Some 175,000 people have bought the Netherlands’ cheap summer train pass in the two weeks since it went on sale, rail operator NS has said.

Passengers have travelled more than 9 million kilometres on the pass so far, or a little over 50 kilometres each on average.

The €49-a-month pass, which launched on June 15, covers off-peak travel on all domestic train services, both NS and regional operators. It normally costs nearly €128 a month, with the government making up the difference.

Those who bought before July 1 can use it for two full months, while anyone buying during July gets a maximum of one. The discount runs until September 1.

The scheme is intended to encourage people to take the train instead of the car while fuel prices are high. Off-peak covers weekdays before 6.30am, between 9am and 4pm and after 6.30pm, and all day at weekends.