Acerta: ‘One out of three companies wants to reduce teleworking’

March 18, 2024

According to a recent survey by HR service provider Acerta Consult, more companies – one out of three business leaders – would like to reduce working from home. On the other hand, employees have a different opinion: four out of ten want to go to the office less often. The survey is based on data […]

Danish car-sharing GreenMobility leaves Belgium

March 14, 2024

Car-sharing company GreenMobility is leaving Belgium and returning to its Danish home market. After previously exiting the Netherlands, Germany, Finland, and Sweden, the Belgian branch will also be sold or closed down. “A pity,” according to Steve Van Avermaet, responsible for GreenMobility’s Belgian activities. “We were the company’s first foreign market and the last one […]

Four Dutch manufacturers to tackle illegally boosted fat bikes

March 13, 2024

A group of four fat bike manufacturers wants to prevent illegally boosted bicycles. Together, Brekr, Phatfour, Doppio, and Knaap will present a package of measures on next Tuesday – the Safe Fatbikes partnership. One of those measures is that all four will boycott a dealer selling illegally tuned bicycles. Fat bikes, electric bicycles with fat […]

Vias: ‘7% fewer road deaths in Belgium in 2023’

March 13, 2024

According to Vias’ latest traffic safety barometer, based on figures from the federal police, there were 7% fewer road deaths last year than in 2022. Last year, 483 people died in traffic, compared to 520 in 2022. The Vias Institute is a Belgian knowledge center that aims to improve road safety, mobility, and social safety. […]

Amsterdam considers remote-controlled speed-reducing system for e-bikes

March 12, 2024

Amsterdam is considering introducing an innovative adaptive speed governance solution for e-bikes. The system is intended to remotely slow down the speed of electric bicycles as they approach the city center. Amsterdam’s Alderwoman, Melanie Van der Horst (D66), recently inaugurated a system demonstration. The initiative specifically tackles the challenges of congested bike lanes, aiming to […]

Cycling has become 40% safer in recent years

March 11, 2024

Cycling has become much safer over the last few years. The risk of dying on a bicycle has fallen by 40 percent in the last seven years. In 2015, 24.9 fatalities occurred per billion kilometers cycled; in 2022, this dropped to 14.9. These figures were published on Friday on the study day celebrating the tenth […]

Vias: ‘Statistically proven: men drive less safely than women’

March 08, 2024

People often say that women are lousy drivers, but statistics show just the opposite: almost eight in ten road deaths are men. Women are less likely to be involved in serious accidents than men and are generally also less likely to be severely injured in accidents (40% compared to 60% of men). However, it is […]

Copernicus: ‘this winter was globally warmest on record’

March 07, 2024

According to Copernicus, the Earth Observation component of the European Union’s space program, the last three months have been the hottest worldwide. February was part of a series of nine consecutive monthly records, driven by continued greenhouse gas emissions and the El Niño weather phenomenon. In its latest monthly report, published on Thursday, the European […]

Infrabel to remove seven dangerous train level crossings in Bilzen

March 07, 2024

Infrabel has started work in Bilzen to remove all railway crossings in the city’s territory. Seven train crossings will be eliminated and made safer this way. They will be replaced by mobility alternatives, such as bridges (2), tunnels (4), a parallel road, and two sections of bicycle highway. The level crossings will only be closed […]

Colruyt puts first electric 44-ton truck for city deliveries into use

March 06, 2024

Colruyt Group has started using a 44-ton electric truck to supply city stores as sustainably as possible. The truck is quieter and generates fewer emissions, making deliveries less inconvenient for residents. Flemish Mobility Minister Lydia Peeters (Open Vld) officially inaugurated the refrigerated e-truck. “Using electric trucks for city deliveries is no longer a thing of […]

‘Larger offer and stable prices boost second-hand car market by 13,5%’

March 06, 2024

According to Mobility Federation Traxio, the new and second-hand car market continues to perform well in February 2024. Last month, 60,355 second-hand cars were registered, that is 7,160 units or 13,5% more than last year. The success is due to the more significant offer and stable prices. Private individuals ‘ registrations of second-hand electric vehicles […]

Dutch ProRail starts mega job on rail network: delays until 2030

March 05, 2024

The Dutch railway network needs a major overhaul. Over the next six years, rail manager ProRail will step up its game to prepare the Dutch rail network for the next forty years. Travelers must take inconvenience into account for the next six years. Between now and 2030, train passengers and freight rail must, therefore, take […]

