London St Pancras owner inks new partnership as it eyes services to Italy and Germany
The company in charge of St Pancras International is luring in competition for Eurostar by nearly tripling passenger capacity and launching a range of new European routes.
A tie-up between London St Pancras High Speed and Eurotunnel will “lay the foundations for increased cross-Channel rail traffic” alongside faster journey times, the companies said in a statement on Thursday.
According to Yann Leriche, the boss of Getlink, which owns the Eurotunnel, new destinations are in the offing, including Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
The announcement of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Eurotunnel and St Pancras High Speed follows plans to ramp up capacity at the station to 5,000 passengers per hour, up from a prior 1,800.
Such an increase will require a re-think of its existing infrastructure, with the departure area particularly prone to long queues.
“Joining forces with Eurotunnel is another exciting step on our journey to realise a future where high-speed rail is the preferred option for travelling to Europe,” Robert Sinclair, chief executive of St Pancras High Speed, said.
“As we see demand for international rail travel grow, London St. Pancras Highspeed and Eurotunnel have an important role to play as key infrastructure managers to actively work together to encourage new and existing train operators to expand capacity and launch new destinations unlocking the potential of a fully connected Europe.”
Eurostar has long-held a monopoly on the high-speed line connecting London to the south coast, however a number of companies are seeking to break its hold.
These include Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, and Spanish and Dutch start-ups Evolyn and Heuro.
“We are keen to drive forward attractive opportunities for low-carbon mobility with a range of new destinations in Germany, Switzerland and France,” Getlink’s Leriche said.
“This partnership with London St. Pancras Highspeed is an essential catalyst for accelerating this growth momentum.”
Eurostar currently offers direct routes to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.