The Rue d'Aerschot is close to Brussels' city centre, and is adjacent to the Northern Quarter business district (also called Little Manhattan), where the World Trade Center (WTC) is located.

The Rue d'Aerschot was laid out around 1839 when Brussels-North railway station on the Place Charles Rogier/Karel Rogierplein was constructed and the surrounding streets developed.

[1] After World War I, due to strong anti-German feelings in Belgium, many streets that were named after German towns or cities were renamed.

[1] In modern times, it has become the main red-light district in Brussels and has many "windows" that scantily dressed prostitutes sit in trying to attract trade.

[5] Although widely tolerated by police and local authorities, this neighbourhood has at times been a target of joint government/police efforts to track down human trafficking operatives, mostly aimed at breaking up criminal networks that lure young women from Central and Eastern European countries with the promise of a better life in Western Europe.