August 2025. We’re travelling to the Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, and more specifically their respective capitals Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius. Are they interconnected by rail? Yes, but not in the most straightforward or userfriendly way possible. The Rail Baltica project should remedy this. Unsurprisingly though, this megaproject faces political and budgetary hurdles. It…
Tag: Schaerbeek
BELGIUM | Naming towns and cities: municipalities with Dutch, French, English and other translations
15 November is Dynasty Day or King’s Day in Belgium. 15 November being the name day of Leopold, the name of three of the seven Kings of the Belgians. To mark this occasion, and inspired by a Belga News Agency post, let’s take a look at names of villages, towns, municipalities and cities in the…
REVIEW | ‘Belgian Railways Under Occupation: Between Collaboration and Resistance’ at Train World in Brussels
Opened in late September 2025 at Train World in Schaarbeek / Schaerbeek in Brussels, the exhibition ‘Belgian Railways Under Occupation: Between Collaboration and Resistance‘ examines the complex and often painful history of the Belgian railways during World War II.
TRAIN WORLD | ‘Belgian Railways Under Occupation: Between Collaboration and Resistance’, 26 September 2025 to 28 June 2026
From Saturday 26 September 2025 to Sunday 28 June 2026, NMBS / SNCB‘s railway museum in Schaerbeek / Schaarbeek in the Brussels-Capital Region, Train World, will host the exhibition ‘Belgian Railways Under Occupation: Between Collaboration and Resistance‘. How did the Belgian Railways act during World War II?
27 SEPTEMBER 2025 | Farewell Tour for ‘Benelux’ Intercityrijtuig (ICR) coaches in the Netherlands and Belgium
On Saturday 27 September 2025, a special heritage train will operate across the Netherlands and Belgium to mark the approaching withdrawal of the last Intercityrijtuig (ICR) coaches from regular service.
NMBS / SNCB’s AM30 / MR30 order faces political and legal headwinds as costs of delay mount
The Belgian national rail operator NMBS / SNCB is under mounting pressure over its planned order of new trains from Spanish manufacturer Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF), as political debate, legal challenges and international criticism threaten to delay the procurement.
The Rolling Tables dinner train experience in Belgium from 1 August 2025 and in the Netherlands from 1 November 2025
In 2024, Dinner Train was going to offer dine and ride train experiences in Belgium after doing so in the Netherlands. It never happened. Now, the concept gets a second chance under the brand The Rolling Tables.
GREAT BRITAIN | Network Rail tests steam locomotive with digital ETCS safety system
April 2025 has seen the start of testing at speed for the world’s first operational steam locomotive to be fitted with European Train Control System or ETCS technology. Tests are being done by Network Rail, the railway infrastructure (the tracks) in Great Britain. So England, Scotland and Wales. Not Northern Ireland.
BELGIUM | Fête du Rail at Rétrotrain, Saint-Ghislain
August 2024. Two weekends in a row, we experienced some Belgian railway heritage. On the 11th, we went to Baasrode-Noord for the Dendermonde – Puurs Steam Railway or Stoomtrein Dendermonde-Puurs over line 52. On the 17th, we travelled all the way to Saint-Ghislain for a special ride over freight railway line 100, organised by Le…
PHOTOS | AM66 ‘Klassiekje’ / ‘Classique’ Farewell Ride at Antwerp-Central Railway Station
Train geeks young and old gathered today, Saturday 14 December 2024, for the farewell tour or retirement ride of NMBS / SNCB‘s Classical Twin EMU, also known as AM66, MS66, MR66, ‘Klassiekje‘ or ‘Classique‘. The retirement ride started at Schaarbeek / Schaerbeek in Brussels, stopped and stops (as I’m writhing this post) Antwerp-Central, Ghent-Saint-Peter’s, Ath…