Anecdotes & testimonies

A few years ago, I had a visit from a former employee who had worked in the electromechanical room in Luttre, a space located on the street side, across from the railroad tracks. He told me that once, he had a problem with the switches that occurred intermittently and that he couldn’t figure out what was causing it. After several days or weeks, he realized that the problem occurred every time a freight train passed on the tracks.

The Verviers telephone exchange was beginning to become overloaded. It needed to expand, and Pepinster was in an ideal location. A telephone exchange was installed on the first floor of the post office on Avenue de la Gare. After a few years of operation, it became the first automated exchange in the metropolitan area. It didn't take long for the Telephone Authority to realize that the Pepinster network would eventually become overloaded. Already, with an eye toward the long-term future, on February 8, 1933, the Régie purchased a plot of land and a house on Rue du Duc. This was no easy task: suddenly, there were many interested buyers for these properties, located right in the heart of Pepinster and away from heavy traffic. Administrative formalities would drag the process out. It will be necessary to purchase and exchange land or buildings in order to create a cohesive whole. It will even be necessary to buy a building, demolish it, and cede a three-meter strip of land to provide easy access to another property. These sales and purchases will ultimately be finalized after the liberation in 1944. It was about time. On August 7, 1946, there were 342 subscribers in Pepinster. The telephone exchange at the post office had a capacity of 400 lines. On May 10, 1947, the Regie filed an application to build a telephone exchange on Rue du Duc, with a capacity of 800 lines. That capacity was quickly outgrown, and today, the 1946 figure has increased fivefold. While the choice of Rue du Duc as the site for this telephone exchange may have been somewhat arbitrary, this location is situated almost at the center of a large population center comprising the neighboring municipalities. Including Pepinster and Cornesse, the network extends down the valley to the Purgatoire Bridge; it covers the municipalities of Wegnez, Soiron, and even Xhendelesse.

Next to the historic building, a new structure was erected around 2016 to take over the Antwerp-Centrum service node. On April 14, 2017, the first portion of the telephone and internet traffic was routed through it.

The building's 48V power supply was shut off in July 2025. Complete demolition followed shortly thereafter. The latest information is that the building has been sold and is scheduled to be demolished.

Telecom traffic will be moved out of the old building in the fall of 2026

The building's 48V power supply was shut off in July 2026. Complete dismantling will follow

The building's 48-volt power supply was shut down in 2025. Complete dismantling followed shortly thereafter. During these dismantling operations, a subcontractor was involved in a serious accident.

The four entrances in Aalst.

https://sky-brokers.com/project/bss-proximus-liedekerke-belgium/ On this site, you can see how they tore down my 30-year-old LDK. The photo was taken while I was washing (cleaning) one of the plates. and you can find the video of the demolition at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qroL1JlNR8

TR-Sat began operations in 1984, with Filmnet as its first customer on LDK-1. This was followed by LDK-2 (Eutelsat), LDK-3 (Intersat), and LDK-4 (VSAT). Next came Belgacom-TV, now Pickx-TV. In between, the company provided radio services and SNG.

91OVM

Original text, not translated (NL)

This RTT building is directly across from the NMBS station in Harelbeke

Een wast dit ons gewestgebouw

Original text, not translated (NL)

In the summer of 2018, I stumbled upon this property, which was available for rent at the time. A beautiful building

On the afternoon of March 18, 1992, all alarms went off for the staff present in this building; they didn't know what was happening. In the municipality, the bridge over the Scheldt had collapsed, and a heavy tanker truck was swept away.... (newspapers)

The address listed on this site is incorrect. 53AAL’s address is De Ridderstraat 43, 9300 Aalst. At the public telephone and telegraph office, people could ask for a phone number at the “counter.” The RTT operator would dial the number on the phone, and the caller would go to a designated phone booth where the call could begin. In the main hall, the calls were processed, and TT messengers were on hand to deliver them to people’s homes using their R4 devices. The BCT information desk was located on the first floor. On the two upper floors was an ATMK 7D switchboard.