On the platforms of Courcelles-Motte station, nature has taken up residence. Weeds become so important that they complicate the passage of commuters, denounces Daniel via the orange button Alert us. How is it possible ? How does Infrabel maintain its quays? The manager answers us.
Via the orange Alert us button, Daniel is offended. At the Courcelles-Motte station (province of Hainaut), weeds have taken hold of the platforms, complicating the movement of commuters. “Impossible to reach the train on some platforms, real urban jungles”he wonders.
Infrabel, manager of the Belgian rail network, tells us that it is aware of this situation in Courcelles-Motte. “The mild climate, accompanied by the heavy rainfall of the last few weeks, favors the proliferation of vegetation. Manual weed treatment is planned in the planning for the next few weeks”, eexplains its spokesperson, Jessica Nibelle.
Infrabel manages more than 8,000 km of railways. The manager acts as a priority on areas where the vegetation is likely to pose safety problems for both its users and its workers. This is particularly the case when weeds are found on the tracks or obscure traffic signs.
On the platforms, it is not uncommon to see weeds appear, as is currently the case at Courcelles-Motte station. To maintain these areas frequented by commuters, Infrabel cannot use herbicides. “Maintenance is manual and mechanical”, says Jessica Nibelle. This then involves uprooting, mowing and clearing by maintenance teams. “That means more regular intervention,” adds the spokesperson.
Infrabel wants to reduce the use of herbicides
For several years, Infrabel has been reducing its use of herbicides along the railway lines. But for the time being, the use of these substances remains essential in order to guarantee the safety of rail traffic.
However, a solution seems to be emerging. The manager is currently testing a prototype “hot water train” to weed the tracks. Concretely, this train is made up of three 50m3 tanks which are filled with water heated to 90°C. This train then runs along the tracks and sprinkles water on the vegetation via ramps.
This train is currently being tested in the east of the country. The manager was inspired by a prototype developed in Switzerland to design his own technology.
“With this hot water weeder train Infrabel is testing a first, which could be a pioneering work in Europe. In this way, we are working together on an even more efficient rail network, but also greener and healthier”reacted Georges Gilkinet, Federal Minister of Mobility in a press release. It should be noted that an initial budget of two million euros has been released to finance this prototype. This sum is added to the allocations that Infrabel receives each year for work.
We mentioned this train in the RTL info 19h recently: