Missing Service
Taking the train from Antwerpen (Belgiumโs second city) to Eindhoven (fifth largest city in Netherlands) currently requires a detour via Breda, but an alternative is available – to use the old Eisener Rhein route from Hamont (Belgium) to Weert (Netherlands) for passenger trains, that would provide a much more direct route. There is currently 11.3km of active railway line here, dead straight and on flat terrain, that has no passenger service.
What needs to be done: electrify the 9.6km of track where overhead wires are currently missing, and build an extra platform in Weert (space is available for this) to allow Belgian trains to terminate there instead of in Hamont
European Commission Analysis
In 2018 the European Commission published its “Comprehensive analysis of the existing cross-border rail transport connections and missing links on the internal EU borders”. The main report (74 pages, PDF) summarises the issues, and Annex 3 of the report (384 pages, PDF) analysed every single border.
For the sake of simplicity, I have made a PDF just of the relevant pages of Annex 3 that cover Hamont-Weert – you can find that PDF here.
Photos from this location
