Arriva Netherlands, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn, wants to launch a Netherlands-France rail link on the Groningen-Paris North route via Amsterdam, Schiphol, Rotterdam and Brussels, its first cross-border connection.
The Dutch government has set a deadline of 10 June for rail operators to bid for services on the international routes. Arriva Netherlands has also seized this opportunity and has submitted an application to the Dutch Consumer and Markets Authority. The operator wants to operate its first Open Access international train service between the cities of Groningen in the north of the Netherlands and the French capital Paris. The line would run via Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Brussels and Paris.
The Open Access title means that the carrier bears all the costs of launching its route, operating it and related services, without requiring any state subsidy.
Arriva wins rail contract in the Netherlands
Timetable of the Netherlands-France train services
If all authorisations are granted, Arriva plans to operate the service daily from June 2026, with a total journey time of just over five hours between Groningen and Paris.
In addition to the daily round trip, Arriva will also offer a third daily connection between Amsterdam and Paris in the middle of the day. The project also includes a stop at Schiphol airport to facilitate connections between ten and the plane.
The train will leave Groningen at 05.30 and will stop at Zwolle, Almere, Amsterdam South, Schiphol, Rotterdam Central, Antwerp Central, Brussels South and will arrive at its final destination, Paris Gare du Nord, at 10.40. On the return journey, the train will leave Paris at 19.15 and arrive in Groningen at around 00.30.
Arriva Netherlands plans to make further requests for rail connections between the Netherlands, Belgium and France. If it wins this service connection, Arriva will provide serious competition to Eurostar between Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.
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