Infrabel, Port of Antwerp and Railport are joining forces in favour of a modal shift. The aim? To double the proportion of goods transported by rail via the port by 2030.

In Belgium, almost 75% of goods are transported by road. At the end of 2019, a cooperation agreement between Infrabel, Port of Antwerp and Railport (a subsidiary of Port of Antwerp) confirmed the desire of these three Belgian companies to buck this trend in favour of a more sustainable mode of transport.

Today, they have decided to take action. On 31st March 2021, they revealed a collective and ambitious plan of action with the objective to increase the proportion of goods transported by rail from 7% to 15% by 2030.

The “Let’s modal shift together!” plan aims to involve the entire logistics chain and is based on several pillars. These range from better management of traffic flows, neutral management of the marshalling installations, effective use of rail infrastructure, targeted investments in port areas with high growth potential, and an efficient parking policy, to a separate regulatory framework for the port and the development of an IT platform for rail transport in the port.

With a 50% share of Belgian freight, the port of Antwerp is a strategic gateway to stimulate a modal shift in other logistics hubs and industrial sites. At least, that is Infrabel’s ambition, who are currently working with other partners to develop a global plan to double the share of rail freight throughout Belgium.