Brussels Airport is a large intermodal hub. Different means of transport come together at the airport: trains, buses, taxis, cars, bikes and planes connect seamlessly. There will also be a tram stop in the next few years.
Passengers, visitors and airport employees are increasingly using public transport to the airport. At the same time, commuters and neighbouring residents are using Brussels Airport as a junction where they change to another means of transport on their way to work, school or any other destination.
For the many commuters and the broad region around the airport, Brussels Airport aims to further develop is role as an intermodal hub, and thus help to provide a solution for mobility in and around Brussels.
Many people already travel by public transport to the airport now, not to catch a plane, but to easily change to another means of transport. We want to develop this role even more in the future, so we can contribute towards solving the mobility problems in our region.
The airport aims to improve still further the connections between the various means of transport, integrated into the terminal. Passengers will arrive directly in the departures Hall, commuters will change from one means of public transport to another even more easily.
At the same time, the airport intends to start work on car parks further away from the terminal, which can be accessed directly from the E19 and the E40. This will prevent all the traffic arriving on the Brussels Ring road and jamming it. Passengers will hop on to a free self-driving shuttle to get to the terminal.
There are already two passenger car parks at Brucargo now, which can be reached via the eponymous exit on the E19. In the future, an access road via a new exit from the E40 could also open this option to the south of the airport area.
Traffic coming from Leuven will no longer need to drive on to the Brussels ring road, but will then be able to drive straight to the airport car parks directly. This should relieve the ring road around Brussels to a great extent and improve mobility in the region.
Brussels Airport has set itself a target - that by the year 2040, 50% of the passengers and the airport employees will come by public transport, bicycle or on foot, as compared with the current 30%. That will help to reduce traffic congestion in the region as a whole. We are working with the government and with the transport companies to give substance to this plan.
In the next few years, De Lijn will be investing in extra tram lines and a tram bus line to smooth out mobility in and around Brussels. The priority here will be the ‘Ring tram bus’ from Heizel to Brussels Airport. This line will subsequently be converted into a fully-fledged Ring tram. Together with the Brussels Airport we are working on the pioneering project for the automated shuttle, whereby driverless shuttles from De Lijn will take passengers and staff to and from the terminal.
Use this interactive map to find out how your region is connected to Brussels Airport, now and in the future.
The intermodal hub at Brussels Airport can be extended further with more trains and buses, and with a tram and bicycle network. This will give passengers and staff more options for getting to the airport or for transferring at the airport on the way to their final destination, and the airport will be making a major contribution towards better mobility for all commuters and other travellers in the region as a whole.