Brussels has given the green light to plans to roll out a single transport ticket valid for all three transport companies serving the capital and onboard the national rail's trains.
The new transport pass would mean Brussels commuters will be able to access vehicles of Brussels', Wallonia's and Flanders' public transport firms with the same ticket.
Additionally, the single ticket would also be valid for all trains operated by national company SNCB/NMBS, in a major step towards the integration of the company's transport networks.
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Commuters living outside the Belgian capital but regularly coming to Brussels for work, education or other reasons stand to win the most out of the arrangement, as they would no longer need to juggle more than one public transport ticket or pass.
Currently, a public transport user coming into the capital region from either Flanders or Wallonia has to hold a pass for Brussel's STIB and at least one more for either Flanders' De Lijn or Wallonia's TEC.
Plans to roll out a unified transport ticket had been talked about for years and had gotten the nod from authorities in both Flanders and Wallonia, with the go-ahead from Brussels last week putting them back in the pipeline.
A spokesperson for Brussels's regional mobility minister, Elke Van den Brandt, confirmed that the plans had been approved and said the ball was now in the court of the newly sworn-in federal transport minister, Georges Gilkinet, a member of the Francophone greens (Écolo).
"We are waiting for the practical details from the new federal minister and the SNCB," spokesperson Marie Thibaut de Maisieres said in a text message.
Thibaut de Maisieres did not immediately reply to a question on a tentative launch date for the single transport ticket.
Gabriela Galindo
The Brussels Times
