Louise roadworks to be cleared after outcry from shops

Temporary roadworks at the Louise junction in Brussels that should have been removed in August will be taken away this week - after pressure from local traders who claimed the resulting traffic jams were keeping Christmas shoppers away.

The lane closures, which reduced the Louise roundabout from three lanes to just one, had been introduced to reduce the flow of traffic in the area while the Stephanie tunnel was closed for repair works earlier this year.

With the tunnel open again since August, the city of Brussels had written a warning letter to the Brussels region about the arrangements. The UCM union had also started legal action, but a court was not due to decide on their case before 20 December, with just days left in the Christmas shopping season.

Brussels mayor Yvan Mayeur told RTL radio: "If it had been there for a reason - if there was a plan to redesign the junction, I could understand it, but I just don't get it."

He said shopkeepers in the area needed all the help they could get over Christmas and the January sales, "having already suffered for several months because of roadworks in the Stephanie tunnel".

Brussels region minister-president Rudi Vervoort said the original configuration would be restored imminently. Some local shopkeepers had claimed that customers were avoiding Brussels altogether because of the congestion and were opting to do their Christmas shopping elsewhere.