May 27, 2022
The French government is working on a project to provide the poorest inhabitants with an electric car at a cost of 100 euros per month. The proposal, first proposed by the Socialist candidate and mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo and promised by newly elected president Emmanuel Macron during his first campaign speech on 17 March, […]
May 25, 2022
The Flemish government must pay environmental organization Greenpeace a penalty of 850 000 euros. The Air Policy Plan drawn up after a judgment by the Brussels Court of First Instance does not meet the requirements of that judgment, Greenpeace reports. “Flanders still does not have a sufficiently ambitious air action plan,” the organization denounces. No […]
May 25, 2022
The majority of Shell shareholders support the oil and gas company’s plans to reduce its emissions and become climate-neutral by 2050. However, a resolution by activist shareholder Follow This to force Shell to set even stronger climate targets did not get the majority of votes and received less support than last year. The annual meeting […]
May 24, 2022
Road safety institute Vias advocates the rapid introduction of a driving license based on points to which measures and judicial sanctions are automatically linked up to a certain level. This is stated in a study commissioned by Federal Minister of Mobility Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo), and for which a comparison was made with the practices of […]
May 24, 2022
The decision has been made on the almost 18-year-old plans for a tram connection between Hasselt and Maastricht: the Flemish government is shelving the plans for an express tram between the two Limburg capitals. Instead, there will be an electric tram bus with maximum free bedding. In the longer term, the aim is fully autonomous […]
May 23, 2022
In 2021, there were 41,1 million trucks, mostly foreign, on Belgium’s roads. Never before has this number been so high. This is evident from the report for its operating year drawn up by Viapass, the organisation that manages the kilometer charge for trucks in Belgium. Consequently, revenues for the kilometer charge are also peaking: 822 […]
May 23, 2022
Belgian Minister of Mobility Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo) wants the penalties for speeding to be more proportionate to the seriousness of the offence and the risk to other road users, especially the most vulnerable. It is no coincidence that the Minister is launching this trial balloon now. Accident statistics are not good in Belgium. The figures […]
May 20, 2022
Flemish Minister of Mobility Lydia Peeters (Open VLD) wants to have people who buy an electric bike guided to a training course by the salesperson. The Minister wants to do that to counter the rising accident figures. One in four of the victims of an injury accident in Flanders in the first three months of […]
May 20, 2022
The Brussels government has launched a project call to boost the rollout of charging stations for electric vehicles. All owners of private car parks in Brussels have a chance of receiving a subsidy on the condition that their charging stations run on green electricity, are public, and are accessible 24/7. This has been confirmed by […]
May 19, 2022
Together with Denmark, Germany, and The Netherlands, Belgium will increase the capacity of wind turbines in the North Sea tenfold by 2050, to a total capacity of 150 gigawatts. Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open VLD) signed an agreement on this on Wednesday in Esbjerg, Denmark. The sky-high energy prices and the ongoing military conflict […]
May 19, 2022
After more than six years, high-speed train operator Thalys is canceling its IZY low-cost offer. With the IZY trains, you could travel between Brussels and Paris for 10 euros, although it took an hour longer because it did not run on high-speed rail in France. On 10 July, IZY will run for the last time. […]
May 12, 2022
More than a third of Belgian companies will not make the switch to a fully electric car park by 2026, the deadline the government is setting for new company vehicles sold to be electric. This is shown by an online survey by insurer AON and FLEET Magazine. The reasons are diverse, the 200 respondents say. […]
May 11, 2022
A new trial involving nearly 400 families living in the area affected by noise pollution from flights of Brussels National Airport is targeting the Belgian government. The civil lawsuit, led by the civic organizations Wake up Crainhem and AWACSS, has been launched at the Brussels Court of First Instance, writes the newspaper La Libre Belgique. […]
May 10, 2022
Brussels public transport company MIVB/STIB has offered 30 decommissioned buses to Cuba. It concerns 20 Van Hool A330 D1 buses and 10 Mercedes Citaro articulated buses. They are Euro 4 buses, which, under the low-emission zone (LEZ), are no longer allowed in the Brussels region from 1 January 2022. According to the newspaper La Dernière […]
May 09, 2022
Luring more people and companies on the train, with a connection every 15 minutes around the big cities. These are some of the spearheads of Railway Vision 2040, the plan with which Minister of Mobility Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo) wants to guide the Belgian railway policy for the next 20 years. The Council of Ministers approved […]
May 06, 2022
