The Brussels Premetro is a network consisting of lines 4, 10, 7 and 25 of the Brussels Tram system. It is a standard-gauge system which runs in underground sections in the city centre and further out on surface lines. The network is operated by STIB/MIVB.
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The premetro tunnels have been built to allow for eventual upgrade to heavy metro, so most of the platform is high, and is connected to the street (at least in the upward direction) by escalator. At some stations lifts have been installed, but there is a cutout section taking the level down to one foot above ground to board the trams. The three steps this entails make life difficult for passengers with baby buggies or suitcases, even though the new low-floor trams are accessible to wheel-chair users.[1]
Lines
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Line 4 and Line 10 are tram lines using the North–South Axis tunnel which crosses the city centre from Brussels-North via Brussels-South to Albert. This North–South Axis is being upgraded to metro service; works have begun in 2019, including north-eastward prolongation of the metro tunnel, and the transition to conventional metro is foreseen for 2030.[2]
Line 7 is the main line of the Greater Ring, replacing Tram 23 and Tram 24 as of 14 March 2011. It services the Heysel/Heizel, runs under Laeken Park and then via the Greater Ring to the terminus of Line 10 to terminate one stop later at Vanderkindere for connections to tram lines 4 and 92. The somewhat shorter Line 25 also runs the Greater Ring premetro, but with different termini at both ends, at the Southern terminus connecting to Boondael railway station.
History
editThe network was planned at the beginning of the 1960s to become a fully underground network. At its inauguration on 17 December 1969, the premetro tramways run on the line between De Brouckère metro station and Schuman metro station[3] that was later, in 1976, converted into the common section of the first two metro lines. These lines are now considered a single line with two branches, between De Brouckère and Tomberg and De Brouckère and Beaulieu.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Du pré-métro au métro: mode d'emploi | Metro 3". metro3.be (in French). Retrieved 17 October 2024.
- ^ "Construction of Brussels metro line 3 partially halted". www.brusselstimes.com. The Brussels Times. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
- ^ "STIB - La STIB de 1960 à 1969" [STIB - STIB from 1960 to 1969] (in French). STIB. 2013. Archived from the original on 21 December 2013. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
- ^ "STIB - Historique de la STIB de 1970 à 1979" [STIB - History of STIB from 1970 to 1979] (in French). STIB. 2013. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 15 September 2013.