R0

The Brussels Ring road (grote ring in Dutch, ring in French) is a very important and very busy road. It connects all of the motorways radiating out from Brussels, the Expo area, and the airport. Much like Washington's Beltway or London's Orbital, it's usually jammed with traffic as well. In some cases, it's best to just sit down and have some fritjes instead of bothering with it.

Built from 1957 to 1979, the road was originally supposed to form a full beltway around the city. However, on the south side of Brussels there exists a large preservation and forest, and many historic areas. Residents objections and the nature of the area it was to pass through killed the southern portion of the road, and it was never constructed.

The road is signed as the R0, there aren't many countries that have zero-numbered roads (Budapest's Ring Road is the M0, though). It carries several E-road numbers but is still signed as R0, at the expense of its E-road designations. That is a rarity in Belgium, where the opposite is almost always true.

 

 Map showing the location of the R0 around Brussels (click the thumbnail for a larger image)
 
R0 Counter-Clockwise
There are two large interchanges for the Brussels airport, on the northeast side of the city. This view looks north from the Zaventem interchange, one of the biggest stacks in Brussels.
Immediately after the Zavemtem interchange, the main road to Antwerp, the E19, leaves headed northbound. This stack is also large and serves cargo traffic to the city's sprawling airport.
At the split with the E19. Although not signed on the mainline the road now carries the E19 and the E40 around the city. Interestingly, Boom is the control city for the A12 which is another primary route to the country's second city of Antwerp. Obviously, traffic is expected to take the E19 to Antwerp at the expense of the often clogged A12.
A view of the 3-level stack at Machelen. The motorway does not continue into the city as was originally planned, and has a stub end to the south. Thus, half of the ramps in the stack were never used. You can only go north, exiting here.
The road begins to curve from north to west after the Machelen interchange. The next large structure is the Viaduct Zeekanaal-Schelde. This bridge carries the 6 lane R0 over the canal linking Brussels with the Schelde River, and the ocean.
The viaduct is several kilometers long and has a very easy grade.
Each side of the structure features slanted fences. A fantastic view of the Brussels skyline, the NATO area, and the EU area can be seen to the south, through the fence.
Variable speed limits are in place on the structure for vehicles higher than 3 meters, owing to high winds in the area.
The next exit after the viaduct is for the industrial canal area. Brussels is not a large port but there is some cargo coming down the waterway from Antwerp. Notice the exit sign with the affixed "ring" designation.
The next exit is for the suburban area of Grimbergen. The word "ring" has also been affixed to the exit signs here, as it seems to be on just about every sign on the road.
The standard exit sign applies for the Grimbergen exit. The E-road designations are nowhere to be found here. Notice also that Willebroek has replaced Boom as the control point for the A12.
Another exit sign for Grimbergen.
The next major motorway interchange is at Strombeek-Bever. An R0 reassurance shield can be seen in the background, there are not too many of them located along the route.
The Grimbergen exit, and the N202. Grimbergen is a town of about 35,000 just north of Brussels. It is famous for its abbey and brewery, as well as being the home of the first public astronomical observatory.
Advance warning signs for the A12 interchange. The A12 is an older version of the E19, and was the first expressway link between Belgium's two largest cities. The fact that Antwerp (the final destination of the A12) is not on the sign tells us that the traffic engineers probably would rather us take the other road, the E19.
The ring is now on the northwest side of Brussels. The expo area contains many museums and of course, the Atomium, one of Brussels's more famous tourist traps. These two exits have been consolidated into one ramp, and have a consolidated exit sign.
Another advance sign for the Strombeek-Bever interchange, on the northwest side of the city.
The interchange at Strokbeek-Bever. It was built in 1976 and unfortunately is not a full motorway interchange. The two roads fly over each other but there are stops at the exit ramps.
Another view of the interchange with the A12.
Looking southwest just after the A12. The ring begins a turn to the south now, having circumnavigated the northern side of Brussels.
The next exit is for "A.Z. V.U.B.", in Belgium and especially Flanders, they love abbreviations on signs. For reference, it stands for "Academisch Ziekenhuis Vrije Universiteit Brussel" - which is a large medical center. Ghent is littered with similar sign abbreviations.
Another diagrammatical exit sign for the A.Z.V.U.B. exit. Looking to the left here, one can see the large public housing complexes of northwest Brussels near the suburb of Jette. It is not the nicest part of the city.
Exit number 9, for the large hospital and the housing complexes. The exit is not a full diamond, and you can't get back on the motorway here going south.
The next, and last, large motorway interchange on the west side of the city is for the E40, which sends traffic into Flanders and eventually to the coast.
A view of the R0 going through the wooded area between the E40 and the Jette exit, near Albert I-Park.
The R0 officially ends here, and signage reverts back to the standard E-road designations. The E19 will continue south eventually to northern France. Road numbers are painted on the pavement for even further clarification.
A view of the sprawling interchange at Groot-Bijgaarden. This interchange dates from the late 1950s, but has been updated throughout the years.
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