De Lijn forced to move bus stop because the City of Ghent has put up election poster billboards in front of it

This meant that the stop was no longer visible to bus drivers and passengers wishing to catch a bus. After a string of complaints, De Lijn has decided to temporarily move the stop a few metres down the road.

The City of Ghent says that it was easier to move the bus stop than it would have been to move the billboards. 

City Alderman Isabelle Heyndrickx (Christian democrat) told VRT News that "The billboards are big and wide and there was no alternative place to put them in the immediate vicinity. Moreover, the billboards are anchored deep in the ground, and they are heavy".

However, Ms Heyndrickx does admit that the city authorities had been wrong to put the billboards in front of the bus stop in the ffirst place.  

"We have a list of 60 locations in Ghent where billboards were installed the last time there were elections. Some locations have to be altered because, for example, there is now a building there or a bridge has been built. In that case we look for an alternative”. 

The Alderman is pleased that De Lijn has found resolved the issue by moving the bus stop. “This is a bus stop that is used a lot by children going to school. Now they will be certain that they are waiting for their bus at the right place”. 

De Lijn’s Ine Pieters told VRT says that the public transport company often has to move a bus stop. “For example, if roadworks mean that passengers are unable to wait there or if a bus is unable to stop there.  We always do what we can. However, I think that this is the first time that we have had to move a bus stop for this reason."