Belgium approves plan to double rail freight transport by 2030
The action plan in Belgium to double the volume of rail freight transport by 2030 has been approved by the government. On Friday 30 September, the Council of Ministers approved the plan that was proposed...Read more
Belgian railways next to offer steep discounts
Starting on Friday, Belgian operator NMBS/SNCB will offer a monthly train pass at half price for domestic train travel. The move is intended to entice people to use the train for their daily commutes. The...Read more
RailTech Belgium 2023: Save the date for our new event concept
RailTech.com is launching a new event concept, RailTech Belgium: A two-day event including a networking evening, and a one-day pop-up exhibition accompanied by workshops as well as a separate high-level conference programme. The first edition...Read more
‘Rail is the perfect use case for assistance and autonomous technology’
Partner contentCAF and OTIV launched a joint project in July to test advanced driver assistance features for trams. For OTIV, a Belgian provider of autonomous technology for rail, the cooperation marks the next development step towards...Read more
Thalys services stripped down following ‘operational incidents’
Thalys will be offering less services across the Netherlands, Belgium and France “in the coming weeks” as a result of two “operational incidents” earlier this month. This necessitated two additional trains going into maintenance.Read more
These ETCS projects are selected to receive European subsidy
The European Commission has selected 135 transport infrastructure projects to receive subsidies from CEF transport, an EU funding instrument with a budget of 5,4 billion euros for this round. Eighteen of the selected projects are...Read more
Additional high-speed trains from the Netherlands unlikely in coming years
It will not be until 2036 that capacity will increase on the Dutch high-speed railway HSL to accommodate additional international trains, state secretary for infrastructure and water management Vivianne Heijen told parliament this week.Read more
Belgium pulls the plug on cross-border tram to the Netherlands, to the dismay of the Dutch
Not a new tram connection, but electric buses should improve public transport between Hasselt (Belgium) and Maastricht (the Netherlands). At least, that is what the Flemish government decided, though their Dutch colleagues are not too...Read more
What happens in Ghent’s part of North Sea Port to increase rail capacity?
The port of Ghent, part of the broader North Sea Port complex in Belgium, experiences a boom in rail investments. The Belgian government and Infrabel, the country’s infrastructure manager, are on a mission to renew...Read more
Will continued pandemic-related rail support help in reaching 2030 goals?
Pandemic-related support schemes for the railway sector via adjusted track access charges could be a longer-term measure to support the modal shift to rail. This was discussed at last week’s Track Access Charges Summit held...Read more
Netherlands earmarks 105 million euros for cross-border rail in North Sea Port
The cross-border rail freight project in North Sea Port that connects Zeelandic Flanders (Zeeuws-Vlaanderen) with Ghent will receive 105 million euros from the Dutch Growth Fund (Groeifonds). With this, the Dutch government underlines the importance...Read more
Unclear when new Dutch cross-border trains will hit Belgian tracks
Dutch Railways (NS) is in the proces of introducing its next-generation intercity trains, the ICNG. The so-called ICNGB will also cross into Belgium. Manufacturer Alstom on Friday provided an update regarding its introduction.Read more
The lessons Infrabel learned from the flood: ‘We had never expected the rail embankments to become so unstable’
“The flooding of last year was the worst disaster we ever experienced on the Belgian railways”, said civil engineer at Infrabel Bart Kamoen at the RailTech webinar on Climate Change Adaptation. How did Infrabel deal...Read more