Traffic disruption as Trump visits the capital

The Brussels-Capital-Ixelles police zone is working  to divert the flow of traffic away from Brussels wherever possible during US President Donald Trump's visit. President Trump will only be in the capital for 28 hours, but his entourage of at least 4,000 private secret service and foreign service agents will completely disrupt traffic, both on the roads and in the air.

The local police therefore advise people to use public transport on Wednesday and Thursday. Those who must enter the capital by car are advised to visit the police Twitter page (@zpz_polbru) for real-time traffic information.

Trump lands at 16.00 this afternoon at Melsbroek Air Base, around which time all air traffic over Brussels Airport will be suspended. The president then heads to the city centre around 16.15, when the police will close off part of the Brussels Ring Road and temporarily halt traffic on the E40 motorway.

Tomorrow's NATO summit will especially disrupt traffic on Thursday, according to  Brussels police, because several streets will be closed for hours. These include Schuman Square, the area surrounding NATO headquarters, Place des Palais and Boulevard de Waterloo. In addition, part of the small ring will be closed between Place Louise and Porte de Namur.

But even the public transportation network will experience difficulties from the official visit. Trains and the metro network will run normally, but some metro entrances will be closed from this afternoon at 14.30 until Thursday at 16.30 at the following stations: Arts-Loi, Schuman, Trône, Louise and Porte de Namur. Schuman metro station will be closed for the entire day on Thursday.