The Senne back in the City Center
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Written by BrusselsLife Team -
29 Mar 2010, 00:00
(Updated: 01 Apr 2015, 08:55)
The odd scattered basin around place Sainte-Catherine, a canal that doesn't smell too good, green watered ponds and of course sanitized fountains : that's about all the water you can find in today's Brussels.
However, a river does run under the city. A proper one. Paris has the Seine and Brussels also has its own river, called ... the Senne. But here, it was covered up during the 19th century. Apparently, it was a health risk, and even a source of disease. Today, people dream of freeing it from the city's entrails. And this dream could come true within the next few years.
Scoop
According to our sources, a project should be unveiled Thursday. The objectif is to lighten the traffic load on Aanspach Boulevard that crosses Brussels from Midi Station to Bourse and then heads North. The Plan Will have 4 main lines: - to reduce the traffic to a one-lane street each way - to use the freed up space to uncover the Senne and let her run free between Midi Station and De Brouckère Square - to eliminate all the surface parkings - to build an underground parking between the boulevard and the Rouppe Square. To wich the commune will adjoin a sewer collector to manage the river's flow.Brussels Vs. Liège
We can't help but notice the similarity with the (unfinished) project of a canal between Guillemins Station and the Meuse in Liège. This project is made possible by the recent, and somewhat chaotic, activation of water treatment plants which aloud the Senne to return to a much healthier appearance.
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