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A light rail has its own bed and is completely autonomous.

There will be no express tram between Hasselt and Maastricht, but an electric trambus. Flemish Minister of Mobility Lydia Peeters (Open VLD) announced this this afternoon at a meeting with the management of De Lijn, the city of Maastricht and the province of Dutch Limburg. 

“Choosing a tram would take Limburg back in time,” said Flemish Minister of Mobility Peeters. Earlier, a trambus was also chosen between Hasselt and Maasmechelen and Hasselt and North Limburg. Mayor and Flemish Member of Parliament Steven Vandeput (N-VA) is satisfied with the choice of Minister Peeters. The city of Hasselt had previously made it clear that it preferred an electric trambus for the Spartacus Line 1 instead of an express tram. 

off the job

Flanders and De Lijn would have a quick tram connection realized between Hasselt and Maastricht. The tram route between Hasselt Station and Maastricht Mosae Forum would have a length of approximately 30 kilometers, of which 27 km on Flemish territory. You currently travel from Hasselt to Maastricht in about 70 minutes by bus. That would be about 30 minutes by tram. Peeters previously announced that the agreement that the route of the Hasselt-Maastricht express tram to the station in Hasselt would be fulfilled. 

"A trambus is a high-quality transport solution that can be realized quickly and with limited impact on the environment"

Rik Kriekels (N-VA), mayor of Diepenbeek, is also pleased that a solution has finally been found for the file that has been dragging on for years. According to mobility expert Willy Miermans, an express tram has its own bed, is completely autonomous, is punctual and can reach a much higher speed. But not everyone shares that view of the mayors.

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Miermans calls the trambus a big mistake: “Spartacus aimed to make public transport structurally attractive for travelers on slightly longer distances. We will not make it by bus. Whatever people say about it in Hasselt, it concerns a regional transport concept and not an urban network. And people mix that up.” reaction with colleagues from VRT NWS.

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Spartacus aimed to make public transport structurally attractive
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