2011-12-13 - The agreement setting out the arrangements for the creation of a passenger terminal in the outer port of Brussels, which should be operational in 2015, was signed on Tuesday 13 December by the Minister for the Brussels-Capital Region responsible for the port, the chairman of the Port of Brussels, the City of Brussels alderman for urban planning and the City of Brussels alderman for tourism.
The future passenger terminal will be located in Neder-over-Heembeek on the left bank of the outer port, level with the gatehouses of the former Meudon Castle, more or less opposite the Schaerbeek marshalling yard. The project consists of constructing a 240-metre-long pontoon and a car park, adapting the road network and renovating the gatehouses, for a total budget of 4,512,538 euros. The Port of Brussels will finance the construction of the jetty (2,650,000 euros) and roads (367,050 euros). The City of Brussels will fund the road renovation work and the renovation and extension of the Meudon gatehouses (986,729 euros). The Region, in addition to its contribution through the urban integration grant given to the Port, will also fund the road works (219,901 euros).
The decision to create this terminal was taken by the Port in the light of the growing number of cruise ships stopping in Brussels, reflected in the marked increase in the number of passengers visiting Brussels during a cruise: 1,200 people in 2006 and 10,000 in 2010. By 2030, the terminal could be receiving 35,000 people a year, bringing in 5.2 million euros for Brussels, and providing around a hundred direct jobs.
In addition, as part of its policy to promote water transport, the Port of Brussels will be studying the possibility of making this terminal a mixed terminal where cargo can also be loaded and unloaded. This would involve adding a 120-metre extension to the passenger terminal. This study, and the creation of the terminal if the findings of the study are positive, will be funded by a European INTERREG subsidy, as part of the Connecting Citizen Ports 21 programme which is being led by the Port of Brussels. In total, the cargo part of the project would require an investment of 1,837,000 euros, of which 918,000 euros would come from INTERREG.
