The N3 road in Belgium

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

  is a national road connecting the capital city Brussels

Brussels

Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...

 to Aachen

Aachen

Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...

 in Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 via Leuven

Leuven

Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...

, Tienen, Sint-Truiden

Sint-Truiden

Sint-Truiden is a city and municipality located in the province of Limburg, Flemish Region, Belgium, near the towns of Hasselt and Tongeren. The municipality includes the old communes of Aalst, Brustem, Duras, Engelmanshoven, Gelinden, Gorsem, Groot-Gelmen, Halmaal, Kerkom-bij-Sint-Truiden,...

 and Liège

Liège

Liège is a major city and municipality of Belgium located in the province of Liège, of which it is the economic capital, in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium....

. Its course is quite similar to that of European route E40

European route E40

European route E 40 is the longest European route, more than long, connecting Calais in France via Belgium, Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan, with Ridder in Kazakhstan near the border to China....

 between Brussels and Aachen, which it intersects 3 times. The road runs through the 3 Belgian regions (Brussels, Flanders

Flanders

Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...

 and Wallonia) and the 3 communities (Dutch-speaking, French-speaking and German-speaking).

Starting at the small ring

Small ring (Brussels)

The Brussels small ring or inner ring road is a series of roadways in central Brussels, Belgium, surrounding the historic city centre. It was built on the site of the Second walls of Brussels, built in the 16th century, after they were torn down....

 crossroad Arts-Loi in the City of Brussels

City of Brussels

The City of Brussels is the largest municipality of the Brussels-Capital Region, and the official capital of Belgium by law....

, the road is first named Rue de la Loi (direction Brussels centrum) or Rue Belliard (direction Achen), then enters the Belliard tunnel under the Cinquantenaire

Cinquantenaire

Parc du Cinquantenaire or Jubelpark is a large public, urban park in the easternmost part of the European Quarter in Brussels, Belgium....

 park before it becomes the Avenue de Tervueren/Tervurenlaan past the Tervuren gate in Etterbeek

Etterbeek

Etterbeek is one of the nineteen municipalities located in the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium. It neighbours the municipalities of the City of Brussels, Ixelles, Auderghem, Woluwe-Saint-Pierre, Woluwe-Saint-Lambert and Schaerbeek....

. The Avenue de Tervueren then crosses the municipality of Woluwe-Saint-Pierre from the Montgomery Place, passes along the Woluwe and Parmentier parks before it joins the Chaussée de Tervueren/Tervuursesteenweg in Auderghem

Auderghem

Auderghem or Oudergem is one of the nineteen municipalities located in the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium....

. Past this intersection, the N3 road comes back to Woluwe-Saint-Pierre where it crosses the Brussels Ring

Brussels Ring

The Brussels Ring numbered R0, is a ring road surrounding the city of Brussels as well as other smaller towns south of Brussels. The road is a circular highway road of about 75 km with 2 to 3 lanes in each direction...

 after which it leaves the region of Brussels for Flanders in Tervuren

Tervuren

Tervuren is a municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. The municipality comprises the villages of Duisburg, Tervuren, Vossem and Moorsel. On January 1, 2006, Tervuren had a total population of 20,636...

, Flemish Brabant

Flemish Brabant

Flemish Brabant is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on the Belgian provinces of Antwerp, Limburg, Liège, Walloon Brabant, Hainaut and East Flanders. Flemish Brabant also completely surrounds the Brussels-Capital Region. Its capital is Leuven...

.

Before it arrives to Leuven where it joins the N2 road

N2 road (Belgium)

The N2 road in Belgium is a road connecting Brussels and Maastricht passing Leuven, Diest and Hasselt. It starts in Brussels at the Madou crossroad on the small ring, heading northeast as the Chaussée de Louvain/Leuvensesteenweg, which crosses the municipalities of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, City of...

 on the Leuven Ring, the road crosses highways E40 in Bertem

Bertem

Bertem is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the towns of Bertem proper, Korbeek-Dijle and Leefdaal. On January 1, 2006 Bertem had a total population of 9,215...

 and E314

European route E314

The European route E 314 is a road in Europe and a part of the United Nations International E-road network. Approximately long, it connects the Belgian university city of Leuven with Aachen, Charlemagne's capital during the early ninth century, and today a bustling commercial centre in...

 in Heverlee

Heverlee

Heverlee is a town in Belgium. It is a deelgemeente of the city of Leuven. Heverlee is bordered by Herent, Bertem, Oud Heverlee and several other municipalities that are part of Leuven ....

, a borough of Leuven. Between Leuven and Tienen the N3 road runs parallel to the E40 and the railroad Leuven-Tienen. Arriving in Sint-Truiden, the road enters the province of Limburg and leaves it for the Walloon province of Liège

Liège (province)

Liège is the easternmost province of Belgium and belongs to the Walloon Region. It is an area of French and German ethnicity. It borders on the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and in Belgium the provinces of Luxembourg, Namur, Walloon Brabant , and those of Flemish Brabant and Limburg . Its...

 at Oreye

Oreye

Oreye is a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Liège. On January 1, 2006 Oreye had a total population of 3,464. The total area is 19.64 km² which gives a population density of 176 inhabitants per km². It includes the former communes of Lens-sur-Geer, Grandville, Bergilers, and...

. It intersects again the E40 highway at Loncin and then crosses the city centrum of Liège. Going north-east the road intersects the E40 for the 3rd time in Soumagne

Soumagne

Soumagne is a municipality of Belgium. It lies in the country's Walloon Region and Province of Liege. On September 1, 2008 Soumagne had a total population of 15,894...

. The N3 finally crosses 2 municipalities of the German-speaking community (Lontzen

Lontzen

Lontzen is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Liège. On January 1, 2006 Lontzen had a total population of 5,071. The total area is 28.73 km² which gives a population density of 177 inhabitants per km²....

 and Kelmis

Kelmis

Kelmis is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Liège. On January 1, 2006, Kelmis had a total population of 10,396...

). From Kelmis the German city of Aachen can be joined via the German road B264.