Next Monday's general strike will result in travel disruptions, with public transport operators in Flanders and Wallonia having now confirmed their services will be affected.
The socialist trade union FGTB/ABVV and Christian union CSC/ACV have called for a general strike in Belgium on Monday 31 March. This is expected to impact travel.
The two major rail unions ACOD Spoor and ACV-Transcom will take part, meaning fewer trains will run. Brussels Airlines confirmed that all 244 departing flights will be cancelled, while Brussels public transport operator STIB/MIVB said it is expecting major disruptions on its lines.
Now, Flemish public transport operator De Lijn and its Walloon counterpart TEC confirmed passengers using their services will also experience inconvenience.
Disruption in Flanders
"The unions at De Lijn are also participating [in the strike]," the company said in a statement. "As a result, there will be fewer bus and tram services throughout Flanders that day."
As is always the case on strike days, De Lijn is working on an alternative service. "This will be available from the evening of Saturday, 29 March on the De Lijn website." Passengers are advised to plan their journey using the route planner on the website or the app. Trips that are not running will not appear.
During the last national strike on 13 February, around half of all De Lijn buses and trams in Flanders were running. De Lijn's common union front organised a day of action on Wednesday 12 March. Again, only half of the company's buses and trams were operating.
Disruption in Wallonia
TEC also confirmed disruptions to its network are to be expected. "We will be able to inform passengers of the routes cancelled in the early hours of Monday 31 March, subject to the information we receive," the company said.
The cancelled routes will be signalled in the timetable search (line and stop) on its website and in the TEC app. "We recommend that our passengers consider alternative means of transport," TEC noted. The company has been hit by other strikes in recent days initiated by the CGSLB union at the TEC depot in Jumet. The action appears to be related to the situation of an employee who has reportedly been sanctioned.
The strike on 31 March aims to denounce a series of measures put forth by the Federal Government.
