SNCB at 100: How Crisis Forged the Destiny of Belgian Rail

On 23 July 2026, the Belgian National Railway Company (SNCB/NMBS) marks its 100th anniversary — a milestone that tells a story not merely of trains and tracks, but of how a nation transformed crisis into opportunity. Founded by law on 23 July 1926 and published in the Belgian Official Gazette the following day, the SNCB was born from the devastation of World War I, when half the railway network and rolling stock lay in ruins and state finances were exhausted. The decision to create an autonomous public company, fully state-owned, set Belgian rail on a course that would see it evolve from steam locomotives to high-speed electric trains, and from a government department to a corporation facing market liberalization by 2032, as reported by RTBF.

A Century Forged in Crisis

Belgium’s railway story began long before the SNCB. The country was the first on continental Europe to operate a train, on 5 May 1835, when the Brussels-to-Mechelen line was inaugurated under King Leopold I, who had been inspired by George Stephenson’s railways in England. By the early 20th century, Belgium had developed one of the densest railway networks in the world, with the state directly managing operations through the “Chemins de fer de l’État” (State Railways).

But World War I changed everything. The conflict devastated Belgian infrastructure: half the network and rolling stock required complete reconstruction, and public finances were depleted. The government of Prime Minister Henri Jaspar faced an impossible choice — continue direct state management of a bankrupt railway, or forge a new path.

The answer came on 23 July 1926. Parliament voted with near-unanimity — 96 in favor, 4 against, 2 abstentions — to create the Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Belges (SNCB), an autonomous public company owned entirely by the state. As Thierry Denuit, director of Train World and SNCB’s historical heritage, explained: “There was a form of unanimity given the challenges to be faced. Most countries had similar reflections. A few years later, the SNCF was created for the same reasons.”

From Steam to Electric

The creation of the SNCB ushered in an era of rapid modernization. In the 1930s, the company moved away from wooden carriages with segregated compartments toward metal-bodied trains with central corridors, designed under the artistic direction of Henry van de Velde, the renowned architect and founder of La Cambre institute. “In these trains of the 1930s, you find everything we still know today,” Denuit noted.

A pivotal moment came in 1935 with the inauguration of the first electrified line between Brussels and Antwerp. This marked the beginning of a technological shift that would eventually see over 90% of Belgium’s 3,062 km network electrified, with diesel trains now confined to a few regional lines in East Flanders.

The Modern Era and Liberalization

The SNCB underwent its most significant structural change in 2005, when it was split into infrastructure manager Infrabel and operator SNCB, in preparation for EU-mandated market liberalization. Today, the company employs 16,953 people and carried 245 million passengers in 2024, approaching the pre-COVID figure of 253 million. Over 85 million trips were made with commuter season tickets, underscoring the railway’s role as a backbone of daily mobility.

Looking ahead, the company faces its biggest transformation yet: the end of its monopoly in 2032, when passenger rail liberalization will open Belgian tracks to competing operators. The SNCB also holds an 18.5% stake in Eurostar, while its former freight division B-Cargo became Lineas, now Europe’s largest rail freight operator with over 1,700 employees, as detailed in RTBF’s centenary coverage.

What the Next Century Holds

The SNCB’s centenary arrives at a moment of both celebration and uncertainty. Labor unrest and strikes have punctuated recent months, and questions loom over how the company will balance public service obligations with commercial viability in a liberalized market. The centenary may generate renewed political commitment to rail investment, particularly as climate concerns drive a European-wide shift toward sustainable transport.

As Tom Guillaume, spokesperson for the SNCB, reflected on the founding documents preserved in the company’s archives: “This is not an insignificant decision that was taken at that time. It was a desire to better organize transport and replenish the state’s coffers.”

What began as a “simple piece of paper” — a law published in the Moniteur belge under King Albert I — has carried Belgium through a century of transformation. From the steam locomotives that once raced from Brussels to Ostend in under an hour, to the high-speed trains of today, the SNCB’s story is one of continuous reinvention. The question now is how the next 100 years will unfold, as the company that was born from crisis prepares to navigate the challenges of a new era.