New trains will be put into service for STIB/MIVB metro lines 1 and 5, which will aim to increase service frequency to one train every two minutes from 2023.
The introduction of new and more modern trains will see commuter's waiting time cut by half a minute, thereby increasing service capacity by around a quarter, or to around 21,000 vehicles per direction and per hour to Bruzz.
Elke Van den Brandt, Brussels' mobility minister, said 22 new trains would be added to modernise the fleet used for the metro lines, which for a long stretch run parallelly to one another.
Van den Brandt announced the plans for modernisation as a reply to a question during a parliamentary session, during which she also spoke of plans to fully automate metro line 3 by 2030, when the line is extended until the stop Bordet.
While the new trains are expected to be put into circulation as of next year, the increased frequency is only slated for 2023, since it requires upgrading the signalisation infrastructure and building a new metro depot.
Van den Brandt also said that the frequency on lines 2 and 6 would also be increased, going from a train every three minutes to one ever two minutes and a half, in changes set to implemented "in a few years' time," according to Bruzz.
Gabriela Galindo
The Brussels Times
