The new entrance/exit complex of the Brussels Ring Road at Woluwe Avenue in Machelen has been officially opened by the Agency for Roads and Traffic. This completes the second of four phases of the major redevelopment of Woluwe Avenue, part of a 64 million euros investment by the Flemish government with which it intends to tackle the mobility of the entire North edge.

Motorists will not only switch much more smoothly between the Ring Road and Woluwe Avenue, but safe cycle paths and a clear bed for the Ring Tram Bus have also been created.

Less cut-through traffic

Exit 5 ‘Machelen-Woluwelaan’ on the Brussels Ring Road, at the end of the Vilvoorde viaduct just before the junction with the E19, had been closed since the end of 2020.

In place of that slip road, which only gave access to Woluwe Avenue from the inner Ring Road, a complete slip road complex has now been built: this allows traffic from the inner Ring Road and the Outer Ring Road to take Woluwe Avenue in the two directions of travel.

Thanks to the new slip road complex, traffic from Diegem wanting to access the Ring Road no longer must drive through the center of the municipality. This will avoid a lot of cut-through traffic for residents.

Wide cycle paths

Cyclists will also benefit thanks to safe and comfortable cycle paths. For example, a bicycle tunnel under the slip roads will bring cyclists safely from Diegem to Machelen and Vilvoorde.

A new 600-meter-long tunnel for through traffic on Woluwe Avenue in the direction of Vilvoorde will allow traffic to continue under the new junctions of the Ring Road with Woluwe Avenue. This has allowed space to be freed up above ground to set up a new light-controlled intersection.

The Ring Tram Bus, which runs through the northern edge to Vilvoorde, Zaventem airport, and Jette hospital, has also been given a separate bed over two kilometers.

Further improvements on the way

Further improvements are planned on Woluwe Avenue in the coming years. From the end of July, the Werkvennootschap, the Flemish organization that supports large-scale mobility projects, will extend the free bed of the Ring Tram Bus from the intersection with the Haacht Road to the connection with the Ring Road in Diegem.

In mid-2024, the Roads and Traffic Agency will simultaneously start the last two sub-projects. These will make the intersection of Haacht Road with Woluwe Avenue and Church Avenue/Kerklaan with Woluwe Avenue more transparent and safer. When these works are completed is not yet clear.