Belgium’s rail network has been plunged into days of disruption as a five-day strike by railway workers cripples domestic services and ripples across key international corridors linking Brussels with Paris, London, Amsterdam, Cologne and beyond. With cancellations, reduced timetables and last-minute changes stretching from Sunday night on 25 January to Friday evening on 30 January 2026, passengers across Europe are facing crowded trains, missed connections and improvised travel plans at the height of the winter travel period.

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Five Days of Disruption on a Strategic European Rail Hub

The industrial action began at 22:00 on Sunday 25 January and is scheduled to run until 22:00 on Friday 30 January. It affects services operated by the national rail company SNCB/NMBS and infrastructure manager Infrabel, which together form the backbone of Belgium’s dense rail network. The strike has forced the operator to introduce an “alternative train service” each day, based on the number of staff still available to work.

Belgium sits at the heart of Europe’s passenger rail map, with Brussels-Midi acting as a key interchange between high-speed lines to France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany and Austria. Even when most international operators keep their core schedules, the knock-on impact of reduced Belgian domestic services has been significant. Passengers who rely on local trains to reach long-distance departures have struggled to make connections, and regional cross-border services to cities such as Lille, Maastricht, Aachen and Luxembourg have seen widespread cancellations.

The rail strike comes after months of mounting tension over federal transport reforms and budget cuts, and follows a series of shorter walkouts in 2025 that had already made Belgium one of Europe’s most strike-affected rail systems. This latest action, however, is the longest continuous national rail stoppage in years, and its five-day span has made it much harder for commuters and international travelers to simply “wait it out.”

What Travelers Are Experiencing on the Ground

For domestic passengers, the most immediate impact has been a sharp reduction in the number of trains. On the second and third days of the strike, only a fraction of peak-hour “P trains” that normally bring commuters into major cities have been running. Even on lines given priority by SNCB/NMBS, roughly one in four InterCity (IC) trains between large urban centers has been cancelled, and only around half of local and suburban (L and S) services are operating.

This thinning of the timetable has translated into crowded platforms and packed trains on routes that remain in service. In Brussels, the capital’s main stations have largely avoided complete gridlock thanks to the planned alternative schedule, but travelers report standing-room-only conditions on many morning and evening services. Screens in stations flash long lists of cancelled trains, and staff distribute strike information leaflets as loudspeaker announcements urge passengers to check the app or website repeatedly throughout the day.

Outside the capital, the situation is often more acute. In parts of Wallonia and rural Flanders, some smaller stations have lost most of their usual connections, forcing travelers onto replacement buses where they exist, or onto the roads. Those with urgent medical appointments, school exams or long-planned trips describe setting out hours earlier than usual to hedge against missed trains or unexpected cancellations.

International Journeys: Limited High-Speed Impact, Major Feeder Problems

Despite the domestic turmoil, high-speed and long-distance operators have so far managed to preserve most of their core timetables. Eurostar trains linking Brussels with London and Paris are running near-normal schedules, and German ICE services between Brussels, Cologne and Frankfurt have been largely unaffected during the strike days currently underway. Low-cost high-speed operator OUIGO on the Brussels–Paris axis is also operating its trains as planned.

The picture is more mixed for Franco-Belgian and Dutch routes. Most TGV INOUI services to and from Brussels-Midi are operating, but several individual trains, including services such as 9832, 9886/7, 9870 and 894/5 on specific days, have been pre-emptively cancelled. Travelers heading to or from cities like Nantes or southern France have sometimes found their direct link from Brussels removed, with rebooking on alternative departures or part-routes required.

EuroCity and EuroCity Direct trains linking Brussels with Rotterdam and Amsterdam have been hit harder. Only around three-quarters of Brussels–Rotterdam EuroCity services are scheduled to run on some strike days, and roughly half of the usual Brussels–Amsterdam EuroCity departures are operating. Even when they do run, many Dutch-originating trains turn back at Rotterdam rather than continuing to Amsterdam Zuid or Schiphol Airport, forcing passengers to change and adding time and uncertainty to journeys.

Night services are also affected. Austria’s Nightjet connection between Brussels and Vienna is, on some strike nights, operating only from Cologne in western Germany. Passengers from Belgium must first reach Cologne, typically via an InterCity service from Brussels or Liège, before boarding the overnight train. For long-distance travelers crossing multiple borders, every additional transfer heightens the risk of missed connections if even one leg is delayed.

Ripple Effects on Roads, Airports and Neighboring Countries

The rail stoppage has quickly been felt beyond station concourses. In Flanders, the Flemish Traffic Centre has reported morning traffic jams stretching to more than 200 kilometers on key motorways. On the first day of the strike, congestion grew particularly severe as commuters who might normally opt for rail turned to their cars instead. While authorities say traffic volumes are high but not yet exceptional, they warn that jams and accident-related delays could worsen if more rail users abandon the train as the week continues.

