New electric buses in Bruges mean fewer stops served: “We are talking about 185 fewer stops”

The seven new buses are fully electric, are slightly smaller, quieter and weigh 2 tons less than regular diesel buses. “De Lijn’s message is: move with less CO2. That is why we must fully focus on electrification,” says Flemish Minister of Mobility Lydia Peeters.

More transfers

Bruges starts with seven copies, but there must be more. These will mainly serve the city center on just two lines. That also means fewer buses, but more frequent transfers.

“This means that we are moving away from the former star model where all buses drove through the city center, to the transfer model where people have to transfer at two crucial places, either Het Zand or at the station. For example, if you want to go from Assebroek to Sint-Andries, you have to you transfer at one of these two places to reach your destination,” says mayor Dirk De fauw.

Fewer bus stops

At the same time, many stops in the sub-municipalities are disappearing and some bus users have to walk a little further to find a stop.

“De Lijn has a certain budget and the choice has been made to provide more public transport on those lines and places where many people board. While the curves in the small neighborhoods are omitted,” says De fauw.

Criticism

But the plan has been criticized for some time. At the De Lijn depot in Bruges there was an action by bus users who do not agree with the new bus plan.

According to them, it will be much more difficult for the elderly and people with disabilities to reach the center of Bruges in particular. “We are talking about 185 stops disappearing in urban areas. That is 32 percent. That also means that the distance to certain stops will be 400 to 500 meters,” it sounds.