It was already known that the Belgian railroad company NMBS/SNCB will add up to 2 000 additional trains per week in the 2023-2026 transport plan and that there will also be late trains on Friday and Saturday evenings. However, NMBS/SNCB is developing a concrete update for the Brussels Region.

For example, 26 stations in Brussels will get a better offer; there will be better connections between several major cities, more frequent suburban trains (the so-called S-trains), and extra late trains – until 2 a.m. – to and from the capital on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Better night offer

From December 2024, for example, extra late trains will run on Friday and Saturday nights until after 1 a.m. This will make it easier to travel in the late hours between the capital, neighboring municipalities, and other cities in Belgium.

For example, the last S-train to Leuven currently departs around 11:30 p.m. With the renewed offer, that, too, will be 01:30 p.m. The same goes for Antwerp and Ottignies, or the university city Louvain-la-Neuve.

From December 2024, the last train to those cities will depart at 01:45 p.m., whereas currently, it is around 11:45 p.m. In the opposite direction, there will be an extra late train from Antwerp to Brussels on Fridays and Saturdays.

Later departures

Trains to Wallonia will also depart later in the evening. The last S trains on Friday and Saturday night toward Nivelles, Braine-le-Comte, and Ottignies will leave one to three hours later, allowing you to easily stay in the capital until 1 and 2 at night. A total of forty additional trains will thus be used to and from the capital after midnight as of December 2024.

Last year, by the way, the railroad company put 13 stranded passengers in a cab every day because the connecting train was canceled late at night when changing trains or because a train delay meant that the connection to the last train was missed.

In such situations, NMBS must make sure that, as a traveler, you still get to your destination. According to Gazet van Antwerpen newspaper, NMBS/SNCB put some 4 900 stranded passengers into a cab last year – cost: 217 000 euros.

Better connections

Furthermore, the S offer between Brussels and several cities in the close or far periphery will also be extended during the weekend. This applies, for example, to the connection between Aalst and Brussels-Luxembourg (European district), between Brussels, Jette, and Dendermonde.

From June 2024, it will also become easier to reach the European district on weekdays by train from Ottignies, Aalst, and Halle, while from Halle and Merode (Brussels), it will be easier to track to Vilvoorde and Mechelen. In each case, the plan is to adjust frequencies upward with two trains per hour instead of the current one.

Investments in stations

Between now and 2032, NMBS/SNCB is also planning significant investments in several Brussels stations to improve intermodality, accessibility, and comfort for travelers.

In 20 Brussels stations, NMBS/SNCB plans to improve accessibility for persons with reduced mobility by raising the platforms, installing guidelines for the visually impaired, or installing elevators. In addition, in 13 stations, bicycle parking spaces will be renewed and expanded, and in four stations, car parking spaces will be restored.

Suburban network still underused

NMBS/SNCB will also conduct communication campaigns to raise awareness of this extended offer and the rail offer in general because this mobility solution remains too little known. For example, the capital has no less than 35 train stations, but this extensive suburban network is still underused in terms of potential.

In general, the NMBS/SNCB wants to increase the number of bicycle parking spaces throughout the country by 50 000 to 164 000, the number of car parking spaces by 5 000 to 80 000, and double the number of stations accessible to persons with reduced mobility to 176.

According to Minister of Mobility Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo), train supply across the country will increase by 7,4% over the next three years. “That means 200 additional trains per day, 175 stations served more often, during the week and on weekends, and 119 stations with extended schedules, especially on Friday and Saturday evenings around major cities,” the minister says in the newspaper Le Soir.