A quarter of buses and trams in Flanders do not run on time

Belgaimage-33088872.jpg

In 2022, a quarter of buses and trams in Flanders did not run on time. In addition, almost 275,000 rides were cancelled last year, an increase of 50 per cent over four years. The number of rides cancelled due to staffing problems has even quadrupled.

The Flemish government wants to encourage people to use public transport more to reduce congestion. However, the figures provided on Friday by Flemish Mobility minister Lydia Peeters (Open VLD, liberal party) at the request of Flemish MP Els Robeyns (Vooruit, social democrats) show a large number of vehicles do not run on time. 'On time' is defined by De Lijn as less than two minutes early or less than five minutes late.

"Sad and unacceptable figures"

In addition, 274,671 rides were cancelled in 2022, an increase by 92,030 or approximately 50 per cent compared to the 182,641 cancelled rides in 2018. Notably, the number of rides cancelled due to staffing problems, especially a lack of drivers, quadrupled between 2018 and 2022 from 37,543 to 151,818. In addition, nearly 20,000 rides were cancelled for technical reasons, doubling in four years.

"How do we want more people to take public transport if the bus or tram arrives late or not at all?"

"Sad and unacceptable figures", responded Vooruit MP Robeyns in the Flemish parliament on Friday. "One in four buses or trams arrive more than five minutes late. How do we want more people to take public transport if the bus or tram arrives late or not at all?" According to Robeyns, the Flemish government should "urgently invest in better, accessible and affordable public transport for all so that people switch to public transport en masse".

Staff shortages and traffic jams

"We can only agree with that", responds De Lijn spokesman Frederik Wittock. "Especially in Antwerp, Leuven and the Flemish periphery (around Brussels, ed.), the staff shortage is playing tricks on us. We are competing with the port and airports for certain profiles there." The same problem is also starting to appear in Ghent. Thanks to large-scale recruitment campaigns, a third of the 900 vacancies open since the beginning of this year have already been filled.

However, heavily congested roads are also hampering service at De Lijn. "We do everything we can to keep trams and buses running on schedule, but we too are victims of traffic jams", the public transport company says. On Friday morning, De Lijn introduced a new app which allows travellers to track their rides in real-time.

(B5V)

 

#FlandersNewsService | © BELGA PHOTO LAURIE DIEFFEMBACQ

 

Related news:

Website preview
Wheelchair users sue Flemish public transport company
Wheelchair users still too often have bad experiences when trying to use buses and trams in Flanders. Four victims are now taking Flemish public transport company De Lijn to court, Mediahuis newspaper report on Monday.
www.belganewsagency.eu
Website preview
Flemish public transportation company De Lijn to deploy 36 new e-buses this year
The "new generation of e-buses" that bus maker Van Hool is developing for the Flemish public transportation company De Lijn will be ready in the fourth quarter of this year. On Tuesday, Flemish Mobility minister Lydia Peeters was allowed to inspect the e-buses at the factory of the Belgian company in the village of Koningshooikt.
www.belganewsagency.eu

Get updates in your mailbox

By clicking "Subscribe" I confirm I have read and agree to the Privacy Policy.

About belganewsagency.eu

Belga News Agency delivers dependable, rapid and high-quality information 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from Belgium and abroad to all Belgian media. The information covers all sectors, from politics, economics and finance to social affairs, sports and culture, not to mention entertainment and lifestyle.

Every day, our journalists and press photographers produce hundreds of photos and news stories, dozens of online information items, plus audio and video bulletins, all in both national languages. Since the end of March 2022 English has been added as a language.

For public institutions, businesses and various organisations that need reliable information, Belga News Agency also offers a comprehensive range of corporate services to meet all their communication needs.

Contact

Arduinkaai 29 1000 Brussels

www.belganewsagency.eu