The HSL-Zuid, is a 125 kilometre-long Dutch high-speed rail line running between the Amsterdam metropolitan area and the Belgian border, with a branch to Breda, North Brabant. Together with the Belgian HSL 4 it forms the Schiphol–Antwerp high-speed railway. Originally scheduled to be in service by 2007, the first public operations began on 7 September 2009, after a ceremony on 6 September.
Brussels-South railway station is a major railway station in Brussels, Belgium. Geographically, it is located in Saint-Gilles/Sint-Gillis on the border with the adjacent municipality of Anderlecht and just south of the City of Brussels.
The HSL 2 is a Belgian high-speed rail line between Leuven and Ans and is 66.2 km (41 mi) long, all of it on dedicated high-speed tracks, which began service on 15 December 2002. As part of the Belgian railway network, it is owned, technically operated and maintained by Infrabel.
The HSL 4 is a Belgian high-speed rail line part of the 87 kilometres (54 mi) axis which connects Antwerp to the Dutch border. It is 40 kilometres (25 mi); 36 kilometres (22 mi) of it being dedicated high speed tracks. It was scheduled for completion by 2005 and opened in 2009.
Antwerpen-Centraal railway station is the main railway station in Antwerp, Belgium. It is one of the most important hubs in the country and is one of the four Belgian stations on the high-speed rail network. From 1873 to early 2007, it was a terminal station. The current building, designed by the architect Louis Delacenserie, was constructed between 1895 and 1905. On 23 March 2007, a tunnel with two continuous tracks was opened under part of the city and under the station. The train services are operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB).
Belgium's high-speed rail network provides mostly international connections from Brussels to France, Germany and The Netherlands. The high-speed network began with the opening of the HSL 1 to France in 1997, and since then high-speed lines have been extended towards Germany with HSL 2 in 2002, HSL 3 from Liège to the German border in 2009, and HSL 4 from Antwerp to the Dutch border in 2009.
Rail transport in the Netherlands uses a dense railway network which connects nearly all major towns and cities. There are as many train stations as there are municipalities in the Netherlands. The network totals 3,223 route km (2,003 mi) on 6,830 kilometres (4,240 mi) of track; a line may run both ways, or two lines may run on major routes. Three-quarters of the lines have been electrified.
Liège-Guillemins railway station is the main station in Liège, Belgium. It is one of the most important hubs in the country and is one of the four Belgian stations on the high-speed rail network. The station is used by 15,000 people every day, which makes it the eleventh-busiest station in Belgium and the third in Wallonia. It is operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (SNCB/NMBS).
Brussels-North railway station is one of the three major railway stations in Brussels, Belgium; the other two are Brussels-Central and Brussels-South. Every regular domestic and international train passing there has a planned stop. The station has 200,000 passengers per week, mainly commuters, making it one of the busiest in Belgium.
Breda railway station is a railway station in Breda in North Brabant, Netherlands. It is situated on the Breda–Rotterdam railway, the Roosendaal–Breda railway and the Breda–Eindhoven railway.
Rotterdam Centraal station is the main railway station of the city Rotterdam in South Holland, Netherlands. The station received an average of 112,000 passengers daily in 2019. The current station building, located at Station Square, was officially opened in March 2014.
Brussels Airport-Zaventem railway station is a railway station located beneath Brussels Airport in Zaventem, Flemish Brabant, Belgium. The station opened in 1958 on railway line 36C; in 2012, the new line 25N was added. It was formerly called Brussels-National-Airport railway station until April 2016. The train services are operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB).
Fyra was an international high-speed rail service between the Netherlands and Belgium using the AnsaldoBreda V250 train. The service used the HSL-Zuid and HSL 4 railway lines to connect Amsterdam, Schiphol Airport, Rotterdam, Antwerp and Brussels. Continuous technical difficulties suspended the service, and it was eventually permanently halted due to reliability and safety concerns.
High-speed rail service in the Netherlands started on 13 December 2009 with the dedicated HSL-Zuid line that connects the Randstad via Brussels to the European high-speed rail network. In later years improved traditional rail sections were added to the high-speed network. Proposals for more dedicated high-speed lines were deemed too costly; plans for the HSL-Oost to Germany were mothballed and instead of the Zuiderzeelijn the less ambitious Hanzelijn was built to enable future high-speed service between the northern provinces and the Randstad.
Leuven railway station is the main railway station in Leuven, Flemish Brabant, Belgium. The station is operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB) and is located on railway line 36. In 2007, it was the fifth-busiest station in Belgium, only preceded by the three main Brussels stations and Gent-Sint-Pieters railway station.
The Antwerp–Lage Zwaluwe railway is an international railway line running from Antwerp in Belgium to Lage Zwaluwe in the Netherlands. The line was opened between 1854 and 1876. The opening of the high speed lines HSL 4 and HSL-Zuid in 2009 has decreased its importance for international passenger traffic. there is still a local international NMBS S32 train from Roosendaal to Puurs via Antwerp central once an hour along with a few other Belgian domestic IC/ and a second hourly S32 but only as far as Essen station.
Charleroi-Central railway station is the main railway station serving Charleroi, Hainaut, Belgium. It is operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (SNCB/NMBS). It was formerly called Charleroi-South railway station until December 2022.
Antwerp-Luchtbal is a railway station in the north of the city of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium. The station opened on 1 February 1932 on the Antwerp–Lage Zwaluwe railway, known in Belgium as Line 12; it is also located on Line 27A, a freight line to the port of Antwerp; and on HSL 4.
Mechelen railway station is a railway station in Mechelen, Antwerp, Belgium. The station opened on 5 May 1835 on railway lines 25, 27 and 53. The train services are operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB).
Intercity Direct is a Dutch higher-speed train service operating on the HSL-Zuid, connecting Amsterdam Centraal to Schiphol Airport, Rotterdam Centraal and Breda. In December 2013, Fyra was rebranded to Intercity Direct. It is part of NS International.