Makro site Machelen will become parking lot for Tesla cars

March 05, 2024

The Makro site in Machelen will be used as a storage facility for Tesla cars until the end of this year. Tesla is allowed to store a maximum of 1,400 cars there, pending further distribution to car dealers and buyers. “The site will also be monitored, insured, and maintained so that the nuisance will end,” […]

IEA: ‘Energy CO2 emission levels rich countries lowest in 50 years’

March 04, 2024

Last year, the rich countries had the lowest energy CO2 emissions in fifty years. Developed economies benefited from further wind and solar energy growth, swapped coal for gas more often, and saved on energy consumption. In a new report, the International Energy Agency (IEA) points out that countries must help weaker economies because the amount […]

Vias: ‘53% of fatal car accidents are one-sided’

March 01, 2024

In Belgium, almost one in five injury accidents is a unilateral accident, a traffic accident involving only one road user – a motorist or cyclist. Moreover, these accidents are extremely fatal.  According to the Traffic Safety Institute Vias’ latest report, one-sided accidents cause 37% of road deaths. In other words, more than one in three […]

TU Delft’s hydrogen car team wants to set world record on public roads

March 01, 2024

This year, the hydrogen car builders at the technical university TU Delft want to set a new world record on public roads. They earlier set records, but in a different category. This time, they intend to build a car that must meet all requirements to be allowed on public roads. The Eco-Runner Team, as the […]

Flanders fines record of 19 million euros for non-paid truck km tax

February 29, 2024

Last year, Flanders issued 19 million euros of fines for truck drivers who did not comply with the rules on kilometer tax. That is a record since the system was introduced in 2016. Most of the fines – almost 80 percent – ​​were intended for foreign trucks. The Netherlands, Poland, and Spain, in particular, took […]

Stedin calls for EV-charging to be turned off between 4 and 9 p.m.

February 28, 2024

The Dutch grid operator Stedin calls charging station operators to switch off charging stations for electric cars between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m., especially in urban areas. The Netherlands has more than half a million charging stations, two-thirds of which are on the street. If they are all switched on simultaneously at full power, the […]

Lanklaar bicycle bridge and ecoduct will be ready in April

February 27, 2024

The Roads and Traffic Agency (Agentschap Wegen en Verkeer, AWV) is building a bicycle bridge and an ecoduct over the Boslaan (N75) in Lanklaar (Limburg province). The new bicycle construction is part of the 5.5-km-long bicycle path through the Lanklaarderbos and will officially open by the end of April. The cycle paths are ready; only […]

Second-hand lease platform Lizy gets €11.5 M capital injection

February 26, 2024

Lizy, the Belgian market leader in second-hand leasing, turns five and is celebrating. After expanding to France and tripling turnover in 2023, the scale-up is raising 11.5 million euros of fresh capital. “Demand for affordable electric lease cars continues to grow, a gap in the market that Lizy is filling,” the company says. Five years […]

Sint-Pieters-Leeuw inaugurates Flanders’ largest fast-charging plaza

February 22, 2024

On Wednesday, Flemish Minister for Mobility Lydia Peeters (Open Vld) officially inaugurated Flanders’ largest plaza with fast-charging stations in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw (Flemish Brabant). The 18 fast-charging stations are located in Shopping Pajot’s parking lot in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, a popular shopping location with 24 stores. So, 18 electric cars can simultaneously recharge their batteries in half an hour […]

Vias pleads for introduction of laughing gas controls

February 21, 2024

Traffic Safety Institute Vias pleads for the introduction of controls for nitrous oxide – the so-called ‘laughing gas’ – on the road. The drug has gained popularity in recent years, especially among young people. It gives users a buzz similar to that of alcohol and can have a severe influence on one’s driving abilities, so […]

CD&V considers phasing out low-emission zones

February 21, 2024

Flanders’ Christian Democratic party CD&V wants to phase out the low-emission zones. That is what party chairman Sammy Mahdi said during a debate at the Automotive eMotion Summit in the Skyhall, the former departure hall of Brussels Airport. According to Mahdi, these zones have proven successful in reducing the amount of air pollution. However, diesel […]

‘Britain exports more polluting used cars than those being scrapped’