The new version of the Brussels’Air premium, which has been awarded to motorists who give up their car in the capital since the beginning of March, is a great success. So says the Brussels Minister responsible for Climate Transition Alain Maron (Ecolo). On Tuesday, Brussels Environment handed out the 700th premium, which in two months […]
May 06, 2022
Brussels Airlines has again posted a red figure of -62 million euros in the first three months of 2022. Although this is an 11% improvement compared to the previous year, and the first quarter is traditionally the lowest-performing period of the year in the aviation sector, the airline is still experiencing the consequences of the […]
May 05, 2022
According to a new study by the Walloon Road Safety Agency (AWSR), published on the occasion of a new awareness-raising campaign being held throughout May, one in 20 drivers follow online meetings while driving. The proportion of this new phenomenon even rises to one in six for those in management positions. The inhabitants of Walloon […]
May 05, 2022
Starting this week, passengers can again take the Waterbus between Brussels and Vilvoorde through the canal. Weekly operations come first, from July the service is extended to the weekend. From 2 May to 31 October, the Vivaldi Waterbus will run every weekday between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. and between 1 July and 15 August […]
May 04, 2022
D’Ieteren Group’s head office in Ixelles/Elsene will look different in the future. The Belgian importer and seller of brands such as Volkswagen and Audi is proposing a transformation project to prepare its headquarters for the future while maintaining its roots and presence in Brussels. Owned by the D’Ieteren family since 1906, the rue du Mail […]
May 03, 2022
The Flemish Government wants to continue to focus on alternatives to road transport, with companies choosing the proper mode of transportation for each flow of goods. It is extending the Multimodal Flanders project by five years until 2027. The organization behind the project, the Flemish Logistics Innovation Center (VIL), reported this. Transport via rail or […]
May 03, 2022
Daimler Truck, Europe’s leading manufacturer of buses and coaches, plans to turn the page on diesel-powered city buses by 2030, aiming for a 100% electric offering that will rely, in part, on hydrogen. The German group, which has sold some 600 e-buses out of a total of 18 700 units in 2021, only wants rechargeable […]
May 02, 2022
On Friday, the RATP, the Autonomous Management of Parisian Transport, temporarily removed 149 electric buses from circulation as a precaution. The reason is two recent fires in such vehicles in the middle of the street in the French capital. The vehicles involved are from the Bolloré Bluebus 5SE series. On Friday, an e-bus running on […]
April 29, 2022
The Brussels Government had definitively approved the Master Plan for the Delta-Herrmann-Debroux area. The main ambition of this urban project is to redevelop the E411 axis into an urban boulevard, put an end to highways in the heart of the region, and reconnect neighborhoods that, although neighboring, are very little connected. The Brussels Government had […]
April 29, 2022
The Brussels Government is raising its ambitions to reduce greenhouse gas from 40 to 47% by 2030 compared to 2005. To this end, subsidies for gas-fired condensing boilers will be abolished in 2023, and the move away from fossil fuels will be accelerated without waiting for the next legislature. This emerges from the policy guidelines […]
April 29, 2022
The metro station Albert in Forrest will be linked directly to the university districts (ULB-VUB) of Ixelles. The Brussels Region and the Brussels transport company MIVB/STIB have agreed on this. The Brussels Government, on the other hand, has definitively approved the draft ordinance on taxi services of Minister-President Rudi Vervoort (PS). The text now goes […]
April 28, 2022
From 1 May, parking in the center of Brussels will become more expensive, to discourage long-term parking and encourage drivers to use public car parks. In addition, a second resident card will become more expensive. The local council of Brussels approved these new parking regulations in December last year, but they will come into effect […]
April 27, 2022
In 84% of e-scooter accidents, the user is the only one involved, and the condition of the road, the light, and driving under the influence are often the cause. One-third of the victims were drunk. This is shown by a study on e-scooter accidents carried out for a year among patients admitted to the emergency […]
April 27, 2022
The number of people traveling, especially by train, will reach a ceiling in Belgium in the coming years due to the widespread use of teleworking and the aging of the population. Specifically for commuter traffic, the train would even lose 20% of passenger kilometers by 2040. But on the other hand, the Belgian Federal Planning […]
April 26, 2022
Last year, the Brussels Region paid out 771 547 euros in compensation for the poor state of the roads. Two hundred ten complaints were handled, 107 following incidents on the Ring Road. Also, five motorcyclists, 13 pedestrians, 19 cyclists, and three scooter users suffered damage due to the bad condition of the road. Although it […]
April 25, 2022
