The national rail authority SNCB is to go ahead with the installation of around 500 “anti-terror” bollards outside 20 railway stations across the country. The bollards are intended to replace the concrete blocks placed as a temporary measure to prevent lorries from being used as terrorist weapons, as has happened previously in Nice and London.
“The intention is for the bollards to prevent any terror attack using for example a car or a truck to drive into the station, said SNCB spokesperson Dimitri Temmerman.
The bollards include fixed installations, as well as models which can be retracted into the ground, and are expected to be installed by the end of the year, Temmerman said.
The concrete blocks were introduced in April this year, with the later arrival of the bollards announced at the same time. Those are now ready to begin being installed, and the concrete blocks removed.
Federal mobility minister François Bellot recently gave a list of the stations concerned to parliament. They are: the Brussels stations North, Central (photo), South, Chapelle and Congres; Antwerp Central and Berchem; Ghent Sint-Pieters; Leuven; Ottignies; Bruges; Namur; Liege; Denderleeuw; Charleroi South; Kortrijk; Ostend; Sint-Niklaas; Hasselt and Aalst.
In total, the implantation will cost €1.6 million, or an average of €3,200 per bollard, including installation.
Alan Hope
The Brussels Times
