The Flemish Government in Belgium has approved the selection guidelines for Spartacus line 1. This is the first step before the final tender of the DBFM contract. The selection guide forms the basis for the tender and lists all the conditions for the execution of the infrastructure works.

As part of Spartacus line 1 plan a tram route between Hasselt and Maastricht will be developed. The tram project includes design, build, finance and maintenance of fast tram connection between Hasselt and Maastricht. Hasselt is a city located in northern Belgium and Maastricht is a city located in southern tip of Netherlands. This tram route will also connect Diepenbeek, Bilzen and Lanaken.

The tram route between Hasselt and Maastricht is approximately 30 km long, of which 27 km on Flemish territory. The tram will run at a speed between 10 to 35 km/hour in the city and a maximum of 100 km/hour outside the city.

The bus travel from Hasselt to Maastricht is 70 minutes. The tram travel will be 30 minutes. 

The authority is expecting to complete the tram line by 2023 and full operations of tram line by 2024.

The partners in the project besides Flanders and De Lijn are also Hasselt, Diepenbeek, Bilzen and Lanaken and on the Dutch side: Maastricht, the province of Limburg and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Public Works.