The HSL 1 (french: Ligne à Grande Vitesse (LGV) 1, nl, Hogesnelheidslijn 1, en, High-Speed Line 1) is a

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 ...

line which connects Brussels, Belgium, 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 ...

at the Belgium–France border. It is long with of dedicated high-speed tracks and of modernised lines. Service began on 14 December 1997. The line has appreciably shortened journey times, the journey from Paris to Brussels now taking 1 hour 22 minutes. In combination with the

, it has also impacted international journeys to other cities in France and to London, ensuring high-speed through-running by

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 ...

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 ...

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. The signalling system installed is the TVM-430 in-cab signalling system, the same as LGV Nord in France, and

High Speed 1 High Speed 1 (HS1), legally the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), is a high-speed railway linking London with the Channel Tunnel. It is part of a line carrying international passenger traffic between the United Kingdom and mainland Europe; ...

in the UK.

Route

Trains leave Brussels-Midi station via a new viaduct completed in 2006 to separate high-speed services from local services. From there they use the conventional line 96. At Forest/Vorst the train passes the depot where inspections of Thalys and Eurostar trains may be carried out. At Halle ( km 13) the HST tracks split from the mainline and enters its own cut-and-cover section before crossing the

Brussels–Charleroi Canal The Brussels–Charleroi Canal, also known as the Charleroi Canal amongst other similar names, (french: canal Bruxelles-Charleroi, nl, kanaal Brussel-Charleroi) is an important canal in Belgium. The canal is quite large, with a Class IV Freyc ...

; at km 17 the high-speed line proper diverges from the mainline at the

Lembeek Lembeek is a village with a population of 7,256 in the municipality of Halle, Belgium. Location South-west of Halle, it is close to the language border between the Flemish Region and Wallonia. The Castle of Lembeek was demolished by request of ...

Viaduct, supporting speeds. Between

Rebecq Rebecq (; wa, Ribek) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. On 1 January 2006 the municipality had 10,241 inhabitants. The total area is 39.08 km2, giving a population density of 262 inhabitants per ...

and

Enghien Enghien (; nl, Edingen ; pcd, Inguî; vls, Enge) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. On 1January 2006, Enghien had a total population of 11,980. The total area is , which gives a population dens ...

the line parallels the A8 autoroute, separated by a security fence. At Enghien the line parallels the regular Brussels–

Tournai Tournai or Tournay ( ; ; nl, Doornik ; pcd, Tornai; wa, Tornè ; la, Tornacum) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies southwest of Brussels on the river Scheldt. Tournai is part of Euromet ...

line for approximately . The maintenance depot "Le Coucou" is located near

Ath Ath (; nl, Aat, ; pcd, Ât; wa, Ate) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. The municipality consists of the following districts: Arbre, Ath, Bouvignies, Ghislenghien, Gibecq, Houtaing, ...

. This station served as the operations base during the construction of the line (from 1993 to 1998) and currently serves as the maintenance depot for HSL 1. Slightly further on is the long

Arbre Viaduct Arbre may refer to: * Arbre, Ath, a commune in Ath, Belgium * , a village in Profondeville, Belgium * Arbre, a planet in ''Anathem'' by Neal Stephenson See also * ' or liberty trees, a symbol of the French Revolution * Arbre du Ténéré, once con ...

(one of the longest rail viaducts in Europe) between Ath and

Chièvres Chièvres (; pcd, Chieve) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. On January 1, 2018, Chièvres had a total population of 6,899. The total area is 46.91 km² which gives a population density of 15 ...

; it passes over the Ath–Blaton canal, the Dender River, the

Mons Mons (; German and nl, Bergen, ; Walloon and pcd, Mont) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the province of Hainaut, Belgium. Mons was made into a fortified city by Count Baldwin IV of Hainaut in the 12th century. T ...

road and the Ath–

Jurbise Jurbise (; nl, Jurbeke; pcd, Djurbize) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. On 1 January 2006 the municipality had 9,571 inhabitants. The total area is 57.86 km², giving a population density of 165 in ...

railway. At

Antoing Antoing (; pcd, Antweon) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. The municipality consists of the following districts: Antoing, Bruyelle, Calonne, Fontenoy, Maubray, and Péronnes-lez-Antoing. Hi ...

there is a connector to the Mons–

line, used by the Thalys between Paris and

Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namu ...

. After passing over the

Scheldt River The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to ...

Viaduct, and through the

Bruyelle Bruyelle ( pcd, Briyèle) is a village of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Antoing, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. A settlement has existed here since Roman times. Remnants of destroyed buildings may be testimony tha ...

cut-and-cover section, the line crosses the Belgian-French border at

Wannehain Wannehain is a Communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department in northern France, on the border with Belgium. The HSL 1 railway line to Brussels crosses the border at Wannehain. Heraldry Popu ...

, km 88. further on, the Frétin triangle splits the

towards Paris or Lille.

Notes

External links

Belgian high-speed rail site (in French)
{{coord missing, Belgium TGV Eurostar High-speed railway lines in Belgium Railway lines opened in 1997 Standard gauge railways in Belgium