Today (Tuesday 20 May) members of the socialist trade union are staging a national strike in the public sector against the federal government’s socio-economic policies. The action coincides with another 1-day strike on the railways. In addition to fewer trains the Flemish, Walloon and Brussels public transport companies De Lijn, TEC and MIVB are running a (much) reduced service.
Fewer trains, trams and buses and possibly no post or refuse collection due to national strike
Published:
On the railways 60% of intercity (IC) services are running as are 50% of L and S Train stopping services. Concreet rijden vandaag 3 op de 5 IC-treinen (de treinen tussen de grote steden). Very few rush hour P Train services are running today.
The Belgian rail company NMBS advises passengers to check its website www.nmbs.be or app before leaving for the station.
De Lijn
The Flemish public transport company De Lijn says that 63% of its bus services are running. In Antwerp Province this is just 50%. In East Flanders 77% of services are running, in West Flanders 67%, in Limburg Province 63% and in Flemisg Brabant 64%.
In Antwerp around a third of tram services are running, while in Ghent half of the usual number of tram services are operating. This is also the case with coastal tram services.
Check De Lijn’s website www.delijn.be or its app to see whether your bus or tram is running.
MIVB
The Brussels public transport company is operating a reduced service. Metro lines 2 and 6 are not running. Trams 4,7,8,9,10, 51 and 92 are running albeit less frequently than usual. The same is true of bus routes 12 (Airport Line) 36,46,50,53,54,59,65,71,73,87 and 95. Bus route 87 is extended to Zwarte Vijvers. More information can be found at www.mivb.be or the public transport company’s app.
Disruption elsewhere
There are no ferry services on the River Scheldt between Kruibeke (East Flanders) and Hoboken (Antwerp). The Terdonk ferry on the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal won’t operate on Tuesday afternoon.
Local authorities warn that there could be disruption to refuse collection in some areas. Many recycling centres and some municipal sports centres are also closed.
The strike is also having an impact on municipal crèches. The City of Antwerp reports that at least 1 of its crèches is closed due to the strike.
Postal service are also being impacted.
Unlike during previous one-day strikes the airports at Zaventem in Flemish Brabant and Charleroi in Hainaut Province report no disruption today.