Antwerp-Berchem Railway Station and its surroundings are set for a major renovation, beginning with the refurbishment of the railway bridge over the Ring in August 2028 and 2029, Het Nieuwsblad reports. The City of Antwerp is participating in a study on a new station building and the redevelopment of the surrounding area.

Alongside Antwerp-Central Railway Station, Antwerp-Berchem Railway Station is a key transport hub for the city and the region. However, its infrastructure is outdated. 

The current station building lacks the capacity to accommodate both existing and future passenger numbers and has significant accessibility issues. Additional stairways and lifts are required to improve access.

A major expansion is not feasible on the land owned by NMBS / SNCB and Infrabel. One proposal from the rail operators is to create a new station entrance under the railway bridge on the Singel, the inner ring road around Antwerp intra muros. But the City of Antwerp opposes this due to concerns about its impact on the Singel’s capacity and wider traffic flows.

The city will now collaborate with NMBS /SNCB and Infrabel to explore options for the station and its surroundings, considering other transport modes such as bicycles, buses, and trams. 

The city council has approved a concept and feasibility study, which is expected to be completed by autumn 2025. According to NMBS / SNCB, there is no confirmed timeline yet for the station’s renovation.

The most concrete aspect of the project is the renewal of the railway bridge over the Ring. Infrabel spokesperson Frédéric Petit stated that the need for this work is pressing and that a schedule is being developed in consultation with the Roads and Traffic Agency. 

The plan is to replace the bridge elements in August 2028, followed by additional work in August 2029, with August being chosen due to reduced rail traffic during the summer holidays. The railway bridge over the Singel is also in need of renovation, though no timeline has been set for this work.

Six years ago, architecture and urban planning students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology examined Antwerp’s station areas. Their concept for Berchem proposed demolishing the existing station and constructing a new one over the Ring, behind the Post X office complex. The design featured a tower as tall as the Boerentoren as a striking centrepiece. Whether such a structure could be built atop the Antwerp Ring remains uncertain.

At the time, Antwerp Alderman for Mobility Koen Kennis (N-VA) estimated that it would take at least another fifteen years before any plans for the station could be realised.

Introducing Antwerp-Berchem Railway Station

Antwerp-Berchem Railway Station is a railway station in the Antwerp district of Berchem. It serves both domestic and international trains, with services running via Antwerp-Central to Amsterdam and to Roosendaal via Essen. The island platforms are accessible through a tunnel, which can be entered from both the departure hall and Posthoflei.

Berchem station opened on 1 March 1865 with a temporary station building on what was then called Schelpstraat. It was located within the first fortification belt of the Defence Line of Antwerp, near the Spoorbaanpoort. The railway line to Lier and beyond had been completed a year earlier in 1864, while the railway line to Brussels had been in operation since 1836.

In 1898, a permanent station building was constructed on Stanleystraat in conjunction with the elevation of the railway embankment.

Significant changes to the Antwerp railway network occurred with the opening of the J.F. Kennedy Railway Tunnel and the construction of the Antwerp ring road. 

Trains from Sint-Niklaas and Boom were rerouted to Berchem station and Antwerp-Central via a new railway link running alongside the ring road. The connection to existing railway lines was designed at different levels. A

 grade-separated link was built to railway line 25 (via connecting tracks 6 and 7) and to railway line 27A (via connecting tracks 2 and 3). The latter tracks are used exclusively for freight trains or as an emergency route along the ring road to railway line 12, as they do not connect to Antwerp-Central. 

These infrastructure changes required a complete redesign of the track layout and a shift of the station’s location further south. In 1968, the new railway link to Antwerp-South was inaugurated, leading to the demolition of the 1898 station building, which was replaced with a new structure.

In 1995, the station’s reception area underwent a major renovation, partly in preparation for the arrival of Thalys services, which began stopping at the station in 1996.

Following the opening of the North-South railway connection on 9 December 2007, international trains to Amsterdam and Paris, including Thalys and the Benelux train, ceased stopping at Antwerp-Berchem, serving only Antwerp-Central. However, from 14 December 2014, the Benelux train resumed stopping at both Antwerp-Central and Antwerp-Berchem.

Originally named simply Berchem, the station was renamed Berchem (Antwerp) in 1975 when international trains began stopping there instead of Antwerp-East. After Berchem was merged with Antwerp in 1983, the station was eventually renamed Antwerp-Berchem.

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