Since the start of the kilometer charge for trucks in 2016, nearly 64 million euros in Flemish fines have been issued. However, almost 21 million euros of that budget has yet to be received. The information came to light upon request from Flemish parliamentary group chairman Peter Van Rompuy (CD&V), who interjected Flemish Finance Minister […]
April 22, 2022
Flemish transport company De Lijn will order 99 electric buses worth 66,5 million euros next year. The delivery of the new buses should allow the old diesel buses, Euro 3 and 4, to be put aside by 2025. The Brussels transport company MIVB/STIB must also renew its fleet of buses that run on thermal engines: […]
April 21, 2022
From 1 January 2023, Belgium will ban smoking on station platforms of railway company NMBS/SNCB. On Wednesday, the Chamber’s Mobility Committee approved a bill proposed by the green fraction for this purpose. According to the authors, a similar measure is already in place in the Netherlands, with success. NMBS/SNCB supports the decision to make platforms […]
April 19, 2022
The Mexican parliament yesterday approved a law as a first step to nationalize the country’s lithium reserves, the primary metal used for EV batteries today. According to the specialized website Mining technology, Mexico has significant resources in the northern state of Sonora. In Bacadéhuachi, in the state of Sonora, the Anglo-Canadian exploration company Bacanora Minerals […]
April 15, 2022
In Flanders and Brussels, the rates for the kilometer charge for trucks will be increased on 1 July. It is an index adjustment. In Wallonia, the tariffs for the toll were indexed on 1 January. Viapass, the public body that coordinates and monitors the kilometer charge in Belgium, also reports that no paying toll roads […]
April 14, 2022
Billy Bike, the Brussels-based shared electric bicycle operator, is forced to go through a juridical reorganization. Due to the pandemic crisis, in which social and cultural life was at a low ebb, the company had to seek protection from the Brussels business court at the end of March, the newspaper L’Echo writes. The lawyer, Emmanuelle […]
April 13, 2022
OKAI, a Chinese multinational that has built its reputation as one of the largest e-scooter and e-bike sharing service providers, launches its first consumer-oriented e-bike: the OKAI Stride. The company, with production facilities in Jinhua, Zhejiang and European headquarters in Berlin, is best known as the supplier of e-bikes to big sharing platforms like Lime […]
April 11, 2022
An increasing share of newly purchased electric cars in the Netherlands goes to private consumers. More than half (52%) of the 12 385 new EVs registered were for private use in the past three months. In this first quarter, 4 327 EVs were bought by private individuals, 2 181 through a private lease. In the […]
April 08, 2022
Passengers using Brussels public transport have given MIVB/STIB an overall score of 7,3 out of 10 on its annual satisfaction barometer. MIVB/STIB is satisfied, especially since the number of commuters on the tram, metro, and bus is again rising, and traffic jams have returned to the capital. Over the past two years, MIVB/STIB has taken […]
April 07, 2022
The VAT on bicycles and e-bikes will not be reduced to 6% in Belgium, according to a Royal Decree published in the Belgian Official Journal on Wednesday. Instead, the government now wants to use the reserved budget of 80 million euros for alternative mobility policies to promote cycling in commuting. The House had unanimously approved […]
April 06, 2022
Almost a fortnight ago, Elon Musk posted critical tweets on Twitter about the social media platform. Still, it didn’t stop the Tesla boss from becoming Twitter’s biggest shareholder buying a 9,2% stake. After the announcement, the messaging service’s shares rose 26% in premarket trading. A day later, Twitter announced it welcomed Musk to its Advisory […]
April 04, 2022
The Belgian government will be releasing 240 million euros to promote commuting by bicycle in the coming years. This was decided during the budget review, says Minister of Mobility Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo). In addition, the government will also release 30 million euros to ease the transport cost of employees. And last but not least, public […]
April 01, 2022
Two-thirds or 70% of Belgians are in favor of more sustainable mobility. Not surprisingly, the bicycle is the symbol of soft mobility for most Belgian road users. Plus: Belgians are mainly deterred from buying an electric car by the cost and the lack of charging stations. This is the conclusion of the first mobility barometer […]
March 31, 2022
Carrefour will install 3 000 charging points for electric vehicles in the car parks of its 400-plus Carrefour Market supermarkets by 2025. On Wednesday, the French multinational retail corporation announced that the franchise supermarkets should also be equipped. According to the press release, Carrefour will thus become France’s leading electric charging network, with more than […]
March 31, 2022
The Flemish public transport company De Lijn has launched procedures to purchase hundreds of electric buses, possibly up to 1 250. It involves buses of all sizes, ranging from 8 to 24 meters in length. De Lijn confirmed this on Wednesday, following the European Tender Journal publications. De Lijn’s ambition is to make its fleet […]
March 29, 2022
