Eurostar

Eurostar's on the move in 2007 - to St. Pancras International
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date 15 November 2004
source Eurostar
type Press release

Entire Eurostar service will move from Waterloo International in 2007
Faster journey times and dedicated line from St. Pancras International
Wider catchment area as France and Belgium open up for cities north of London
Move will benefit domestic southern England commuters as more capacity opened up at Waterloo
Eurostar, the high-speed passenger train service linking the UK with France and Belgium, today announced it would switch its entire operation to St. Pancras International station in 2007, when the Channel Tunnel Rail Link is completed.

Eurostar, which was 10 years old yesterday, intends to switch in 2007 either overnight or within days so as to minimise any impact on passengers.

The benefits will be:

Journey times from St. Pancras will be at least 40 minutes quicker on a return journey (only 2h 15m to Paris and 1h 53m to Brussels)
More services will be run each day in each direction
Greater connectivity – St. Pancras has 6 underground lines and serves Midland Mainline / Thameslink / GNER and WAGN services (via King’s Cross)
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Lower costs for Eurostar by operating from only one station
France and Belgium become only 3 or 4 hours away from cities north of London
Better value pricing for customers due to lower costs of operating from only one station
Domestic commuters will benefit from faster access into Waterloo and the opening of more train pathways
Opportunities for domestic train operators to utilise capacity vacated
Paul Charles, Director of Communications, Eurostar commented: “After conducting extensive research, we have concluded that the benefits of moving the whole of Eurostar’s operation to St. Pancras International substantially outweigh the need to operate a handful of services from Waterloo. This move will bring many new passengers for Eurostar from other parts of London and the south-east, the Midlands and Yorkshire and, additionally, benefit domestic commuters using Waterloo.”

Passengers throughout the south of England will have much greater choice as to where to begin their Eurostar journeys – from St. Pancras International, Stratford International, Ashford International, or from Ebbsfleet International (which Eurostar is proposing be called Dartford International), which will have around 9,000 car parking spaces, useful for those joining from the M25. Vauxhall station – which connects to St. Pancras via the Victoria Line in around 20 minutes – will also be a key connection point for many passengers, who also have the choice of using the Jubilee Line from Waterloo to Stratford.

Eurostar recently announced record market share and passenger numbers. Eurostar carried 6,046 million passengers in the 10 months to the end of October, up 16.2% on the year before (5,203 million). Market share on the London-Paris route is now 68% and 63% on the London-Brussels route – the highest in Eurostar’s history.

Eurostar has carried more than 59 million passengers between London, Ashford, Calais, Lille, Paris, Brussels, Disneyland Paris, Avignon and the French Alps since services started on 14th November 1994.

Editor's Notes:

1. Eurostar is the fast train service linking London, Ashford, Paris, Brussels, Lille, Avignon, Calais, Disneyland Resort Paris and the French Alps.

2. Eurostar was named “Train Operator of the Year” at the National Rail Awards 2004; “World’s Leading Rail Service” in the 2003 World Travel Awards; “Best Rail Network” at the Business Travel World Awards 2004 and “Best Rail Operator” at the Travel Weekly Globe Awards 2004.

3. Eurostar and Eurotunnel are two completely separate companies with different management teams.

4. To book tickets for Eurostar, or to find out more information, go to www.eurostar.com , call 08705 186186 or contact your travel agent.

Railhub Archive ::: 2004-11-15 EUR-001