September 23, 2022
The circulation plan in the Cureghem district of the Brussels commune Anderlecht has caused quite a commotion in recent days. The municipal council had to be broken off, disgruntled residents sabotaged, and there is uncertainty about how to proceed. As a result, the decision may be reversed instead of being ratified in the coming days. […]
September 22, 2022
When the Good Move plan and the new parking ordinance were introduced in Brussels, it was already clear that 53% of Brussels households do not own a car on average. That average rises to 70% among the poorest quarter of the population. Still, there are nearly half a million cars registered in Brussels. A new […]
September 21, 2022
Punch Powertrain, the Chinese-owned Belgian manufacturer of fuel-efficient powertrains, will set up with carmaker Stellantis a new production unit for gearboxes for hybrid cars at the historic Fiat plant in Mirafiori near Turin. That production should start in the second half of 2024. Financial details of the investment were not disclosed, but, according to Reuters, […]
September 21, 2022
Government party Open Vld wants the Fleming to be able to travel unlimitedly by bus or tram during the winter months for one euro a day. This reports De Morgen, and the news has been confirmed to press agency Belga. According to De Morgen, Flemish Mobility Minister Lydia Peeters (Open Vld) has put a striking […]
September 20, 2022
Mobility Minister Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo) has given the go-ahead to establish so-called ‘middle lanes’. This new type of public road should ensure greater safety for vulnerable road users, especially cyclists. The adaptation of the traffic regulations will take effect from 1 October. The pressure group Cyclists Association (Fietsersbond) does not react highly enthusiastically. Initial studies […]
September 20, 2022
From 19 September, the lights go out at night on many Walloon highways. The measure comes at the initiative of the Walloon government and the administrator Sofico in response to the energy crisis, reports Walloon Energy, Mobility, and Infrastructure Minister Philippe Henry (Ecolo). Specifically, the measure involves lights on the central reservation of highways going […]
September 19, 2022
Belgian public railway company NMBS/SNCB wants to make train tickets about 10% more expensive starting in February, the newspaper De Tijd wrote on Saturday. Minister for Mobility Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo) is working on solutions to ensure that train passengers experience as little impact as possible from the rising costs facing NMBS/SNCB. The price increase consists […]
September 16, 2022
The number of all-electric passenger cars in Belgium stood at 71 651 on August 1st. This is still just a bubble in a fleet of nearly 6 million cars powered by gasoline and diesel, but it is an increase of 75,4% year-on-year, figures from statistics agency Statbel show. Brussels takes the lead in terms of […]
September 15, 2022
Flemish Mobility Minister, Lydia Peeters, and her Brussels Finance colleague, Sven Gatz, (both Open Vld) are calling for an agreement between the Brussels Region and Flanders linking smart road pricing to a partial widening of the Ring Road. They say this in an interview with the Brussels weekly BRUZZ. There have already been initial talks […]
September 14, 2022
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat, one of Brussels’ busiest approach roads with the presence of several notable Belgian and EU governmental buildings, may get a two-way bike lane, separated from car traffic and pedestrians. This corresponds to the current test set-up. So reports Brussels Mobility Minister Elke Van den Brandt (Groen). The minister hopes the works […]
September 14, 2022
From today, there will be direct flights again between Belgium and South Africa. That will be ensured by the airline Air Belgium, which will fly twice a week from Brussels Airport to Johannesburg and Cape Town. According to Air Belgium’s CEO, Niky Terzakis, these are the first direct flights between Belgium and South Africa in […]
September 13, 2022
Last summer, the airports of Antwerp and Ostend-Bruges welcomed almost 50% more passengers than last year. After two years of travel restrictions, the airports welcomed almost 160 000 passengers during the summer holidays. This means that these Flemish regional airports, managed by the French engineering group Egis, currently have 80% of the number of passengers […]
September 12, 2022
Philippe Henry (Ecolo), the Walloon Minister for Climate, Energy, and Mobility, wants a speed reduction on the roads, including 100 km/hour instead of 120 on the highways. But it immediately gets a ‘njet’ by his coalition partners. The proposal is part of the Climate-Energy Plan, which should enable Wallonia to achieve its objectives in the […]
September 09, 2022
The municipality of Uccle wants to ban the parking of shared e-scooters on its territory temporarily. So says the newspaper Le Soir. Mayor Boris Dilliès (MR) and his municipality seek the appropriate legal remedy. The mayor is tired of the delay in Brussels legislation. Mr. Dilliès has already demarcated several zones where the steps may […]
September 08, 2022
