At the request of the Brussels Region, the BIPT carried out a study in September 2018 already, to determine which radiation standards would be necessary to roll out mobile 5G networks (5G). The technical report regarding the impact of the current Brussels radiation standards on the roll-out of mobile networks concluded that, taking into account the expected increase in data traffic and a desired roll-out of 5G, the radiation standards needed to be adjusted. The report was about 5G roll-out, but it also warned that 4G networks too risked congestion in the long run. That was confirmed by the study of 8 March 2021, in which the BIPT predicts the risks of congestion of the 4G networks in 3 major cities:
- The study predicts that the 4G networks in Antwerp do not risk a considerable congestion.
- In Liège the risk of a partial congestion during peak hours is expected for 4G networks.
- For Brussels the study warns against a risk of a major congestion during peak hours for 4G networks.