With the start of the school holidays, Belgium’s Federal Police have rolled out an ambitious security operation – codenamed “Operation SunRail” – designed to reassure the more than one million passengers expected to take the train to Bruges, Ostend and other coastal resorts over the next eight weeks. Beginning this weekend, extra railway-police teams are patrolling the busy Brussels–Ghent–Bruges–Ostend axis in both directions, concentrating on peak departure windows in the morning and late-afternoon return services. According to Interior Minister Bernard Quintin, the deployment is preventive rather than reactive.
![Belgian Federal Police launch ‘Operation SunRail’ to secure summer rail traffic to the coast]()
For visitors travelling from outside the Schengen Area who plan to make the most of these upgraded rail links, VisaHQ can streamline the Belgian visa process with step-by-step guidance, digital applications and courier services—full details can be found at
Officers will carry body-cams and have the authority to issue on-the-spot fines for disorderly behaviour or fare evasion; they can also detain passengers suspected of carrying prohibited items until local police arrive. The visible presence is intended to deter pick-pocketing and alcohol-fuelled disturbances that have marred previous high-season weekends. Rail operator SNCB/NMBS has coordinated timetables with the police so that patrol teams board alternating services, creating an element of unpredictability. Trains with large groups of foreign tourists – notably from neighbouring France, Germany and the Netherlands – are given priority checks; multilingual information leaflets explaining Belgian public-order rules are distributed on board. The operation is running in parallel with stepped-up baggage screening at Brussels-Midi and Bruges stations, where small mobile X-ray units have been installed. For companies organising off-site meetings or incentive trips on the coast, the initiative reduces the risk of last-minute disruptions and should improve punctuality. HR departments have been advised to factor in marginally longer boarding times when issuing travel guidelines to staff. Operation SunRail is scheduled to remain in place until 31 August, after which the Federal Police will review incident statistics to decide whether similar seasonal deployments should become permanent.
For visitors travelling from outside the Schengen Area who plan to make the most of these upgraded rail links, VisaHQ can streamline the Belgian visa process with step-by-step guidance, digital applications and courier services—full details can be found at
Officers will carry body-cams and have the authority to issue on-the-spot fines for disorderly behaviour or fare evasion; they can also detain passengers suspected of carrying prohibited items until local police arrive. The visible presence is intended to deter pick-pocketing and alcohol-fuelled disturbances that have marred previous high-season weekends. Rail operator SNCB/NMBS has coordinated timetables with the police so that patrol teams board alternating services, creating an element of unpredictability. Trains with large groups of foreign tourists – notably from neighbouring France, Germany and the Netherlands – are given priority checks; multilingual information leaflets explaining Belgian public-order rules are distributed on board. The operation is running in parallel with stepped-up baggage screening at Brussels-Midi and Bruges stations, where small mobile X-ray units have been installed. For companies organising off-site meetings or incentive trips on the coast, the initiative reduces the risk of last-minute disruptions and should improve punctuality. HR departments have been advised to factor in marginally longer boarding times when issuing travel guidelines to staff. Operation SunRail is scheduled to remain in place until 31 August, after which the Federal Police will review incident statistics to decide whether similar seasonal deployments should become permanent.
