National strike on Jan 30 (Brussels)

Yes, it's time to strike again in Belgium ... Unfortunately the whole country and all services are now affected, not just the public transport like a month ago. So, expect:

- no public transport : no metro, bus, tram, train, ...
- keep in mind that trains start their strike the evening before at 10 PM !
- trouble with international trains like Eurostar or Thalys
- trouble at the airport : pilots may be on strike, traffic controllers might stop, ... Charleroi airport will be blocked for all passengers that day. The situation for Zaventem is still unclear.
- no postal deliveries or post offices to be open
- major companies (banks, comm, government, communes, ...) might be closed or their access blocked
- shops and supermarkets might be closed all day

In other words, plan ahead if you want to get anything done.

As sometimes is the case on days like this, traffic might not be so bad, because a lot of people stay at home. However, this time major intersections might be blocked, for instance along the Brussels tunnels or highways.

According to Belgian law, you need to find alternatives to come to work, because this is an announced strike, it's not a free holiday.

I don't know if this is valuable information for you, but it's an attempt to keep the expat community informed.

Marc