Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

high-speed rail High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail system that runs significantly faster than traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated tracks. While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines ...

network provides mostly international connections from

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

The Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. The high-speed network began with the opening of the

HSL 1 The HSL 1 (french: Ligne à Grande Vitesse (LGV) 1, nl, Hogesnelheidslijn 1, en, High-Speed Line 1) is a high-speed rail line which connects Brussels, Belgium, with the LGV Nord at the Belgium–France border. It is long with of dedicated high ...

to France in 1997, and since then high-speed lines have been extended towards Germany with

HSL 2 The HSL 2 (french: Ligne à Grande Vitesse (LGV) 2, nl, Hogesnelheidslijn 2, en, High-Speed Line 2) is a Belgian high-speed rail line between Leuven and Ans (near Liège) and is long, all of it on dedicated high-speed tracks, which began serv ...

in 2002,

HSL 3 The HSL 3 (french: Ligne à Grande Vitesse (LGV) 3, nl, Hogesnelheidslijn 3, en, High-Speed Line 3) is a Belgian high-speed rail line. It connects Liège to the German border near Aachen. The high-speed track length is . The line was technic ...

from

Liège Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far from b ...

to the German border in 2009, and

HSL 4 The HSL 4 ( nl, Hogesnelheidslijn 4, french: Ligne à Grande Vitesse 4, en, High-Speed Line 4) is a Belgian high-speed rail line part of the 87 kilometres (54 miles) axis which connects Antwerp to the Dutch border. It is 40 kilometres ...

from

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

to the Dutch border in 2009.

Services

Four high-speed train services currently operate in Belgium:

Thalys Thalys (French: ) is a French-Belgian high-speed train operator originally built around the LGV Nord high-speed line between Paris and Brussels. This track is shared with Eurostar trains that go from Paris, Brussels or Amsterdam to London via Li ...

Eurostar Eurostar is an international high-speed rail service connecting the United Kingdom with France, Belgium and the Netherlands. Most Eurostar trains travel through the Channel Tunnel between the United Kingdom and France, owned and operated sep ...

InterCityExpress The Intercity Express (commonly known as ICE ()) is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany. It also serves some destinations in Austria, Denmark (ceased in 2017 but planned to resume in 2022), France, Belgium, Switzerla ...

(ICE) and

TGV The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...

. All operators stop in

Brussels-South railway station Brussels-South railway station (french: Gare de Bruxelles-Midi, nl, Station Brussel-Zuid, IATA code: ZYR), officially Brussels-South (french: Bruxelles-Midi, link=no, nl, Brussel-Zuid, link=no), is a major railway station in Brussels, Belgium ...

, Belgium's largest

train station A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing suc ...

. Some services also stop in Liège and Antwerp. However, it's not possible to book a ticket on a domestic route between Brussels and one of these cities by Thalys. Frequent Belgian IC trains (that run every 15-30min) will do so instead and use the same high-speed lines.

connects Brussels to

London St Pancras St Pancras railway station (), also known as London St Pancras or St Pancras International and officially since 2007 as London St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus on Euston Road in the London Borough of Camden. It is ...

. The German ICE operates between Brussels-South,

Liège-Guillemins railway station Liège-Guillemins railway station (french: Gare de Liège-Guillemins, nl, Station Luik-Guillemins, IATA code: XHN), officially Liège-Guillemins, is the main station in Liège, Belgium. It is one of the most important hubs in the country and i ...

and

Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof, also called Frankfurt Central Station and Frankfurt Main Station, is the busiest railway station in the German state of Hesse. Because of its location near the middle of Germany and usage as a transport hub for lo ...

via

Köln Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 million ...

(Cologne).

connects Brussels with Paris (in 1h22), Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Cologne and Düsseldorf.

Lines

There are three high-speed lines in Belgium which support operation, and one that supports speeds up to . All are electrified at , unlike most of the rest of the network which uses .

HSL 1

HSL 1 connects

with the French border. long ( dedicated high-speed tracks, modernised lines), it began service on 14 December 1997. The line has appreciably shortened rail journeys, the journey from

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

now taking 1:22. In combination with the

LGV Nord The Ligne à Grande Vitesse Nord (North High-Speed Line), typically shortened to LGV Nord, is a French -long high-speed rail line, opened in 1993, that connects Paris to the Belgian border and the Channel Tunnel via Lille. With a maximum speed ...

, it has also impacted international journeys to

and

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, ensuring high-speed through-running by

Thalys PBA Thalys (French: ) is a French-Belgian high-speed train operator originally built around the LGV Nord high-speed line between Paris and Brussels. This track is shared with Eurostar trains that go from Paris, Brussels or Amsterdam to London via Li ...

and

Thalys PBKA The Thalys PBKA is a TGV variant ordered and operated by Thalys between its namesake cities Paris, Brussels, Cologne (german: Köln) and Amsterdam, forming the abbreviation PBKA. The sets have eight carriages and are long, weighing a total of 3 ...

trainsets. The total construction cost was €1.42 billion.

HSL 2

HSL 2 runs between

Leuven Leuven (, ) or Louvain (, , ; german: link=no, Löwen ) is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the historic ...

and

Ans Ans or ANS or ''variation'', may refer to: Places * Ans, Belgium, a municipality in Belgium * Ans, Denmark, a village in Denmark * Angus, Scotland, UK; a council area by its Chapman code * Ainsdale railway station, England, UK (by station code ...

