The average Belgian lives more than 20 kilometres from their workplace. Which mode of transport do workers in the country choose to cover the distance?
Many workers in Belgium face a lengthy commute to and from work every day. As has been the case in previous years, travelling with a private vehicle remained the most popular choice in 2024, according to the ninth mobility barometer of HR service provider Acerta.
Cars remain the most popular means of transport. More than half of employees (52.3%) always rely on a car for commuting, while the vehicle plays a role in 78% of commuting trips (for example, driving by car to the train station).
However, another private means of transport, the bicycle, has made the most progress in recent years. "It is now used either fully or partly in 41.2% of commuting trips. That's a whopping 35% more than in 2019 when it was used for 30.5% of trips," said mobility expert at Acerta Consult, Charlotte Thijs.
Between 2023 and 2024, the share of cycling in commuting grew by 5.4%. "This makes cycling the big winner in commuting." Some 15% of Belgian workers do their entire commute by bicycle. This share is significantly higher in Flanders (17.3%) than among Walloon workers (2.2%). A quarter combine cycling with driving.
"Cycling doesn't need to be an exclusive choice," Thijs said. "Someone could travel part of the way by bicycle and then jump on the train. Or someone may cycle to work in good weather and go by car in bad weather."
What impacts decisions?
Public transport is less popular than private transport modes. All in all, it plays a role in about 8% of commuting trips. More than 5% of commuters rely only on public transport and 2.9% combine public transport with bicycle and/or car.
"Travellers have no control over where and when there is supply of train, tram or bus," Thijs said. This makes workers passive users, and they are "clearly not keen on playing that passive role."
"Only where public transport supply is high and where cars are also discouraged – as is the case in Brussels – does public transport win."
One of the most important factors in choosing how people commute to work is what is on offer, such as direct connections, bicycle leases and additional cycle infrastructure. "There is an ongoing shift and further diversification of transport modes going on generally, and therefore also in commuting," Thijs said.
