Ghent is the city for epicureans, nothing is necessary, everything is possible.
For the past two years, the TOMP working group meetings have been forced to be held online via Teams, but that is now about to change. At the initiative of Tjalle Groen, project director for mobility at Mpact vzw, a suitable date will be sought in the coming weeks to bring members of the working groups together. When looking for a suitable location within Europe, the Flemish city of Ghent (Belgium) was chosen as the central point within Europe. The sympathetic and hospitable residents of Ghent know what good living is and are happy to welcome the TOMP working group.
Ghent ‘the place to be’
The TOMP working group is an international group and has members in many countries within and outside Europe. Since Ghent has many forms of shared mobility, it is the city par excellence to visit by public transport. You can visit everything from Ghent-Sint-Pieters Station, the main railway station of the city of Ghent and the fourth busiest station in Belgium, after the Brussels South, Central and North stations.
After a TOMP-WG meeting where everyone can meet without a digital line in between, it’s time to relax with a boat trip that takes the attendees right through the city and where the captain, also guide, provides everyone with the most important information about the medieval city. From the water you get a charming perspective on Ghent.
Immerse yourself in the Keizer Karelstad and discover hidden places. Then it’s time to experience the Burgundian life of the local people with a delicious meal and, for enthusiasts, the matching local beers such as the Gentse Strop.
Ghent is alive and well worth a weekend away, it is also an ideal last minute city trip. Quirky Ghent breathes history and offers you a fascinating cultural cocktail filled to the brim with trendy and modern city life. Ghent is the city for epicureans, nothing is necessary, everything is possible, a city on a human scale. During your city trip, don’t miss the opportunity to admire the world-famous masterpiece The Ghent Altarpiece, by the Van Eyck brothers. Anyone who has not spent the night in Ghent has not really experienced the city.
Participate
If you come to Belgium via the European high-speed network, you can opt for a fast connection to Ghent with a short transfer in Brussels South, Antwerp or the French Lille. Do you choose the plane for your visit to the TOMP meeting? Ghent does not have its own airport, but is very easy to reach from the two main airports in Belgium: Brussels Airport and Brussels South Charleroi Airport. Ghent is about a 45-minute drive from Belgium’s national airport, Brussels Airport in Zaventem.
Are you coming by car? Ghent is easily accessible by car. The rebellious art city is only a 45-minute drive from Bruges and Brussels and an hour from Antwerp. Two European motorways (E17 and E40) intersect in Ghent. From the E17 take the exit Gent Centrum. Once you have arrived in the city, you can choose to park for free on the outskirts of the city or pay for parking. In order to improve air quality, the city center of Ghent (the area within the ring road) is considered a low-emission zone (LEZ).
about TOMP-WG
The TOMP-WG (Transport Operator, MaaS Provider – Working Group) is a joint initiative to use an API to create a standardized language for technical communication between Transport Operators and MaaS Providers within the MaaS ecosystem. The standard language describes how the different stakeholders should communicate with each other.