cent. Metal ores, metals and chemical products likewise showed declines at 4,6 per cent, 10 per cent and 3,7 per cent respectively.

Imports and exports

Container transport, which accounts for 44 per cent of all rail freight, also registered negative numbers. The majority of these containers are destined for Germany and Italy. The volume of container freight decreased by 11,5 per cent to 17,3 million tonnes. The number of transported containers also shrunk by 11,5 per cent. The largest decline in container numbers, however, is seen in domestic traffic at 28 per cent.

Exports account for the lion’s share of the Dutch rail freight volumes decline. Nevertheless, imports via rail also declined by 4 per cent and amounted to 10,1 million tonnes. The Dutch statistics agency says that primarily metal ores, mining products and container goods accounted for the import decline. On the other hand, imports of agricultural products, forestry and fisheries grew by 45 per cent.

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