February 20, 2024

Researchers from the University of Oxford have discovered that Britain sends more polluting used cars to poorer countries than it does to scrapyards. The study found that legally exported used cars had 53% higher emissions of nitrogen oxides per kilometer  – key health-harming air pollutants – than those that were scrapped instead. It also warned […]

Brussels Airport to install additional 65,000 m2 of solar panels

February 20, 2024

Brussels Airport has started installing additional solar panels on the roofs of the newest Brucargo buildings, the cargo zone of Zaventem’s airport. The extra panels will cover a surface of 65,000 square meters or roughly the equivalent of nine soccer fields. They must double the share of solar energy in the airport operator’s own energy […]

Autodelen.net: ‘One-third more shared cars in one year in Flanders’

February 19, 2024

The number of shared cars has increased significantly in the past year. By the end of 2023, Flanders had 4,159 shared cars, or 31.5% more than the year before. Among them are all types of shared cars: free-floating, roundtrip, and individually shared cars. According to the car-sharing website Autodelen.net’s annual report, you can find shared […]

Uber launches its taxi services in Liege, Namur, and Mons

February 16, 2024

Since this Wednesday, February 14th, the Uber application has been available in three large Walloon cities: Liège, Namur, and Mons. Ten years after its establishment in Flanders and Brussels, the American company of independent drivers is expanding its services in the south of the country. However, the service only allows you to book ‘traditional’ taxis. […]

Dutch ANWB & German ADAC warn for unsafe safety jackets

February 15, 2024

According to research by the Dutch mobility organization ANWB and its German sister club ADAC (Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club), some safety jackets on the Dutch market are unsafe. They hardly reflect any light. And although the jackets are not mandatory in the Netherlands, both organizations sound the alarm. ADAC experts purchased 14 different safety vests online […]

UK sees increased wood burning offset cuts in car pollution data

February 15, 2024

Official figures in the UK from the Environment Department (Defra) show that the increase in wood burners in homes and the use of biomass in industry has offset cuts in pollution from cars. Statistics reveal that polluting particulate matter (PM), a variety of small and toxic substances that can enter the bloodstream and severely impact […]

Dutch police newly armed to catch overpowered e-bikes

February 14, 2024

The Dutch police have a new weapon against high-speed and high-power electric bicycles. They recently introduced a roadside testing platform to check the speed of mopeds, scooters, and other electric vehicles, such as electric bicycles, speed pedelecs, and fat bikes. The roller test benches also check whether these vehicles comply with the applicable legislation. The […]

Flanders: technical inspection every two years until 160,000 km

February 13, 2024

Flemish Minister of Mobility Lydia Peeters (Open Vld) resolutely opts for more structural measures to address the capacity problems at the technical inspection centers. The most remarkable measure is the extension of the periodicity for passenger cars (vehicle category M11). New vehicles were subject to a yearly inspection from the day they turned four years […]

SD Worx: ‘One in 35 Belgians trade in company car for mobility budget’

February 12, 2024

The share of employees with a ‘mobility budget’ has doubled again in 2023, from 0.2% in 2022 to 0.4% in 2023. This means that one in 250 employees now has a mobility budget. With the federal mobility budget, employees exchange their (right to a) company car for a budget to manage their mobility sustainably. “It […]

Seniors complain Belgian train tickets becoming far too expensive

February 12, 2024

The Belgian railway company NMBS/SNCB is developing a new fare range. Consequently, some current tickets with a fixed price – for seniors or youngsters – will no longer be available. Senior organizations fear that train travel will become too expensive for seniors in the future. Today, people over 65 pay a fixed price: 8.30 euros […]

Q-lite to install 500 new-gen digital bus stop displays for De Lijn

February 09, 2024

The Belgian producer of digital display solutions, Q-lite, will install up to 500 digital bus stop displays for De Lijn throughout Flanders. That is what both companies announced on Thursday. These new digital information screens will replace the old stop devices that have reached the end of their lifespan. Q-lite will produce and install the […]

EIB lends Umicore €350 million for EV battery material research

February 08, 2024

The European Investment Bank will grant Belgian Umicore an eight-year loan of 350 million euros for research. The money is intended for the technological development, innovation, and recycling of batteries for e-cars. In 2022, Umicore invested 316 million euros, or 7,6% of its revenues, in research and development. Umicore’s battery materials technologies, innovation roadmap, and […]

