Brussels minister-president Rudi Vervoort (PS) says the next regional government should make decisions on adjusting the Metro 3 project, while defending the need for long-term investment in the north–south line.
"All the decisions the Brussels government has taken since 2013 are based on studies by both the STIB and independent offices: investment in a north–south metro line is necessary, the tram network is no longer sufficient."
That was the message from Brussels minister-president Rudi Vervoort on Tuesday afternoon in the special committee on the Metro 3 project.
He noted that when he became minister-president in May 2013, plans to expand the metro network were already underway.
"The 2009 to 2014 coalition agreement stated that the metro expansion would be definitively confirmed," he said.
Based on recommendations from the Court of Audit, Vervoort said it was up to the authorities to learn lessons together with all parties involved to improve project management, both for this expansion and for other major infrastructure projects the region has yet to deliver.
For Vervoort, it will be up to the next Brussels government to take the necessary decisions to adjust the project and respond to mobility and territorial development challenges, which he said remain crucial for the region.
He concluded by calling for "cooperative federalism", with greater engagement from the federal government, as the metro project is of national and economic significance.
