The inspections, carried out this summer, of the deck of the Brussels ring bridge, which overlooks boulevard Sylvain Dupuis in Anderlecht, are final: the cracks are such that an in-depth repair is inevitable and urgent. Until now, work had been carried out under the bridge, but, in the opinion of engineers, this will not be enough. Brussels Mobility is forced to carry out repairs on the ring itself, in two phases. The first, planned from Monday October 7 to December 20, will concern the inner ring (towards Zaventem).
“During this work, the inner ring will be closed, and all traffic will be diverted to the outer ring, with two traffic lanes in each direction and a speed limit maintained. This will have a significant impact on traffic, especially during rush hours, with an additional travel time of up to 45 minutes,” announces Brussels Mobility. “Access to the outer ring via the entrance ramp from Chaussée de Ninove will be closed. Users will be able to take the entrance ramp at Avenue d’Itterbeek to access the ring road.
Radars to monitor chaos
The municipality of Anderlecht, directly impacted, is preparing for the worst, fearing that motorists seeking to escape traffic jams will head towards neighboring districts. “We are particularly worried about the Moortebeek district, where Westland is located,” explains Mobility alderwoman Susanne Müller-Hübsch. “We will install five vehicle counting radars and closely monitor the situation so that we can react quickly. We also spoke with the neighborhood committee. For its part, Brussels Mobility ensures that the majority of ring traffic comes from outside Brussels. The Federal Government will therefore anticipate diversions well in advance, before motorists reach Brussels, in order to redirect them elsewhere. But we also have to manage the traffic coming from the city, which has to pass through the ring.” Work will also continue under the bridge, reducing traffic on Sylvain Dupuis Boulevard to a single lane.
The second phase of work, this time on the outer ring side, is planned for the beginning of next year and will last three months. Six months of hell in perspective, which come on top of the traffic problems already present at the Léonard crossroads…