. long ( dedicated high-speed tracks, modernised lines) it began service on 15 December 2002. Combined with HSL 3 to the German border, the combined eastward high speed lines have greatly accelerated journeys between

and

. HSL 2 is used by

and

ICE Ice is water frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 degrees Celsius or Depending on the presence of impurities such as particles of soil or bubbles of air, it can appear transparent or a more or less opaq ...

trains as well as fast internal

InterCity InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to regional, local, or commuter trains) generally call at m ...

services.

HSL 3

HSL 3 connects

to the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

border. long ( dedicated high-speed tracks, modernised lines), it was completed on 15 December 2007, but trains did not start to use it until June 14, 2009. HSL 3 is used by international

and

trains only, as opposed to

which is also used for fast internal

services.

HSL 4

HSL 4 connects

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

north to the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

border where it meets the

HSL-Zuid The HSL-Zuid ( nl, Hogesnelheidslijn Zuid, en, High-speed Line South), is a 125 kilometre-long (78 miles) Dutch high-speed railway line running between the Amsterdam metropolitan area and the Belgian border, with a branch to Breda, North ...

. It is long, comprising dedicated high speed tracks and modernised lines. Mostly completed in 2007, the opening of the line was delayed till December 2009 due to problems with signalling. HSL 4 is used by

trains and fast internal

. Initially,

NS Hispeed NS International, formerly ''NS Hispeed'', is a rail operator in the Netherlands that operates international intercity and high-speed connections to several European cities. The operator is a subsidiary of the ''Nederlandse Spoorwegen''. History ...

(now

NS International NS International, formerly ''NS Hispeed'', is a rail operator in the Netherlands that operates international intercity and high-speed connections to several European cities. The operator is a subsidiary of the ''Nederlandse Spoorwegen''. History ...

) planned using the newly ordered V250 for the fast

Fyra Fyra (pronounced ) was an international high-speed rail service between the Netherlands and Belgium using the AnsaldoBreda V250 train. The service used the HSL-Zuid and HSL 4 railway lines to connect Amsterdam, Schiphol Airport, Rotterdam, Antwer ...

train service between Brussels, Antwerp, Rotterdam and Amsterdam. Due to technical problems with the model, this plan was scrapped. The NS has ordered 20 new

ICNG The Intercity Nieuwe Generatie (''Intercity New Generation''), or ICNG is an electric multiple unit trainset of the Dutch Railways. In addition to supplementing the existing intercity rolling stock, it will replace the Bombardier TRAXX locomotive ...

trains for service on this route. Between Brussels and Antwerp (), trains travel at on the upgraded existing line (with the exception of a few segments where a speed limit of is imposed). At the E19/A12 motorway junction, trains leave the regular line to run on new dedicated high-speed tracks to the Dutch border () at .

25N

, which is part of the

Diabolo project The Diabolo project created a new railway line serving Brussels National Airport. It is so called because of its shape, resembling a Chinese yo-yo: the line forms a chord between the Brussels-Leuven line 36 going east and the new Brussels-Antw ...

, is being built between

Schaerbeek (French language, French and History of Dutch orthography, archaic Dutch, ) or (contemporary Dutch language, Dutch, ) is one of the List of municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, 19 municipalities of the Brussels, Brussels-Capital Re ...

and

Mechelen Mechelen (; french: Malines ; traditional English name: MechlinMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical contex ...

and is being constructed for a maximum speed of 220 km/h. There is also a project under way to renovate

Mechelen railway station Mechelen railway station ( nl, Station Mechelen, french: Gare de Malines), officially Mechelen, is a railway station in Mechelen, Antwerp, Belgium. The station opened on 5 May 1835 on railway lines 25, 27 and 53. Train services are operated ...

, which involves the construction of tracks at the edge of the station set aside for passing high-speed traffic. When this line is completed, there will be a near-continuous stretch of high-speed line from Brussels to Amsterdam, save for the section between Mechelen and

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

. It is not known whether the Belgian government plans to construct a line between Mechelen and Antwerp. There are also areas where the trains cannot run at high speed near the stations: for trains leaving Brussels, 220 km/h will not be possible until the trains reach Schaerbeek and HSL-4 does not begin until a few kilometres after Antwerp. The track around Rotterdam station has curvatures that are too tight to allow trains to run at full speed and trains run on conventional track between Schiphol and Amsterdam.

EuroCap-Rail

EuroCap-Rail is a proposed high-speed rail axis connecting Brussels,

Luxembourg (city) Luxembourg ( lb, Lëtzebuerg; french: Luxembourg; german: Luxemburg), also known as Luxembourg City ( lb, Stad Lëtzebuerg, link=no or ; french: Ville de Luxembourg, link=no; german: Stadt Luxemburg, link=no or ), is the capital city of the Gr ...

, and

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

—three cities which, combined, are the homes of six of the seven

institutions of the European Union The institutions of the European Union are the seven principal decision-making bodies of the European Union and the Euratom. They are, as listed in Article 13 of the Treaty on European Union: * the European Parliament, * the European Counci ...

and unofficially called the capitals of Europe. The axis would run along existing lines that would be upgraded for high-speed rail service.

Stations

There are 4 stations in Belgium where high-speed trains stop: *

Antwerpen-Centraal Antwerpen-Centraal railway station ( nl, Station Antwerpen-Centraal, french: Gare d'Anvers-Central, IATA code: ZWE), officially Antwerpen-Centraal, is the main railway station in Antwerp, Belgium. The station is operated by the National Railway ...

* Bruxelles-Midi / Brussel-Zuid * Bruxelles-Nord / Brussel-Noord * Liège-Guillemins

Notes

{{High-speed rail

Services

Lines

HSL 1

HSL 2

HSL 3

HSL 4

25N

EuroCap-Rail

Stations

See also

Notes