Travel information for operators
Travel information for operators comes in various forms. NS provides travel information at stations for all rail operators. The government has appointed NS to ensure that services are distributed fairly and equally. The DCRI was established to oversee this process.
DCRI stands for Travel Information Service Centre. This organisation acts as the link between NS, which provides travel information, and the rail operators. The DCRI operates according to clear agreements on processes, tasks and responsibilities, all set out in a Governance document.
What does the DCRI do?
The DCRI ensures that services are fair, reliable and transparent in terms of costs. It treats commercially sensitive information confidentially. The DCRI acts as a central point of contact for rail operators to request new service developments and to report disruptions. It also manages the Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with NS and the agreements on travel information with the rail operators. Disruptions are recorded, assigned, and their status reported back to the operators. The DCRI also provides regular reports on the quality and finances of the services.
Scope of the services
The DCRI is responsible for creating and distributing:
- Announcements at stations, both automatic and made by announcement staff
- Travel information on the dynamic station displays, powered by InfoPlus
- Source data about timetables and their changes for NDOV counters (National Public Transport Data), for example in case of delays or platform changes
The DCRI is also responsible for the functional, application and technical management of the travel information systems. However, ProRail manages the dynamic displays and announcement systems themselves.
Each year, the DCRI prepares a summary of costs and revenues for the rail operators, with quarterly meetings held to discuss these figures. Coordination with the rail operators follows a fixed procedure as outlined in the Governance document.
The DCRI consists of a small team of NS employees who carry out this role part-time. The DCRI is not an independent legal entity and is not a contracting party.
DCRI contacts:
- Manager DCRI: Dieuwertje van Egmond
- Account manager: Maaike Bögels
- Service manager: Ariene van den Blink
- Process- and financial manager: Gert Droogendijk
Travel information agreement and fare methodology
As a new user of travel information at stations, you enter into a standard agreement with NS that is the same for all transport providers. The fares consist of two parts: the cost base and the allocation key.
The allocation key works as follows:
- All stops are recorded.
- Stops are categorised according to ProRail’s station classification.
- Stops at larger stations carry more weight than those at smaller stops, as there are more travel information and waiting facilities.
- Before 1 November, the DCRI sets the fare for the upcoming timetable year based on the stop data provided by ProRail. This is communicated to rail operators.
Want to receive travel information? Get in touch
If you are a new passenger transport provider and want your trains to appear on the dynamic station displays, please contact us at DCRI@ns.nl. The access procedure is described in the ‘Rules of the Game’.
NS can also provide other types of travel information, such as printed departure boards. These fall outside the DCRI offer and must be arranged separately with NS. You can find more information about this in the Rules of the Game as well.