A 24-hour strike by Belgian rail workers has paralysed train traffic throughout Belgium and the Eurostar service to London and Paris.

The strike, which started late yesterday, reached its peak during this morning's rush hour when tens of thousands of commuters had to take to traffic-choked roads to get into the capital Brussels and other major centres.

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

Eurostar cancelled services to the Belgian capital, as did Thalys, a joint service by Belgian, French, Dutch and German railways.

Rail workers are fearful their employment conditions will be undermined under a new plan to revamp and streamline the three companies overseeing train traffic in Belgium.