Rail transport in Belgium

Infobox rail network
name = Belgium
color =



caption =
nationalrailway = NMBS/SNCB
infrastructure = Infrabel
majoroperators =
ridership = 197.5 million per year [ [http://www.b-rail.be/corporate/N/company/keyfigures/index.php Kerncijfers ] ]
passkm = 9.6 billion per year [ [http://www.b-rail.be/corporate/N/company/keyfigures/index.php Kerncijfers ] ]
statyear = 2007
freight = ~60 million tons per year [ [http://www.b-rail.be/corporate/N/company/keyfigures/index.php Kerncijfers ] ]
length = convert|3518|km|mi
doublelength = convert|1878|km|mi
ellength = convert|2631|km|mi
freightlength =
hslength =
gauge = RailGauge|sg
hsgauge = RailGauge|sg
gauge1 =
gauge1length =
gauge2 =
gauge2length =
gauge3 =
gauge3length =
gauge4 =
gauge4length =
el =
el1 = 3000 V DC
el1length = Main network
el2 = 25 kV AC
el2length = High-speed lines, recent electrification
el3 =
el3length =
notunnels =
tunnellength =
longesttunnel =
nobridges =
longestbridge =
nostations = 535 [Rail transport in the Netherlands]
highelevation =
highelat =
lowelevation =
lowelat =

Belgium has an extensive railroad network. On May 5, 1835 the first railway in continental Europe opened between Brussels-Groendreef/Allée verte and Mechelen. Some sort of railroad or canal had been envisaged as early as 1830. The feasibility of a railroad was investigated by engineers Pierre Simons and Gustave De Ridder. The first trains were Stephenson engines imported from Great Britain. The engines were called "Pijl" meaning Arrow, "Olifant" meaning Elephant, and finally 'Stephenson' obviously named after his designer. They pulled bench-cars and diligences. On the return from Mechelen, the "Olifant" pulled all 30 cars. By 1840, Ghent, Bruges, Ostend, Antwerp, Mechelen, Brussels and Leuven were connected. The lines that had to reach Liège, Mons and Kortrijk were partially completed. In 1843, when the major East-West/North-South axes were complete, private companies were allowed to construct and use their own railroad systems. These were crucial in the industrialisation of the country.

In 1870, the Belgian state owned 863 km of rail lines, while the private enterprises owned 2,231 km. From 1870 to 1882, the railways were gradually nationalised. In 1912, 5,000 km were state property compared to 300 km private lines. Full nationalisation was considered at the time, but was never enacted until 1926 when the NMBS/SNCB was started. It was named the NMBS ("Nationale Maatschappij der Belgische Spoorwegen") or SNCB ("Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Belges", not to be confused with SNCF). In 1958 the net was fully state-owned. On 5 May 1935 the NMBS/SNCB started with electrification on the line "Brussel-Noord/Bruxelles-Nord" to "Antwerpen-Centraal", 44 km.

The UIC Country Code for the railway system of Belgium is 88.

Infrastructure

In 2003 the network constituted 3,518 km of railways, all of which were standard gauge: 1.435 m gauge. Of all of those railways, 2,631 km were also electrified. Most electrified Belgian lines use a 3,000 volt DC overhead power supply, but the high speed-lines (Brussels-Lille, Brussels-Liège-Köln and Brussels-Antwerp-Amsterdam) are electrified at 25,000 volts AC, as are recent electrifications in the south of the country (Rivage - Gouvy and Dinant - Athus lines).

Trains in Belgium normally run on the left hand track. This is in contrast to road vehicles, which drive on the right hand side of the road and is evidence of the British involvement in building the rail network in the 19th century.

The railway network is controlled and maintained by Infrabel, a subsidiary of SNCB/NMBS Holding.

Policy

Belgium operates a policy of cheap rail travel. Citizens in Belgium, especially students and older citizens, are offered incentives and cheaper fares in order to alleviate congestion on the nation's roads. Public sector employees are entitled to a free or heavily subsidised season ticket for commuting by rail. Many prive sector employers will make a contribution to the cost of a season ticket. Smoking is prohibited in all train stations (including platforms) and passenger cars.

Boemeltrain

A 'Boemel train' (Boemeltrein in Dutch). This name is often used in the Flemish part of Belgium. It is a small train carriage that stops in more than one railway station. It takes a longer time to get from one place to another, but have more stops. So people that live in a small village can take also the train to a bigger station or end destination.

Example:

- Normal Train with many carriages (mostly 10 to 15) goes from Antwerp to Brussels it takes about 30 minutes with 4 stops- A Boemel Train with one carriage (sometimes 2 to 6) goes from Antwerp to Brussels it takes 1 hour with 9 stops.

Photo Boemel train Arlon - Luxembourg:http://www.aula.com/peter/i1803ak.jpg

References

See also

* Rail transport by country
* Transportation in Belgium