Punctuality for domestic trains operated by the Belgian public railway company NMBS/SNCB has improved significantly. In July, these trains achieved a punctuality rate of 94.6%. This is the best result since July 2021.

Rail network operator Infrabel and NMBS/SNCB have not explained this improved punctuality. Still, the main improvement lies primarily in system robustness – fewer delays caused by structural vulnerabilities in the rail system.

Main improvement in system robustness

In July, nearly 40% of the delays were attributable to NMBS (such as equipment malfunctions and technical failures, as well as operational decisions regarding scheduling), 27% were caused by third parties, such as trespassers and accidents at railroad crossings, 13.5% were due to a lack of resilience in the rail system, and 16% were attributable to Infrabel.

These figures are comparable to those from July 2025, with the difference that system robustness improved by 3.5% and third-party delays increased by 2.5%.

The main improvement, therefore, lies primarily in system robustness. This is also a trend that has been ongoing for some time: from January through July 2026, 93% of trains ran on time, compared to 91.5% during that same period last year.

In July, more than 3,100 trains were also partially or completely canceled, accounting for nearly 3% of all trains. Including those cancellations, the on-time performance rate was 92.3% – an improvement over the 90.9% recorded in July 2025.