The long-announced Liège-Maastricht-Aachen three-country train will start running in June this year.
The Dutch State Secretary responsible for rail transport has informed the Dutch House of Representatives that the train will start running on 9 June 2024. Rail operator Arriva, which will operate the link between Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, confirmed the information.
The Maastricht-Aachen section already became operational at the beginning of 2019, and two trains per hour run between Maastricht, Heerlen and Aachen Hbf.
At that time, Belgium could not be connected by this new link because the Belgian authorities imposed additional conditions. Subsequently, the start date for the rail service was set for the end of 2023, and then postponed to the first half of 2024 due to “unforeseen technical challenges”, as the authorities announced.
The three-country train could not reach Belgium because it was not equipped with ETCS
In the meantime, the last points of divergence have been resolved and as a result the trains operated by Arriva have been equipped with the necessary safety systems. Specifically, the Flirt trainsets were not allowed into Belgium because they were not equipped with ETCS. From 2022 onwards, trains were gradually equipped with ETCS and tests were carried out for their acceptance on the Belgian rail network.
“I am pleased that the carriers involved, Arriva, NS and SNCB, have announced that this rail service will be introduced on the railways on 9 June 2024. This means that the train change at Maastricht to and from Liège will become a thing of the past,” said Dutch State Secretary Vivianne Heijnen.
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