Notices by Jon Worth (jon@gruene.social), page 6

#CrossBorderRail 2024 Extra Days Baltic Circuit Train 6 of 29
IC 1516
17:39 Gent-Sint-Pieters - Bruxelles Midi 18:07
SNCB

Train type: Alstom M7 Bmx power car, 5x M6 double deck carriages, M7 driving control car
⚡️
🚲: ✅
🦽: ✅ (special door, staff has to unlock)
🛜: ⛔️
🍽️: ⛔️
🧳: 😐 (double deck, not great, but at least there’s one huge multi use area)
🧽: 😐 (bit grimy inside and out)

IC 1516
17:39 Gent-Sint-Pieters - Bruxelles Midi 18:07

Distance: 51.8km
Average speed: 111km/h (amazingly fast by Belgian standards!)

1 stops:
Bruxelles Midi

This train, mapped: https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-extra-days-2024_1030682#11/50.9625/3.8497

(I’ll stay on to Centraal though - nearer where I have to go)

#CrossBorderRail 2024 Extra Days Baltic Circuit Train 5 of 29
IC 738
16:07 Poperinge - Gent-Sint-Pieters 17:23
SNCB

Train type: Bombardier, GEC Alsthom, ACEC AM96 EMU, 2x 3 carriages
⚡️
🚲: ✅
🦽: ✅ (needs lift on platform)
🛜: ⛔️
🍽️: ⛔️
🧳: 🙂 & 😡 (steps narrow and high, no racks for large bags, but overhead racks *massive*)
🧽: 🙂

And I’m spending all of tomorrow in a high level event in Brussels with think tankers and MEPs and they’ll all earnestly say “the EU must commit to CO2 reductions” and who at the same time neither have nor want to have the knowledge or determination to fix public transport - that ought to be part of the climate transition

IC 738
16:07 Poperinge - Gent-Sint-Pieters 17:23

Distance: 85.2km
Average speed: 67km/h

9 stops:
Ieper
Comines/Komen
Wervik
Menen
Wevelgem
Bissegem
Kortrijk
Waregem
Gent St Pieters

This train, mapped: https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-extra-days-2024_1030682#10/50.9087/3.0068

Grey

Almost at Hazebrouck

Hazebrouck, finally

The EU funded something at the station - the re-building of the station I presume?

Quick ☕️ with @MLanselle now off to Belgium!

There in the gloom is the high speed line Lille to the channel tunnel.

And here’s my first sighting of the old #CrossBorderRail line - a few km from Belgium still

On today of all days. Never forget. de Boonaert, near Poperinge

I’ve also been in this Belgian train 10 minutes and no one warned me to not leave luggage behind. And - SHOCK! - the train didn’t blow up

I’m not making a detour to Ferme Olivier Cemetery (between Poperinge and Ieper) today, but it’s on my mind

This is what I wrote when I last went, in 2017 https://euroblog.jonworth.eu/4th-june-2017-ferme-olivier-cemetery-part-2/

#CrossBorderRail 2024 Extra Days Baltic Circuit Train 1 of 29
TER17750
06:22 Nuits-sous-Ravières - Paris Bercy 08:35
SNCF for TER Mobigo BFC

Train type: Alstom Régiolis EMU 2x 6 carriages
⚡️
🚲: ✅
🦽: ✅ (step free if station allows)
🛜: ⛔️
🍽️: ⛔️
🧳: 🙂 (good design of areas for big luggage)
🧽: 🙂 (clean today)

There's a passenger across from me on the train cheerily editing photos of horses with kitsch lens flare backgrounds on her laptop

I can't make up my mind if I envy her disconnection from the ills of the world, or am frustrated by it. A bit of both probably

I stare glumly out of the window as my train rolls towards Paris

Take that, SNCF!

I was annoyed Interrail reservations on the Paris Nord - Lille Flandres TGV were €20 (off peak, in November - WHAT?)

So I cycled fast across Paris (34 mins between arrival Bercy and departure Nord) and will go on TERs via Amiens to Lille instead. No reservations needed

A bit of sport always helps

Welcome to today's thread - #CrossBorderRail 2024 Extra Days Baltic Circuit - Ravières - Paris - Hazebrouck - Poperinge - Bruxelles

Crossing these borders:
Godewaersvelde 🇫🇷 - Poperinge 🇧🇪

These borders on the borders map:
https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-extra-days-2024_1030682#8/49.413/3.321

Today's routes on the routes map:
https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-all-the-borders_935041#12/50.8071/2.6908

So before I head towards the Baltic on this #CrossBorderRail I am first going to Belgium, to a border I have long wanted to visit - the dismantled line Hazebrouck-Poperinge, probably the last FR-BE border I am really interested to see (the others I am missing are mostly former tram lines - never coming back)

I’m 10 mins in, I am one of 3 passengers in the train carriage, and already had to tell one of the others - a guy in his sixties - to turn down the video he was playing at ffull blast. Hey ho #CrossBorderRail

Here's this morning’s #CrossBorderRail intro video https://peertube.netzbegruenung.de/w/jJEJuSDpP9e9ew6u8TbNS8

TER17750
06:22 Nuits-sous-Ravières - Paris Bercy 08:35

Distance: 223.9km
Average speed: 101km/h

6 stops:
Tonnerre
St-Florentin-Vergigny
Laroche-Migennes
Joigny
Sens
Paris Bercy

This train, mapped: https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-extra-days-2024_1030682#9/48.2878/3.2973