Rail traffic on the Nivelles-Brussels line was interrupted from last Saturday until Sunday evening, and now the Ottignies-Brussels line will face similar delays from Saturday April 8 until Sunday April 16. Direct trains coming from Namur will take a longer route via Louvain before reaching the capital, and S trains will be replaced by buses. This is due to infrastructural works being carried out by Infrabel. Passengers can consult the SNCB website for more information and updates.
After the interruption of rail traffic on the Nivelles-Brussels line since last Saturday and until Sunday evening, it is the Ottignies-Brussels line which will be affected by similar inconveniences from this Saturday April 8 and until Sunday April 16. Direct trains (IC) coming from Namur will continue their route via Louvain before reaching the capital, with longer journey times. S trains will be replaced by buses.
It is due to the work of the rail infrastructure manager Infrabel that these traffic interruptions take place. From this Saturday, line 161 between Brussels and Namur will therefore be affected.
Travelers departing from Ottignies who are traveling directly to the capital can however still take the IC train, which will be diverted via Leuven and will then reach Brussels-North, Central and Midi stations. Commuters wanting to go to Brussels-Schuman or Brussels-Luxembourg, where fewer trains will stop during these few days, will have to change trains at Brussels-North, warns SNCB.
Passengers departing from Etterbeek, Watermael, Boitsfort, Groenendaal, Hoeilaart, La Hulpe, Genval, Rixensart and Profondsart stations, where the S8 trains stop, can take replacement SNCB buses.
The railway company faced significant logistical problems with these replacement buses this week on the Nivelles-Brussels line. The situation should not be so delicate next week, she hopes, especially as direct trains continue their route to the capital via Leuven. However, it draws the attention of commuters to the fact that“a bus never replaces a train: the capacity of buses is more limited than that of trains and they can also be slowed down in road traffic”.
Travelers departing from Dinant, Namur and Gembloux stations can take other trains.
SNCB invites commuters to consult its journey planner and/or the website where all the detailed information can be found: www.belgiantrain.be/fr/news/works-bruxelles-ottignies.
The works on this line 161 are very heavy. This involves moving a few meters of the lanes currently in use, over a 3.5 km section, in order to create space for four lanes in the long term. Infrabel will also take the opportunity to redo an underpass at Groenendaal station, requiring the existing structure to be completely dismantled.
Aware that these “colossal works” fall badly, the infrastructure manager apologizes for the inconvenience caused to commuters since the site will take place outside a school holiday period. It was set more than two years ago, in agreement with SNCB and the various partners and subcontractors, and it is not possible to postpone it, underlines Infrabel. In the meantime, the reform of school timetables in French-speaking Belgium has taken place, pushing back the spring holidays to the beginning of May, and not during the first half of April as initially thought.
In summary, the Ottignies-Brussels line will experience disruptions from April 8 to 16 due to the ongoing rail infrastructure works. Although direct trains will still be available via Leuven, S trains will be replaced by buses. The railway company reminds commuters of the limited capacity of buses compared to trains and suggests checking their journey planner for detailed information. Despite the inconvenience caused, Infrabel apologizes and highlights that the works were planned over two years ago and cannot be postponed. Let’s hope for a smoother process next week.
