Renovation works on the busy Barrière de Saint-Gilles roundabout, which began last week, are set to disrupt traffic in the area for at least a year, city authorities have announced.
Describing the six-road intersection's current layout as "prone to accidents and difficult to read", Brussels Mobility has indicated that the latest works will look to overhaul the Barrière at ground-level and underground.
The project started on Tuesday with the temporary removal of the roundabout's iconic statue, La porteuse d'eau (The Water Carrier). The rest of the month's work will involve dismantling its fountain. The Capital Region's water authority Vivaqua will take over the site from 6 April in order to renovate the pipes running below the Barrière.
From September onwards, the tram tracks which run through the roundabout will be renovated by Brussels public transport operator STIB/MIVB.
The final stage of the works is scheduled to take place in 2027 and will see Brussels Mobility finalise the square's new layout, notably restoring the Porteuse d'eau.
Road closures from April
Several roads in the area will be closed to accommodate the works. The stretch of the Chaussée de Waterloo linking the Barrière to the city centre will be shut off from April onwards, while the Rue Théodore Verhaegen will also be closed.
As has been the case since July of last year, tram line 81 will remain interrupted, but bus line 96 will continue to serve the neighbourhood for the duration of the works. The tram line is currently split into two sections due to renovation works on two nearby streets, Rue Moris and Rue Antoine Bréart.
The latest works in the Barrière are part of a wider redevelopment plan aimed at making the area safer for pedestrians and drivers, according to the local authorities.
Once the works are complete, the tram tracks used by line 81 will run through the centre of the intersection, rather than alongside road traffic. The new layout will also include wider pavements, shorter road crossings, and a single-lane roundabout.