EU Commission pleads for 90% emission reduction by 2040

February 07, 2024

According to the plans presented on Tuesday, the European Commission wants to cut greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union by 90% by 2040 compared to 1990 levels. “There’s no other way,” says Wopke Hoekstra, European Commissioner for Climate Action. “The longer the EU waits to take difficult measures, the harder and more expensive it […]

Lowest percentage ‘intoxicated’ drivers in winter Bob campaign

February 07, 2024

Most drivers (98.4%) tested for alcohol during the last winter campaign blew negative. That was the best result since the so-called ‘Bob’ campaigns began in 1995. For comparison, ten years ago, in 2013-2014, 3.2% of drivers were still positive, or twice as many as this year. This winter’s Bob campaign started on Friday, December 1st, […]

UGent appoints American expert chair holder to improve bicycle traffic

January 31, 2024

The University of Ghent has appointed Meredith Glaser as an academic expert for more and safer bicycle traffic. Glaser is an internationally respected academic with approximately 15 years of experience in spatial planning, transport, and mobility. She will further specialize in everything related to cycling. Meredith Glaser is originally from the Californian coast but has […]

Louvain welcomes e-car-sharing system BattMobility

January 30, 2024

Car sharing is increasingly popular in Louvain. In the last four years, the number of users has increased by 80%. However, Poppy discontinued service after only three months. In the meantime, newcomer BattMobility hopes to fill the gap. BattMobility only offers electric shared cars with a fixed parking space, a significant difference from Poppy’s concept. […]

Smartphone use: focus on road or losing driver’s license

January 29, 2024

The public prosecutor’s office in Limburg has announced stricter action against mobile phone use behind the wheel. From February 1st, anyone using his mobile phone or other mobile device while driving a motor vehicle will immediately have to hand in his driver’s license for fifteen days, after which a €174 fine will follow. Similar measures […]

Venice to install speed cameras for boats

January 26, 2024

Venice will install speed cameras for boats along its world-famous canals. The city hopes this measure will limit the speed of motorized boats and ships, make the city safer, and prevent erosion due to high boat waves.  Wave motion – ‘moto ondoso’ in Italian – causes erosion of the canal walls below the waterline, damaging […]

Eurostar transported 25% more travelers in 2023

January 25, 2024

In 2023, Eurostar’s high-speed trains carried a quarter more passengers. The number of travelers increased in one year from 14,8 million in 2022 to 18,6 million or almost as many as before the coronavirus pandemic  – 19 million in 2019. One of the explanations for the success was the high demand for tickets to London, […]

TotalEnergies buys majority stake in Danish wind projects

January 24, 2024

The French oil and gas group TotalEnergies has signed a deal with Danish sustainable energy company European Energy for a majority stake in two wind projects. Under the arrangement, TotalEnergies will take an 85% stake in the Jammerland Bugt project (240 MW), and 72,2% in the Lillebaelt South nearshore development (165 MW), both in Danish […]

T&E: ‘Cars are getting 1 cm wider every two years’

January 23, 2024

Car manufacturers are making increasingly wider cars. For instance, the 1974 Volkswagen Golf was ‘only’ 1,610 m wide, but the 2019 version measured 1,790 m. Not to mention the Dodge Ram, which is more than two meters wide – 2,085 m, to be precise- overshooting the 1,80 m-wide parking spaces by almost 30 cm. The […]

Traxio: ‘For first time, more e-bikes sold in Belgium than classic ones’

January 22, 2024

For the first time last year, more electric bicycles were sold in Belgium than regular bicycles. E-bikes now have a market share of 51,2%. However, bicycle sales have decreased.  After the top year of 2022, bicycle sales dropped by 12,9%. Still, more than 600 000 units were sold (606 017 to be precise), or more […]

Febiac: ‘Motorcycles regained popularity in 2023’

January 18, 2024

Last year, Belgium registered 25 359 new motorcycles, 2,7% more than the previous year. According to the car and two-wheeler federation Febiac, motorcycles are increasingly popular, so registrations and the number of driving licenses issued are growing. For a long time, motorcycles were mainly seen as recreational vehicles. However, today, they’re increasingly popular among commuters. […]

Q8 and Storm to invest €250 million in fast charging stations

January 16, 2024

Gas station operator Q8 and energy company Storm will build a network of up to 200 fast charging stations in Belgium – about half with a shop or restaurant. That is what both companies announced on Monday. They call it “a unique partnership”. The project represents an investment of up to 250 million euros. Both […]

