In the Belgian city of Liege, the tram network that was demolished in 1967 has been restored
The process of building a tram network in Liège; photo: Harry Hondius
The city of Liège is completing testing and inspections of the new tram line ahead of its official opening, scheduled for January 2025. The tram is returning to the streets of the Belgian city of 200,000 people 60 years after the network was closed.
The return of the tram is explained by the fact that in recent decades, Liege has been actively developing, with a growing population. The number of private cars increased, and traffic jams appeared on the city streets, which significantly affected the mobility of residents. The environmental situation also worsened due to emissions from vehicles with internal combustion engines. So in 2007, the municipality decided that the city should return the tram, which had been recklessly eliminated in 1967. The planning, design, contracting, and construction stages took 17 years. The speed of implementation was also affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, which forced a long pause.
The arrangement of a tram stop near the Liege-Guillemain train station; photo by Kateryna Lozovenko
“The launch of the tram will revolutionize urban mobility, the city's ecology, and the economic habits of its citizens,” said Mayor Willy Demeyer.
However, the construction process also encountered difficulties. For example, the original plan was to extend the 12-kilometer route to Gerstal and Sering. These are two districts that are important in terms of economic ties, the industry that is concentrated there, and at the same time residential development. However, the plan was not realized because of the opposition of Wallonia, the land that includes the city of Liège. It canceled the project on the grounds that it was too expensive. As a result, the final route was 11.7 kilometers. It runs from the Coronomez neighborhood through the city center to Sklesen.
Scheme of the new tram route “Sklesen - Koronomez - Sklesen”
The total cost of the project was about 550 million euros. This amount includes the cost of building the tram line, related infrastructure works, and the purchase of rolling stock.
The route will be operated by CAF Urbos trams from the Spanish manufacturer CAF. Each of them has 7 sections and a total passenger capacity of up to 310 passengers. All components of the new tram system are currently being tested. Residents also need to get used to the new mode of transportation on the city streets, which has priority at intersections. The opening is scheduled for January 25, 2025.
CAF Urbos tram cars being transported to the Liège depot for further preparation for operation; photo: Urban Transport Magazine, by David Manfredin
Daniel Vathelet, a representative of the local public transport provider TEC-Liège, urges all residents to pay attention to this: “The tram in the city is no less dangerous than other modes of transportation. But if you don't park on the tram tracks and don't walk on them, everything will be fine. You should also remember that the tram is 45 meters long and weighs 64 tons, so it needs 30 meters to stop.”
The construction of the tram network in Liège; photo by Kateryna Lozovenko
Liege became the fifth city in Belgium to have a tram system after Brussels, Ghent, Antwerp, and Charleroi. Belgium also has a unique coastal tram line connecting different cities and villages over a distance of 67 kilometers. The completion of the project in Liege continued the trend of bringing back trams or creating tram networks from scratch. A few years earlier, trams started running in the university city of Lund in Sweden, as well as in the regional center of Tampere in Finland. The undisputed leader in creating new tram systems on the continent is France, which launched tram systems in 20 cities between 2000 and 2020.