Brussels (Brussels Morning) – Starting August 12 to 29, the Brussels-French border high-speed train line will undergo repairs, diverting trains to slower tracks, and extending travel times. Costing €310 million, the decade-long renovations aim to maintain operational efficiency amidst ageing infrastructure.
The high-speed train line between Brussels and the French border will be out of service from August 12 to 29. During that period, the high-speed trains will run on the conventional track, which means they will take longer to travel.
Why is the Brussels-French high-speed line closing temporarily?
Earlier this year, rail network manager Infrabel announced the renovation works on the country’s oldest high-speed line, which was put into service in 1997. The works, which involve an investment of 310 million euros, will last a total of ten years and will mostly take place at night. However, the line will also be completely interrupted for about two weeks every summer.
How long will the high-speed line be under renovation?
The first interruption is therefore planned from 12 to 29 August, just after the Olympic Games in France. “During these works, Eurostar and TGV INOUI will be diverted via an alternative route, resulting in longer journey times,” according to the website of the railway company NMBS. Eurostar, for example, expects journey times to increase by half an hour, both between Brussels and Paris and between Brussels and London.
What adjustments are made to regular train routes?
There are also adjustments to regular train traffic, more specifically on connections between Mons and Brussels, between Ath and Mons and between Mouscron and Brussels. In concrete terms, a 17.6-kilometre section of track between Tourpes (Leuze-en-Hainaut) and Brugelette will be tackled in August. Among other things, new rails, some 30,000 new sleepers and 5,500 tonnes of ballast, the layer of stones under the rails that acts as a shock absorber, will be installed.
The high-speed line from Brussels to France (HSL1) is 74 kilometres long. Every day, about a hundred trains pass over it at a speed of 300 kilometres per hour. But the railway line is showing signs of ageing and if these are not addressed, the speed of the trains would have to be limited from next year, Infrabel CEO Benoît Gilson said earlier.
