BELGIUM and the Netherlands have agreed to intensify cooperation on rail development, with the potential revival of the historic Iron Rhine freight corridor again emerging as a key topic.
Thierry Aartsen, who was serving as the Dutch state secretary for infrastructure at the time, and Belgian transport minister, Jean-Luc Crucke, signed a letter of intent committing the two countries to closer collaboration on cross-border passenger and rail freight services last month.
Both governments acknowledged that differences in allocating resources for infrastructure development and regulatory frameworks have sometimes hindered effective cooperation. To address this, they will establish bilateral working groups to focus on improving passenger and freight services. These groups will meet at least twice a year, while ministers from both countries will review progress annually.
Key areas of cooperation identified during the meeting include improved coordination of rolling out ERTMS, expanding capacity for passenger services, and upgrades to existing cross-border connections.
Several passenger projects such as improvements to services between Antwerp and the Dutch border at Roosendaal and on the Amsterdam - Brussels route. Both countries will also examine stronger links between Belgium and the Dutch provinces of North Brabant and Limburg.
Plans include enhancing the Liège - Maastricht - Aachen Three Countries service, extending the Antwerp - Hamont service across the border to Weert in the Netherlands, and exploring the reopening =disused cross-border lines such as Hasselt - Maastricht. The two governments will also study the feasibility of a direct rail connection between Eindhoven and Brussels.
Freight
Improving freight connectivity forms another major pillar of the agreement. Both countries will work towards the development of the 3RX Rhein-Ruhr Rail Connection linking the port of Antwerp with Germany’s Ruhr region. The route proposed by Belgium avoids a nature reserve near Roermond in the Netherlands and would cross the Dutch-German border near Venlo.
The renewed focus on this corridor reflects growing political focus on developing alternatives to the historic Iron Rhine route, which once connected Antwerp with Germany via the Netherlands.
The agreement also includes measures to improve freight links between the ports of Ghent and Terneuzen, potentially including construction of a new line along the eastern bank of the Ghent - Terneuzen canal.
Other areas of cooperation include improving rail capacity for military transport, addressing bottlenecks affecting local cross-border networks, supporting technological developments such as ATO, and coordinating strategic capacity allocation in line with new EU regulations.
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