In Auderghem yesterday, on the International Day of Clean Air, Brussels Minister for the Environment Alain Maron (Ecolo) officially opened the doors of the new Air Quality laboratory of Brussels Environment. The laboratory has been completely renovated to have the most accurate and reliable data possible to combat air pollution effectively, following the values and […]
September 07, 2022
Passengers of Lufthansa Group’s airlines no longer must queue up at the check-in desk in the departure hall of Brussels Airport to have their suitcases labeled and taken to the aircraft. Instead, thanks to a new baggage drop-off system, they can now carry out this procedure themselves, the airline and the airport have announced. The […]
September 06, 2022
The French government has asked public railway company SNCF to save energy but not to run fewer trains this winter in the event of a power shortage. SNCF is energy supplier EDF’s leading industrial customer, with 1% to 2% of total French electricity consumption. It has been stepping up its efforts to reduce energy consumption […]
September 06, 2022
Federal Minister of Mobility Georges Gilkinet (Ecolo) wants to abolish VAT on public transport tickets. This is what the newspaper L’Avenir reports. Gilkinet says that he put this measure on the table during the preparation of the Consultation Committee on energy prices last week. The measure would cost just under 100 million euros. “For the […]
September 05, 2022
As of today, a subscription to one of the park-and-ride car parks in the outskirts of Brussels will be completely free for commuters who use transport in this way. The Brussels parking agency parking.brussels has announced this. The prices for bicycle parking in a Cycloparking will also go down significantly, namely by three quarters The […]
September 02, 2022
Since Thursday morning, motorbike and scooter users must pay to park in Paris. Two companies have been dispatched to track down offenders. Paris has been working for some time to reduce motorized traffic in favor of cyclists and pedestrians. The measure is difficult to digest for the motorcycle community. “We have to get out of […]
September 01, 2022
German airline Lufthansa is missing out on the take-over of ITA, the successor to Alitalia. The Italian government withheld the bid of the American investment company Certares, together with airlines Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines. Exclusive negotiations for the take-over are now being started with the latter parties. Lufthansa has submitted a bid together […]
August 31, 2022
With one car from the Cambio shared car company, there are about 13 fewer private cars on the public roads. In Flanders, Cambio is thus replacing 13 700 private cars, and for the whole of Belgium, we are talking about no fewer than 27 230 cars. This is what the company itself says after a […]
August 30, 2022
The multinational steel-making company Tata Steel, with key operations in India, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom, is investing 65 million euros in designing a new plant where the blast furnaces will no longer run on coal but on ‘green’ hydrogen by 2030. The new plant will be built in IJmuiden, the Netherlands, and should […]
August 29, 2022
The German micro-mobility provider TIER Mobility has launched 250 shared e-bicycles in Liège. It is the first Walloon city to benefit from this service. TIER Mobility had already 200 e-scooters in Liège and also offers both services in Brussels. The news that TIER would also be introducing e-bikes in Liège was already announced in May […]
August 26, 2022
Good visibility is essential for participating safely in traffic. We all know that. Independent research commissioned by glasses brand Pearle Opticians shows that approximately 20% of motorists and electric cyclists say they cannot see clearly when driving, even though they wear glasses or lenses. In addition, a quarter of motorists who wear glasses or lenses […]
August 26, 2022
The Walloon Road Safety Agency (AWSR) has just analyzed the first results of the breathalyzer stations installed in different establishments in Walloon Brabant since the beginning of the summer. And what turns out to be the case? 24% of people with at least 1,14 g of alcohol in their blood believe they are under the […]
August 25, 2022
As it has always indicated, the Brussels region is not burying the introduction of the smart mileage charge. For several days, the Brussels-Capital Region has been looking for a few hundred persons to test the SmartMove mobile application. Brussels Fiscal Affairs developed this app to calculate and record the smart kilometer charge. This is what […]
August 24, 2022
Brussels Airlines wants to expand, with more planes and more staff. Vacancies have already been published and various growth scenarios are on the table. This was announced internally at the airline on Tuesday. “We are currently investigating various growth scenarios, which we will work out in more detail soon,” says spokesperson Maaike Andries. More clarity […]
August 23, 2022
In Schaarbeek, the railway infrastructure manager Infrabel started this summer with the renewal of the so-called Carwash junction, which forms the gateway to the Schaerbeek-Formation tracks. This is the largest switch renewal in Brussels in recent years, representing an investment of over 10 million euros. The renovation of the railway intersections, which will be finished […]
August 23, 2022
