BELGIUM | Safer in theory, harsher in reality: polarisation and violence mark 2025 for LGBTQIA+ people

Belgium remains one of Europe’s front-runners when it comes to legal protection for LGBTQIA+ people. Yet 2025 exposed a widening gap between progressive legislation and everyday reality, one can read in ILGA-Europe‘s Annual Review. Civil society organisations report a continued rise in homophobic and transphobic violence, declining acceptance among young people, and growing polarisation in…

A London-bound Eurostar terminal at Antwerp-Central? Highly unlikely!

A new use is being sought for the vacant space of Plopsa Station, located at the rear of Antwerp-Central Railway Station. Belgium‘s national train operator NMBS / SNCB owns the space and says it is open to all ideas. For Antwerp’s Alderman for Tourism and Mobility, Koen Kennis (N-VA), this opens the door to an…

Leo Express now links Germany to Poland / Ukraine and ÖBB links Vienna to Trieste

Two major developments in European rail underline how international long-distance services are expanding both through new open-access routes and major infrastructure upgrades. Private operator Leo Express from Czechia is preparing its first move into the German passenger market with a trans-European service from Frankfurt to the Polish–Ukrainian border, while Austria’s ÖBB has launched a dramatically…

Leo Express files plans for extraordinary 2026 Bratislava–Ostend and Venice–Northern Germany services

Leo Express has formally notified Schienen-Control in Austria of its intention to launch two unusual new open-access rail services: a year-round Bratislava–Ostend line from December 2026, and a seasonal Venice–Heringsdorf / Kiel service beginning in summer 2026. The filings, submitted on 11 December 2025, appear in the Austrian regulator’s register of planned new commercial rail…

European Sleeper to launch Amsterdam and Brussels to Milan night train service, delays Barcelona plans

European Sleeper, the Belgian–Dutch cooperative behind several recent night train initiatives, will launch a new three-times-weekly night train linking Amsterdam Central and Brussels-South with Milan from 18 June 2026. This marks the company’s second new international night-train route for next year, following the previously announced Paris–Brussels–Berlin service that begins at the end of March 2026.