More Belgians are willing to cycle to work and receive a bicycle allowance, with the number of workers getting this allowance rising to 12,24%. But last year, due to the pandemic and massive teleworking, bicycle allowances and travel fell by more than a fifth (22%). This is what SD Worx, the largest payroll calculator in […]
March 28, 2022
With an operating loss of 401,9 million euros, the Belgian railway company NMBS/SNCB hit an even bigger loss last year, its second coronary year, than in 2020. However, thanks to the government’s intervention, which provided compensation of more than 300 million euros, the operational loss could be contained to 98,1 million euros. The outlook isn’t […]
March 28, 2022
Driving suitability center CARA, a subdivision of the traffic institute Vias, has given negative advice to 543 persons in 2021. The number corresponds to 11,6% of the 4 660 files from the Flemish region that were handled. Almost half of the people whom CARA deemed fit for driving had to make one or more adjustments […]
March 25, 2022
Amid a successful crowdfunding campaign, it came to light that Belgian bicycle manufacturer Cowboy booked a considerable loss last year, exceeding its turnover. The financial results were published in documents the company made available to possible investors from a crowdfunding round. According to the preliminary figures, the net loss in 2020 doubled from 11,7 million […]
March 24, 2022
All roads lead to Rome, so the saying goes, and that cliché is once again confirmed. The Via Romae, also known as the Euro Velo 5 cycle route, now crosses the heart of Brussels. On Wednesday, Brussels Mobility Minister Elke Van den Brandt (Groen) inaugurated the new road signs at the Cinquantenaire Park that show […]
March 23, 2022
In Saint-Gilles, cargo bikes have replaced the trams in the former Belgrade workshop of the public transport company MIVB/STIB. The Brussels-based cyclo-logistics cooperative Urbike has taken up residence there, the result of a call for projects before the building is completely renovated. Urbike is one of the reference companies in delivering goods by cargo bicycle. […]
March 21, 2022
In general, the air quality in the Brussels region is better than expected. However, standards are still exceeded in the capital center and the vicinity of significant traffic axes. The results were obtained from CurieuzenAir, the most extensive air quality study of Brussels. As part of the CurieuzenAir project, air quality measurements were taken at 3 […]
March 18, 2022
By 2026, more than 600 of the 700 traffic lights installed along the regional road network in Wallonia will become smart traffic lights. The intervention should ensure that buses are given priority at intersections and that traffic flows more smoothly. On Thursday, the Walloon Government approved a contract to modernize traffic lights, announced Walloon Mobility […]
March 18, 2022
Trucks that draw their electricity from overhead wires on the highway are a way to make road freight transport independent of fossil fuels. Interim results of a study by the Flemish Institute for Logistics (VIL) show that trucks under electric catenary are a “feasible and profitable climate solution”. Every euro invested in this climate solution […]
March 17, 2022
Until 30 June, buses on the E5 express line between Nivelles and Namur will be able to take non-folding bicycles from commuters, either in the loading space or on a bike rack installed at the back of the bus. This is a pilot experiment of the Walloon public transport service TEC, intended to evaluate the […]
March 16, 2022
The noisiest and heaviest aircraft must be banned from Brussels Airport. That is what the Federal Ombudsman for the national airport, Philippe Touwaide, has stated at a press conference on Tuesday. “There are infringements every night, and we don’t pursue them,” Touwaide said, citing the case of noisy aircraft such as Boeing 777s at night […]
March 14, 2022
The Brussels Parliament has approved the proposal to better regulate shared e-scooters, bikes, and mopeds. The text provides compulsory parking in drop zones, reduced speed in pedestrian zones, and stricter enforcement. The latter is meant to tackle the nuisance of e-scooters lying around and the lack of safety in pedestrian zones. From now on, there […]
March 11, 2022
Belgian bus manufacturer Van Hool from Koningshooikt (Lier) may build at least 56 tram-buses that will run in Paris. The electric vehicles will be charged using an in-built fast-charging system. A world-first, says the company. Van Hool is working on this with French Alstom and German Kiepe Electric. The consortium, where Van Hool is the […]
March 10, 2022
The high electricity prices cost Belgian railway company NMBS/SNCB tens of millions euros. According to Mobility Minister Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo), NMNS/SNCB estimates the total additional costs compared to 2020 at more than 61,5 million euros. The country’s largest electricity user, the railway company expects the cost of electricity for train traction (i.e., to run the […]
March 07, 2022
Will going on vacation by car become a luxury that only the rich can afford? There’s a chance of that if you look at the current record prices at the pump because they have risen 100% in five years. Newspaper La Dernière Heure did the calculations. A motorist who limits himself to a full 50 […]
