24-hour strike paralyzes Belgium train traffic

The strike, which started late Tuesday, reached its peak during the Wednesday morning rush hour when tens of thousands of commuters had to take to traffic-choked highways to get into the capital or work.

Many employees had taken precautions and even though long traffic jams were reported early Wednesday, they were not as bad as initially feared.

Both Thalys and Eurostar canceled services to the Belgian capital.

"In Brussels, the strike is a success, around 80-90 percent of the people are on strike," said Philippe Peers of the socialist CGSP trade union. "Many of the stewards as well are on strike, so I can tell that there will be not a single train in Brussels."

Rail service was expected to resume late Wednesday and be back at full service on Thursday morning.

Despite the weeklong warning, it still caused plenty of hardship.

Georgina Saldena, a Mexican tourist, was heading for the Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport. "Until today, we thought we had to go there by train," she said after she was surprised by the strike. And as tourist, she felt stranded with few indications of alternative options. "There is no sign, nothing that says that we have to come here to take a bus," she said at a bus stop that would take her to Paris, Saldena said.