Stoomtrein Dendermonde-Puurs, Heritage railway in Dendermonde, Belgium
The Stoomtrein Dendermonde-Puurs runs about 14 km on standard-gauge (1,435 mm) track between Dendermonde and Puurs, in East Flanders and Antwerp provinces. Its base is the depot at Baasrode-Noord station, where the SDP society keeps its locomotives and carriages. Trains are hauled by both steam and diesel locomotives, among them a Cockerill steam engine that turned 100 in 2007 and wooden GCI carriages from the early 20th century.
The line opened on 22 July 1880 as part of the Belgian State Railways route from Dendermonde to Antwerp-Zuid, originally double-tracked; one track was removed in 1961. Passenger service ended in 1980, and goods traffic between Baasrode-Noord and Puurs ceased the same year, with goods trains to Baasrode-Noord continuing until 1983. On 11 July 1986 Cockerill 2643 arrived at Baasrode by low-loader and test runs began; the BVS, now SDP, has operated the line since 1986.
The line's name lives on in SDP, the volunteer society that has run it since 1986. Its annual Scheldeland in Stoom festival fills the first weekend of July, and Sinterklaas rides run in November and December. The route has also served as a film set, notably for Jaco Van Dormael's Toto le Héros.
The line runs 14 km from Baasrode-Noord to Puurs, with stops at Buggenhout a/d Schelde, Sint-Amands, Oppuurs and Sint-Pietersburcht. Regular steam services operate every Sunday from July to September. The section between Oppuurs and Puurs was closed for repairs from 2017 to 2021, and trains now run through to Puurs again.
The line is standard gauge (1,435 mm), not narrow-gauge. It has been used for film and TV shoots that would disrupt the national network, most notably Jaco Van Dormael's Toto le Héros. The SDP also restored the Tubize 2069 steam locomotive at Baasrode, which made its first runs in the 2007 high season.
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