Brussels Airport, located in Zaventem just outside the capital, has advised passengers to leave earlier than usual and to build in extra time if they would typically rely on trains to reach the terminal. While most flight schedules remain intact, the loss or reduction of direct rail links from cities like Ghent, Leuven and Liège has pushed more travelers onto shuttle buses, taxis and private vehicles, complicating access to the airport and its parking facilities.

Neighboring rail networks in the Netherlands, France, Germany and Luxembourg are also feeling the impact, even where services are technically running. International planners now flag many Belgian cross-border trains as “disrupted,” and rail operators are urging passengers to check journey planners repeatedly in the 24 to 48 hours before departure. On certain days, Dutch services that would usually extend into Belgium are being short-turned at border stations such as Maastricht or Roosendaal, while French regional trains into Wallonia see lower frequencies or altered terminus points.

Unions Push Back Against Reforms and Funding Cuts

Behind the strike lies a deep dispute over the future shape of Belgium’s rail sector. The five-day action has been called by a coalition of unions representing train drivers, conductors, maintenance workers and administrative staff, in protest at a package of federal reforms championed by Mobility Minister Jean-Luc Crucke. The draft legislation, approved by the government shortly before Christmas, would phase out permanent civil-servant-style appointments for new recruits at SNCB/NMBS and Infrabel from June 2026.

Union leaders argue that removing this status will weaken job security and erode long-standing protections for rail employees. They also object to changes to social dialogue rules that would allow HR Rail, the human-resources body overseeing staff, to impose decisions if a two-thirds majority cannot be reached in the joint committee. For unions accustomed to wielding strong influence in such negotiations, the reforms are seen as a direct challenge to their role.

The dispute is compounded by plans to cut roughly 675 million euros from railway funding over the current legislative period and by broader pension reforms that could push the retirement age to 67 from 2027. Rail workers say the combined effect of these measures will be fewer staff, more pressure on those who remain, and a steady decline in service quality for passengers, particularly outside the big city hubs.

Government Stands Firm as Talks Stall

The federal government insists that the reforms are necessary to prepare Belgium’s rail system for increased competition in the coming decade. Under European Union rules, national public operators must be ready to face private rivals in passenger services by 2032. Supporters of the changes argue that greater flexibility in hiring and workforce management is crucial if SNCB/NMBS is to remain competitive in a liberalized market.

Mobility Minister Jean-Luc Crucke has publicly criticized the latest strike as disproportionate, arguing that negotiations with union representatives have already consumed many hours and produced two draft agreements, both of which were ultimately rejected by rank-and-file members. Officials say they have reached the limit of what is financially and politically possible, and that further delays to reform would simply postpone necessary adjustments to a sector that faces mounting investment needs.

For now, there is little sign of an immediate breakthrough. While informal contacts between union leaders and government representatives continue, both sides appear entrenched. The unions have chosen to concentrate their action in a single, high-impact week rather than a scatter of shorter stoppages, a tactic that increases pressure on the authorities but also risks alienating passengers and businesses who depend on reliable rail services.

How SNCB/NMBS Is Trying to Manage the Chaos

Faced with the prospect of five consecutive days of walkouts, SNCB/NMBS has attempted to reduce chaos by publishing adjusted timetables at least 24 hours before each strike day. These alternative schedules, accessible through the company’s app and website, indicate which trains are expected to run and which will be cancelled, allowing passengers to plan around the disruption as best they can.

Company spokespeople say that, overall, the adapted timetable has held up reasonably well, with the majority of trains listed as running actually operating close to schedule. However, staff shortages, technical issues and unexpected absenteeism still cause last-minute cancellations and delays. Social media channels have filled with complaints from passengers who arrived at stations to find their train suddenly pulled, or who were forced to cram into reduced-length formations already close to capacity.

To ease the burden on afflicted travelers, SNCB/NMBS and partner operators have temporarily relaxed some ticketing rules. On international connections such as EuroCity and EuroCity Direct, saver tickets that would normally be restricted to a specific train are being honored flexibly from one day before to one day after the original travel date. In some cases, tickets are also being accepted on alternative routes via Dutch stations like Roosendaal, and full refunds are being offered to those who choose not to travel at all.

What Passengers Across Europe Should Do Now

With the strike scheduled to continue through Friday 30 January, travelers planning to move through Belgium this week face a difficult calculus. Rail operators are urging passengers to verify their exact train number and departure time in official journey planners shortly before traveling, as services that appear in generic timetables may in fact be cancelled or altered during the strike window.

International passengers in particular are being advised to allow for longer transfer times between trains, and to consider rebooking onto earlier services to safeguard connections. Those relying on Nightjet or other overnight trains with altered departure points are encouraged to build in significant buffers when connecting from domestic services, or to reach departure cities such as Cologne by bus or car where feasible.

For many, the decision will come down to whether the journey can be postponed until after the strike ends on Friday night. But for business travelers, students returning to university, and tourists with fixed bookings, postponement is often not an option. As trains limp through the week on skeleton timetables and European rail operators attempt to absorb the shock, Belgium’s five-day rail strike is serving as a vivid reminder of just how interconnected, and vulnerable, the continent’s transport networks have become.