Flemish Minister of Mobility and Public Works Annick De Ridder (N-VA), formerly Alderman for the Port in Antwerp, aims to revive the rail connection between the Port of Antwerp and Germany’s Ruhr region. Once a new German government is in place, she plans to restart discussions with the Netherlands and Germany to move the long-standing project forward.

The Iron Rhine, the historic railway running from Antwerp through Dutch Limburg to the Ruhr area, has been inactive since 1991. Belgium has long been interested in reopening the route, as the existing alternative through Wallonia is longer, slower, and has been congested for years.

The project has faced resistance, particularly from the Netherlands, as past routes passed through a quiet area in Dutch Limburg. In 2018, a compromise was proposed with a new route, the Rhein-Ruhr-Rail Connection (3RX), which avoids De Meinweg National Park. However, Dutch authorities have remained reluctant, arguing that the project would be costly for them while offering little benefit.

Flemish Parliament’s Question Time

The new Flemish government is making another attempt to reach an agreement with Germany and the Netherlands, minister De Ridder has stated in response to a parliamentary question from MP and party colleague Andy Pieters. 

The renewed push is linked to glass manufacturer Ciner Glass’s plan to reopen an existing transfer station as part of a new factory in Lommel, in Belgian Limburg. This station is located along the Iron Rhine route.

Pieters noted that the project has stalled for decades due to a lack of agreement between Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany. He argued that reactivating the railway would not only provide economic benefits for Flanders but also support sustainable mobility by shifting freight transport from road to rail.

De Ridder fully supports this view and has confirmed that she will raise the issue at a Flemish-Dutch summit on 1 April. She emphasised the importance of coordinating with her federal counterpart to send a clear message to the Netherlands that Belgium wants to resume discussions on the 3RX project as soon as a new German government is in place.

“Have we already met with our German colleagues? No, because as you know, the German federal government is resigning”, minister De Ridder replied.

“However, we will discuss this 3RX dossier as soon as possible with my federal colleague, Minister Jean-Luc Crucke (Les Engagés), so that Flanders and Belgium can express the same position and convey the same message in our contacts with the Netherlands and Germany. It seems obvious to me that we are pulling together with the two governments.”

“Regarding the development of the business park: in the past there was Flemish support via the Agency for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (VLAIO). Regarding the development of the site via rail transport: Infrabel is working on a feasibility study. VLAIO plays an administrative support role in this, Infrabel is ‘in the lead’. As Minister of Mobility, I naturally welcome such initiatives and I think it is very important that they are pursued.”

Flemish-Dutch summit

“It goes without saying that I will seize every opportunity to discuss the dossier with the relevant partners”, De Ridder continued.

“It will therefore also be discussed at the upcoming Flemish-Dutch summit on 1 April 2025. It is really important, in consultation with colleagues and certainly also with the Prime Minister, a major champion of this dossier, to give the Netherlands the message that we want to start the discussions on the realisation of 3RX as soon as possible, which means: as soon as there is a new German government.”

“In the past, it was mainly colleague Ben Weyts who ordered the necessary social cost-benefit analyses (SCBAs) for this. There was also an attempt to expand the story and to also demonstrate the added value to our northern neighbours by expanding the research to include the possible benefits for everyone. I really assume that we will continue working on this in the short term.”

Modal shift for Limburg

During the same question time, Flemish MP for the Christian Democrats An Christiaens asked the minister what the impact may be for “the modal shift in Limburg, especially southern Limburg”.

The Mobility Minister: “We will definitely start those discussions, about 3RX and, not to forget, North Rhine-Westphalia. We will do that together with Germany and the Netherlands, with the Prime Minister, with the Federal Government.”

“On our side of the Iron Rhine, works have already been carried out, such as the electrification of the existing railway line 19. As you know, there will also be a second track between Balen-Werkplaatsen and Neerpelt, thanks to co-financing by Flanders.”

Little hope

Railway expert and retired journalist Herman Welter sees little hope for a revival of the Iron Rhine via Hamont. Welter used to work for Gazet van Antwerpen. The newspaper, and other news outlets haven’t replaced him with younger journalists specialising in railways. 

The last freight train ran on the Iron Rhine route on 31 May 1991. The railway lost much of its importance after World War II. In the late 1990s, Belgium sought to reactivate the line, with Antwerp viewing it as a solution to growing congestion on the Antwerp Ring motorway caused by freight traffic. However, opposition in the Netherlands, particularly from residents of Roermond and Weert and environmental concerns over the De Meinweg nature reserve, stalled progress.

Since then, the project has remained entangled in political negotiations and studies without a clear resolution. In 2018, the Rhein-Ruhr-Rail Connection (3RX) was proposed as an alternative route that would bypass De Meinweg. However, after a cost-benefit analysis, Dutch enthusiasm waned due to high costs and limited expected returns.

