Brussels metro line 3 works stalled due to spiralling costs

The current Brussels government is refusing to approve further work on metro construction work at Brussels-North station because of spiralling costs.

The latest of these concerns an unforeseen problem with a perched water table, L'Echo reports, with a leaked government memo noting that construction costs on the site have nearly doubled as a result, from €44 million to around €88 million.

It is not the first cost spike for the Metro 3 project, either, with the overall estimate climbing from €700 million in 2022 to €1.5 billion today.

The caretaker regional government is now saying it is "inappropriate" to approve additional costs, given the uncertainty surrounding the project's budgetary sustainability.

Brussels public transport operator Stib fears a delay of 12 to 18 months as a result of the latest issue concerning the water table, while some members of the government are suggesting a delay of six months.

The ultimate goal of construction is a tunnel under Brussels-North that connects the southern part of the future metro line 3 with the northern part, from Albert in Saint-Gilles, under Brussels-North and through Schaerbeek and Evere to the depot in Haren.

Issues with the water table first surfaced in 2023 when works had to be stopped due to a clay layer in the ground that prevented water from being pumped out fast enough, resulting in a groundwater level that was too high.