Fri, 21 Feb 2025

Fri, 21 Feb 2025 St Pancras plans for direct trains from UK to Germany

The London station's owner and Eurotunnel hope to expand routes to Cologne, Frankfurt and Switzerland.

* London St Pancras Highspeed proposes to increase capacity from 1,800 passengers per hour to almost 5,000 to boost international train travel.
* The company aims to attract different train operators to offer a range of services in Europe, potentially challenging Eurostar's monopoly on routes through the Channel Tunnel.
* A new agreement between London St Pancras Highspeed and Getlink (Eurotunnel owner) will help commit to expanding rail connectivity between the UK and Europe.
* Potential direct train routes include: + Bordeaux + Cologne + Frankfurt + Geneva + Marseille + Zurich
* Eurostar has dropped services to Disneyland Paris and no longer operates routes to the south of France, leaving a gap for new competitors like Virgin Group and Evolyn.
* The UK government wants trains to stop at Ashford and Ebbsfleet again after a five-year break.
* Reduced track costs could lead to "more services" on the High Speed 1 line used by Eurostar, Southeastern, and freight trains.
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