Welter, who in 2016 wrote an opinion piece titled ‘The Iron Rhine is a Bygone Station‘, argued that Flanders and the port of Antwerp continue to push for the project despite repeated setbacks. 

In 2025, he sees no change in the situation. He points out that despite studies and negotiations, no real progress has been made. While Belgium has electrified the track between Mol and Hamont on the Dutch border, the Netherlands has not done the same for the section between Hamont-Achel and Weert.

Further challenges remain, including the need to double the track between Mol and Hamont. 

Budget cuts

Meanwhile, Belgian Railways NMBS / SNCB faces budget cuts of €675 million over the next five years. Welter notes that previous attempts to obtain permits faced opposition and expects that to happen again. Even if Dutch cooperation and funding were secured, years of permit applications and legal challenges would follow.

Welter also questions the economic viability of the project, citing the declining share of rail freight transport with no signs of improvement. 

He reiterates his 2016 position that Flanders would be better off focusing on a second rail access route to the port of Antwerp, a project that has also been under discussion for decades. The new Flemish government intends to continue work on that dossier as well.

“Not for passengers”

While former railway trade union chief and Infrabel employee Jos Digneffe is happy someone wants to reopen the Iron Rhine, the railway expert s underwhelmed. 

“May I start by saying that finally someone is taking steps to do something about rail connections for Flanders”, Digneffe says on Facebook. 

” This concerns an industrial connection for freight trains.  The Iron Rhine does indeed run through Limburg and that is where it ends. The Iron Rhine is a dossier that creates an additional connection with the hinterland of the Port of Antwerp and that is good, but in Limburg they really need to learn to see the carrying capacity of such decisions.

“There is a ‘rail (motor)way’ that passes here, but we do not have an on and off ramp. Kein Ausfart, as they say in Germany. Can that on and off ramp be realised?

Easy. Instead of messing around and spending loads of money on Spartacus (line 3 in this case), rebuild the Hasselt-Houthalen-Neerpelt railway line (the old railway line 18) and the Limburg industrial areas can also enjoy a faster and shorter connection to the Ruhr area by connecting to the Iron Rhine in Neerpelt.”

Strengthening Lier

“In addition, a second access to the Port of Antwerp will also have to be built from Lier because between Lier and Antwerp two tracks do not offer sufficient capacity to handle traffic from two  directions, the Iron Rhine and the Montzen line, with passenger traffic in between.”

Maastricht?

“Please bury that Spartacus line 1 (Hasselt-Maastricht) permanently. Let De Lijn spend those millions on other better projects. Also strive for a train connection here that opens up Flanders to the Netherlands and Germany, but for passenger traffic this time. Wallonia has eight border crossings for passenger traffic. They have crossings to all neighbouring countries. We have one worthy of the name.

North of Antwerp to the Netherlands. Please also mention this at the Flemish-Dutch summit soon.”

The Iron Rhine

The Iron Rhine, also known as the Steel Rhine, is a partially operational freight rail corridor connecting the Port of Antwerp with Mönchengladbach in Germany via Neerpelt and the Dutch towns of Weert and Roermond. 

Originally established under the 1839 Treaty of London, Belgium was granted the right to build a transport link across Dutch territory, later formalised in the 1873 Iron Rhine Treaty. 

Construction began in 1868, and the railway opened in 1879. Initially, it was heavily used, but traffic declined over time. Today, only sections of the line remain active, with no traffic between Roermond and the German border since 1991.

While 134.8 kilometres of the 160.3-kilometre railway are still in use, large portions require modernisation. Freight traffic operates on some Belgian and Dutch sections, while passenger trains run between Weert and Roermond and on parts of the German stretch. 

In Belgium, the section between Mol and Neerpelt was reactivated in 1978 due to political pressure. Hourly inter-regional trains now connect Hamont with Antwerp.

Belgium sought to reopen the Iron Rhine in 2004 to ease congestion on the Montzen route, which it currently uses to transport goods to Germany. However, concerns arose in the Netherlands over environmental impacts on De Meinweg nature reserve. 

After unsuccessful negotiations, the case was taken to the Permanent Court of Arbitration, which ruled in 2005 that Belgium could modernise the railway but must finance the upgrades, while the Netherlands would cover maintenance costs. Both countries were to share the cost of constructing a tunnel beneath the reserve.

Despite the ruling, progress has stalled. The Walloon Region opposed the project in 2007 and again in 2013–2014, fearing job losses if freight traffic shifted away from the Montzenroute. 

In late 2014, an alternative route was proposed via Venlo, using existing tracks instead of clearing the overgrown historical route. This option, at half the cost, would require trains to change direction twice, a challenge that could be resolved with additional locomotives.