Antwerp (Brussels Morning Newspaper): Antwerp is reinventing its public transport system, with buses out of the city center and more trams going in. Flemish Minister Annick De Ridder wants to order 30 new trams for roughly €75m by early 2025. That will lower traffic and air pollution.
The city of Antwerp in Belgium is reducing the number of buses it uses as public transport in its busy city center. There, instead of going into the busy city center, buses will serve major centers outside the city, where passengers will be able to walk into the city through the trams or metro lines. By upgrading the tram and metro services, Antwerp hopes to achieve fast and reliable connections to the city center, giving people a better alternative instead of buses.
Will a €75 million tram order by Antwerp improve public transport?
It has been said that to achieve improved public transport, Antwerp is seeking confirmation from the Flemish government regarding the orders for new trams. These new trams are essential to increase the number of passengers that can be accommodated by raising capacity. This move falls into the overall scheme to make the city more sustainable. Antwerp believes it will be able to reduce air pollution and noise by investing in modern trams and fewer buses in the city center, making the city center a more attractive place.
Flemish Minister of Mobility Annick De Ridder is ordering some thirty new trams at the start of 2025. The first of them will reach the end of 2027. The total amount is approximately around 75 million euros since a tram costs about 2.5 million euros. These trams are supplied by the Spanish company CAF.