Record number of drivers fined in Brussels LEZ

January 15, 2024

Last year, the Brussels region fined a record number of motorists who entered the Brussels low-emission zone (LEZ) with a car that was too polluting. Almost 30 000 drivers – 29 643 to be precise – were fined, an increase of almost 60% compared to 2022. In 2020, 12 321 fines were issued; in 2021, […]

Giga Storage to set up EU’s largest battery park in Belgium

January 15, 2024

The Dutch energy storage company Giga Storage plans to develop Europe’s largest battery park in Dilsen-Stokkem (Belgium). The 60 MW energy storage project will have a 2 400 MWh capacity. This means that the average energy consumption of 330 000 families can be stored here each day and fed back into the electricity grid. “In […]

IEA: ‘World’s renewable energy capacity increased by 50%’

January 12, 2024

According to a new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA), renewable energy production capacity has increased by 50% in the past year. The IEA says the increase is faster than ever in the last thirty years. Due to the rapid growth, there is a real chance that global capacity will triple by 2030. Last […]

Belgian Solar Team enlists for world’s most extreme Solar Challenge

January 11, 2024

The students of the Belgian Solar Team, who became world champion in October 2023, are preparing for the SASOL Solar Challenge in South Africa, which will start within eight months. This competition is considered the most extreme in the world. The engineering students from KU Leuven will travel more than 4 000 kilometers over eight […]

Acerta: ‘Almost 40% of employees (partly) commute by bike’

January 10, 2024

In 2023, less than half of company cars (43,7%) in Belgium ran on diesel (57,8% in 2022), and a record number of employees (40%) commuted to work by bicycle – three years ago, it was only 33%. These are some findings from the latest mobility barometer from human resources service provider Acerta presented on Wednesday, […]

Copernicus: ‘2023 hottest year ever, warming close to 1,5°C limit’

January 09, 2024

The Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), operated by the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts on behalf of the EU Commission, monitored several key climate indicators throughout the year 2023 and reported record conditions. Such as the warmest month on record and daily global temperature averages that briefly exceeded pre-industrial levels by more than 2°C. […]

2023 traffic jams cost Belgian economy more than €5 billion

January 09, 2024

In addition to the loss of time, the extra fuel consumption, and the additional CO2 emissions, traffic jams in Belgium cost more than 5 billion euros last year, or 4% more than in 2022. Figures from the Flemish Traffic Center show there have never been more traffic jams than in 2023. October and November had […]

CO2 emissions in Germany at their lowest in 70 years, except for cars

January 09, 2024

CO2 emissions from Germany, Europe’s leading industrial nation and the largest energy consumer in Europe, have reached their lowest level in around 70 years, thanks to a stronger-than-expected decline in the use of coal. Greenhouse gas emissions reached 673 million tons of CO2 last year, “the lowest level since the 1950s” and significantly down from […]

69% fewer used motorbikes registrations in December 2023

January 05, 2024

The new motorcycle market has recovered well in 2023, with an increase of +2,7%, resulting in 25 359 registered over the entire year, a positive result that partly can be attributed to the delivery of previously ordered in 2022. According to Mobility Federation Traxio, the second-hand market, on the other hand, suffered a historic decline […]

2023 second-best year for new speed pedelecs

January 04, 2024

2023 was the second-best year ever for new speed pedelecs and the record year for second-hand fast bikes. That is the conclusion of mobility federation Traxio’s spokesperson Filip Rylant. Last year, a total of 22 477 new and second-hand speed pedelecs were registered. The good news is that there is still room for further growth, […]

Belgian second-hand passenger car market grew by 7,2% in 2023

January 04, 2024

Last year, the second-hand passenger car market grew by 7,2% to 689 170 units, 46 501 more than in 2022 but 20 429 less than in 2021. Expectations are that the second-hand car market will remain high in the coming years, says car service and mobility federation Traxio. The best-selling used car brands last year […]

30% of Belgian electricity produced in 2023 was renewable

January 03, 2024

In Belgium, 2023 was a good year for wind and solar energy production, accounting for 27,6% of the total of 30,1% of renewable energies with sources such as biomass and waste included. At the same time, production from nuclear (31,29%) and gas power plants (19,8%) fell significantly. That’s clear from the latest statistics of the […]