The four traffic lanes in Brussels Belliard Street – which used to have five lanes – will remain permanently. This is what several French-speaking media outlets are reporting, based on a report by the Bruzz news site. However, the two ‘temporary’ cycle paths, which are enclosed by concrete blocks, will become permanent. Permission to do […]
August 22, 2022
Uber has announced that it is opening its app in Brussels to conventional or ‘traditional’ taxi drivers. That is what the newspaper La Dernière Heure writes. The Belgian director of the Californian company, Laurent Slits, says he is taking this step in response to the recent reform of the ‘taxi plan’ in the capital. But […]
August 19, 2022
The French railways SNCF have placed an order with Alstom for 15 extra new-generation TGVs, in addition to the 100 already bought four years ago. SNCF does this to meet traffic growth, “which is higher than initially forecast”, and to launch trains abroad. The contract, worth nearly 590 million euros, concerns four-cycle TGVs which, Alstom […]
August 18, 2022
Bike Republic, the bicycle chain of Colruyt Group, has taken over the first shop in Brussels, IMP Bike in Evere. The take-over fits in with the chain’s plan to become the reference in the Belgian (e-)bike market, with 50 to 60 shops in Belgium. Currently, Bike Republic is mainly active in Flanders. With the take-over, […]
August 17, 2022
Auderghem, one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, is stepping up its fight against the illegal parking of shared mobility units. Drop zones will soon be created. The city is doing this on its own initiative because of the lack of directives related to the ordinance approved by the Brussels Region in March, […]
August 17, 2022
The new ‘Good Move’ circulation plan in the Brussels Pentagon was launched on Tuesday. Stewards were posted in many places to guide motorists and other road users in the right direction. A welcome solution, because on the first day of the new plan, some places had an extra 30 minutes of traffic jams. Brussels Alderman […]
August 16, 2022
In Brussels, near Place Saincteclette, a road user was recently arrested for driving 112 km/hour on his e-scooter. He reached this speed in the Anny Cordy tunnel, during the Roller Bike Parade, which is organised every Friday evening from 10 June to 23 September. So reports La Dernière Heure. The man filmed his own ‘heroic […]
August 16, 2022
The new traffic plan in the center of Brussels comes into force on Tuesday, 16 August, as announced several months ago. The project, adopted by the city council on 21 February, aims to turn the Pentagon into a ‘traffic-calmed zone’. As a result, less transit traffic should make the center more livable, accounting for no […]
August 12, 2022
In the coming years, Ryanair will no longer offer tickets at absolute bottom prices, such as 0,99 or 9,99 euros. This is what the top man Michael O’Leary of the Irish low-cost airline said in a radio interview with the BBC. Due to rising fuel and energy prices, accelerated by the war in Ukraine, Ryanair […]
August 11, 2022
Due to the persistent drought and record temperatures, the water level in the Rhine near Kaub, between Koblenz and Mainz in Germany, is dropping so low that many cargo ships will no longer be able to sail there as of Friday. That is a problem for the industry. The Rhine, one of the busiest waterways […]
August 10, 2022
In Antwerp, the 2,5 millionth passenger on the Waterbus that travels down the Scheldt was honored on Tuesday. According to the Flemish government, which is funding the project, the Waterbus is very popular and has left behind the logical dip of the corona period. One in three passengers also takes a bicycle on board, which […]
August 10, 2022
In the second quarter of 2022, the Brussels local police checked the speed of 9 758 387 drivers using fixed cameras, mobile speed cameras, and the LIDAR speed camera. Of these drivers, 19 434 were found to be driving at an illegal speed. At the section controls in the Hallepoorttunnel and the Baljuw- and Louiza-tunnel, […]
August 08, 2022
In 198 of the 300 Flemish municipalities and cities, there is at least one ‘bicycle street’. This is what Flemish Minister of Mobility, Lydia Peeters (Open Vld), announced. The concept, by which local authorities give extra visibility and space to cyclists, was made legal ten years ago after it had been tested in 2011 in […]
August 05, 2022
Lufthansa, led by its cargo arm, has achieved its first quarterly net profit in over two years. Europe’s leading air transport group expects to post an operating profit of at least 500 million euros in 2022. “The Lufthansa group is back in the green,” boss Carsten Spohr said in a statement. “It’s now a matter […]
August 04, 2022
The Brussels region has issued the building permit for the renovation and extension of the former postal sorting office at Brussels-Midi station. This was announced by Pascal Smet (one.brussels-Vooruit), State Secretary for Town Planning in Brussels. The Belgian rail company NMBS/SNCB will accommodate its headquarters and many other activities in the future building. A consortium […]
August 04, 2022
Brussels Minister of Mobility Elke Van den Brandt (Groen) is not in favor of increasing the number of lanes on the Brussels Ring Road. She is reacting to the plans of the Flemish government presented last week. Van den Brandt does advocate more bicycle and tram connections to Brussels. According to her spokesperson, increasing the […]
August 03, 2022
The German airline group Lufthansa and its Belgian subsidiary Brussels Airlines are testing a new environmentally-friendly ticket fare on the Scandinavian market. In addition to the classic Light, Classic, and Flex fares, a so-called ‘green fare’ has also been available since Tuesday in the booking process for European flights from Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. With […]
August 01, 2022
The Flemish government has a design ready to reconstruct the northern part of the Brussels Ring Road. In Zaventem, the Ring Road will be given a parallel structure, where through traffic will be separated from local traffic. In Wemmel, a fourth lane will be added. In addition, the slip roads and exits will be relocated […]
July 28, 2022
Young people, especially those between 18 and 34 years old, drive less by car. As a result, the share of kilometers they traveled as car drivers has decreased from 55% in 2019 to 45% in 2022. This is evident from the mobility barometer of safety institute Vias, based on an online survey of a representative […]
July 27, 2022
The Brussels government is to launch the procedure to protect the D’Ieteren Group’s building in the Rue du Mail/Maliestraat in Ixelles. D’Ieteren recently announced plans to renovate its headquarters and prepare them for the future. The Ixelles site covers 67 000 m² and has been owned by the D’Ieteren family since 1906. It has been […]
July 27, 2022
The French government has abolished the decree imposing technical control for motorbikes over 125 cc from 2023. President Emmanuel Macron is thus fulfilling his promise, even though the measure should be compulsory from this year according to a European directive. According to the French Minister for Transport, Clément Beaune, “other methods can effectively achieve the […]
July 26, 2022
According to the American aerospace manufacturer Boeing, global aviation will need 2,1 million new employees over the next 20 years due to the growth of its commercial aircraft fleet. That fleet is expected to nearly double to 47 080 commercial aircraft by 2041, Boeing says in its new Pilot and Technician Outlook (PTO), which it […]
July 25, 2022
A Brussels resident had just obtained the 1 000 signatures needed to set up a participatory commission dedicated to the nuisances generated by motorized two-wheelers. “This shows that this is an important issue for the people of Brussels and that I am not the only one who suffers from these nuisances,” says initiator Marc Escudeiro […]
July 22, 2022
The number of low-emission zones (LEZs) in Europe has increased by 40% over the past three years. The statement comes from the European Clean Cities Campaign, a coalition of NGOs whose goal is to achieve emission-free mobility in major European cities by 2030. In Belgium, only Brussels has announced a complete phase-out of fossil fuels […]
July 20, 2022
In Camargue, in the delta of the Rhone, an osmotic power plant will be implanted in 2023. The National Company of the Rhone (CNR), the leading French producer of 100% renewable energy, announced this on Tuesday. Osmotic energy is generated naturally by the difference in salinity between the freshwater of rivers and the salt water […]
July 19, 2022
The Flemish government will invest an extra 45 million euros in cycling highways. The money comes from the Relay Fund and is shifted within the Copenhagen Fund from the municipalities to the five Flemish provinces, which put the same amount on the table. According to Open Vld ministers Lydia Peeters and Bart Somers, respectively responsible […]
July 18, 2022
Lufthansa more than doubled its turnover in the second quarter compared to last year. The German airline profited substantially from the increased demand for air travel as passengers rush to board planes again for business trips and their summer vacation, but the profit was also achieved because Lufthansa significantly increased the prices of its airline […]
July 15, 2022
Brussels will permanently maintain all 40 kilometers of the initially ‘temporary corona bicycle paths’. This is reported by the French-language newspaper La Capital and confirmed by Brussels Mobility. Installed during the lockdown due to the Covid-19 crisis to limit the use of public transport, they will not be removed. Permit applications will be submitted in […]
July 15, 2022
Almost half (49,5%) of candidates in Brussels passed their practical license exam last year. More than half, therefore, failed. This is what La Dernière Heure reports. However, the figure is changing for the better: only 44% of Brussels motorists passed their test in 2019 and 45% in 2020. To put things in context: taking the […]
July 14, 2022
SNCF boss Jean-Pierre Farandou has estimated the need for additional investment in French railways at around 100 billion euros over fifteen years. This is to help decarbonize transport by doubling the share of trains. To achieve this objective, the president of the French railway company defended several projects that will require an investment that is […]
July 13, 2022
In a few years, the largest green hydrogen plant in Europe may be built in the port area of Amsterdam. Together with the Port of Amsterdam, the young company HyCC wants to develop a plant with a capacity of 500 megawatts in operation by 2027. An initial feasibility study has been completed. The project, which […]
