STIB-MIVB and SNCB-NMBS have announced an exceptional service plan for 20–21 July 2026 to move the hundreds of thousands expected at Belgian National Day events. Metro lines will run every 7 ½ minutes; Parc station will be closed all day, but adjacent Arts-Loi and Gare Centrale will remain open. Nine tram routes will operate past midnight, and Noctis buses will run until 03:00 after Monday’s Bal National street party. National rail services into Brussels will use a weekend timetable with reduced commuter frequencies, while Thalys and Eurostar maintain normal schedules but advise seat reservations. Train managers can impose rolling luggage checks under the federal anti-terror decree. For global-mobility planners, the changes mean airport-city transfers may take longer: the Airport Line 12 bus will terminate at Schuman instead of Place Luxembourg, and taxis need detours around Rue Royale. Employers with assignee orientations on 21 July should consider remote briefings or postpone until 22 July. The transport companies say the plan was stress-tested during the June European Council summit and can accommodate up to 60,000 riders per hour. However, crowd-control gates will be installed at Schuman and Mérode; once platforms fill, further entry will be halted, so travellers should build extra time into return journeys after the fireworks.
Source: The Brussels Times
