This is a delay which further pushes back the symbolic date of the completion of the Brussels RER. We learn via Infrabel this Tuesday that the four-lane crossing of the Flemish section between Linkebeek and Rhode-Saint-Genèse will only be operational “end of 2033, at the earliest“.
In short, an additional period of two years compared to what had been announced recently (end of 2031 at the earliest). The reasons for this new delay are above all administrative. The request for a permit for the creation of four lanes is indeed dependent on the “Grup” (Flemish sector plan), which is long overdue. “In the absence of a permit, it is impossible to launch the vast majority of the civil engineering works which consist in developing the space necessary for the laying of the 2 additional lanes and a cycle path, as requested by the Flemish Region”, indicates Infrabel, which hopes for approval from the Grup at Flemish level by December 2022.
This time-consuming stage of the “Grup” had not, however, been necessary for the permits for the line to Ottignies. This is in fact a new constraint that appeared following the cancellation of the initial permit following an appeal by Linkebeek… 12 years ago now.
Progress on the other sections
As a reminder, the RER consists of a “four-lane upgrade” of the rail infrastructure on the outskirts of Brussels, to allow fast trains not to get stuck behind local trains. Essential condition for improving the frequency of trains to the capital.
Although the northern lines of the RER (towards Denderleeuw, Louvain and Halle) have been completed, the delay has accumulated over the years on the two southern lines, namely line 161 towards Ottignies and, as we have just said, the line 124 to Nivelles.
Infrabel reminds us that, if the final stage between Linkebeek and Rhode seems to drag on, the other sections of the network will gradually be able to take advantage of the RER. According to the railway institution’s hopes, the four tracks will be operational in 2023 for the Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve junction, in 2025 between Watermael and Bakenbos and between Waterloo and Braine-l’Alleud, in 2026 between Bakenbos and Ottignies and in 2029 between Lille and Nivelles. Multiple works are also underway on the Nivelles line causing an interruption until April 10 of trains between Brussels-Midi and Nivelles.