Belgian-Luxembourg Rail Working Group Has Inaugural Meeting

On Monday 15 January 2024, Luxembourg's Minister of Mobility and Public Works, Yuriko Backes, has a meeting in Luxembourg her Belgian counterpart, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Mobility of the Belgian federal government, Georges Gilkinet, together with representatives of the Société nationale des chemins de fer luxembourgeois (CFL), the Société nationale des chemins de fer Belges (SNCB) and Infrabel, manager of Belgian railway infrastructure, to launch the first meeting of the Belgian-Luxembourg working group responsible for monitoring of cross-border rail network.

This working group was created recently by the two countries with the aim of coordinating their efforts in rail infrastructure planning. The objective is in particular to develop together a cross-border offer aimed at encouraging road-rail connections.

Luxembourg and Belgium share a common vision in terms of mobility development. This vision is part of the European Union's efforts to promote rail transport as a central pillar of the transport of people and goods in order to meet the objectives of the “Green Deal”. The latter aims to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, with an intermediate objective of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels.

Minister Yuriko Backes stated “This first meeting of the working group marks an important step in our joint commitment to strengthening rail connectivity between Luxembourg and Belgium. We must continue this dialogue to shape the future together, with the aim of facilitating the transition from road to rail and guaranteeing our citizens a faster, high-quality travel experience.”