A European summit and a large farmers’ demonstration. This means traffic problems – read: chaos – throughout the Brussels territory, according to the Brussels Capital/Ixelles police zone.
The Reyers tunnel from the E40 to the center will be closed all day (from 7 am), as will the Cinquantenaire tunnel to Wetstraat. The small ring road of Brussels will probably be inaccessible to car traffic, just like the Arts-Loi intersection. Wetstraat and the European district may also experience serious traffic disruption. These problems may last until the end of the afternoon, the police warn.
The majority of participants (Belgian, but also foreign farmers) in the event on Luxembourg Square will travel in the morning via various access roads and drive through the capital in a column. They are officially expected there around 11 am. It is anyone’s guess what that will mean for other traffic. Especially when they start blocking tunnels.
But, and the police are not yet officially aware of this, angry farmers would also want to block some important entrances to Brussels during the night from Wednesday to Thursday, says Florian Poncelet, chairman of the Federation of Young Farmers (FJA).
“We advise everyone against coming to Brussels by car and taking public transport,” the National Crisis Center said.
But things will probably not run smoothly there either, because STIB also expects disruption on its network.
(Read more below the photo)
Farmers would also like to block important access roads to Brussels on Thursday. — © BELGA
And in the evening, all those tractors, perhaps several hundred from home and abroad, have to leave the capital again. So it promises to be a day full of traffic misery in and around Brussels.
It is expected that many tractors will ultimately not reach the center of Brussels and will take action elsewhere in or around the capital.
But you will also experience inconvenience in many other places in our country on Thursday due to actions by various farmers’ organizations. Some have already been planned, others will arise spontaneously. And the places where action is taking place still change from hour to hour.
We already know for sure about these actions
LUMMEN
The National Guild announced via social media that it will take action during the morning rush hour at the Klaverblad in Lummen.
GENT
There will be actions on the R4 in the Ghent region on Wednesday evening and possibly until Thursday morning.
A symposium on the future of agriculture in Europe will take place in the Bijloke in Ghent on Thursday. “There will certainly be actions,” says Elisabeth Mertens, spokesperson for the Boerenbond. An estimated 400 to 500 tractors are expected.
COME
On the N58 in the Komen territory, traffic in the direction of Komen from Wervik-Geluwe via the N58 will be obstructed or impossible. The actions there last until the evening
VEURNE
Farmers from the Veurne region will take action on Thursday at the entrance and exit complex of Oostduinkerke where they will block the E40.