Half of the disruption is linked to trespassing on the rails, which impedes traffic, the other half to technical failures. “These failures are above all connected to problems with the opening of doors. So, when a door does not close, the train is unable to move off,” Ledune continued. These problems are especially noticeable during rush-hours, which is why the company reminds users in an awareness campaign to let others disembark first before embarkation or not to embark when the chime sounds.
Ledune further stated that STIB is working on a new signalling system that will allow the interval between trains to be reduced by further still. “So that will allow trains to run more frequently and therefore better spread the load between trains, effectively allowing more travellers to embark while causing less disruption.”
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Around 95 technical failures on the metro were recorded in 2018 versus 83 in 2017, La Libre Belgique and La Dernière Heure reported on Wednesday.
“This does not mean that passengers are disembarked every time. Most failures don’t last long and the traveller doesn’t even notice,” Françoise Ledune, spokeswoman for STIB (Brussels Intercommunal Transport Company) explained. “The upward trend is linked to the increasing use of our network,” she added.