Eurostar news
News about cross-Channel high speed train operator Eurostar, which links London St Pancras International station with destinations in France, Belgium and the Netherlands via the Channel Tunnel.
-
Rail Business UKEurostar promotional fares advert deemed misleading
UK: The Advertising Standards Authority has told Eurostar that a significant proportion of seats must be available at the highlighted price when it uses ‘from’ prices in advertising. The ASA ruling on January 3 follows a complaint by someone who received a promotional e-mail in July ...
-
NewsChange in safety rules opens door to more cross-Channel operators
EUROPE: Eurotunnel is working with rolling stock suppliers and safety authorities to simplify the standards that apply to cross-Channel rail traffic as part of its aim to double the number of high speed passenger trains using the Channel Tunnel by the end of 2033.
-
Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
This week’s round-up of business news from the UK railway industry.
-
Rail Business UKEurostar depot equipped with moveable overhead electrification
UK: Electrification specialist Furrer+Frey has completed a project to install moveable conductor bar at Eurostar’s Temple Mills depot in east London. A total of 1·5 km of movable overhead has been installed on the eight depot tracks. It can be moved out of the ...
-
NewsCEO sets out how the merged Eurostar business aims to go further
EUROPE: ‘We are opening a new chapter of the Eurostar story’ with ‘our most loyal customers as the main characters’, Eurostar CEO Gwendoline Cazenave said at an event on October 9 marking the launch of an international marketing campaign following the completion of the merger with Thalys.
-
NewsSwiss help sought to keep Eurostar running to Amsterdam
NETHERLANDS: A Swiss firm has been commissioned to assist with finding a way of enabling Eurostar services to continue to run during a major refurbishment of Amsterdam Centraal station. The planned works mean that areas of the station which Eurostar uses to undertake the border and ...
-
NewsEurostar check-in biometric verification goes live
The SmartCheck biometric check-in and UK border exit system has gone live at Eurostar’s London St Pancras station; Railway Gazette International tries it out and speaks to the high speed train operator and supplier iProov.
-
NewsEurostar seeks solution to avoid suspension of Amsterdam – London services
NETHERLANDS: The CEO of Eurostar has met with Dutch officials to discuss the future of services from London to Amsterdam, after Infrastructure Secretary Vivianne Heijnen said operations may have to be suspended for up to 11 months. In a letter to the Dutch parliament on June ...
-
NewsMerged Eurostar and Thalys branding revealed
EUROPE: The branding for the merged Eurostar and Thalys high speed rail businesses was unveiled in Brussels on January 24.
-
NewsEurostar cannot grow amid pandemic, Brexit and cost crises, CEO warns
EUROPE: Problems faced by Eurostar as a result of the pandemic, Brexit and rising costs have been set out in detail in a letter from outgoing CEO Jacques Damas to the Chair of the UK’s House of Commons Transport Select Committee. Chair Huw Merriman MP had ...
-
NewsEurostar confirms end of Disneyland service
EUROPE: Eurostar has confirmed that it will not be running the direct service between London and Marne-la-Vallée, the station for Disneyland Paris, from June 5 2023. The operator said ’whilst we continue to recover financially from the pandemic, and monitor developments in the proposed EU Entry/Exit ...
-
Rail Business UKNo Eurostar services to Ashford or Ebbsfleet in 2023
UK: Eurostar services will not stop at Ebbsfleet or Ashford International stations during 2023, and the cross-Channel high speed train operator told Rail Business UK ‘we cannot make any commitment for another two to three years’.
-
NewsEurostar Group names next CEO and targets 30 million passengers within 10 years
EUROPE: Gwendoline Cazenave has been appointed as CEO of Eurostar Group with effect from October 1. She will succeed Jacques Damas, who has been CEO of Eurostar since October 2020 and CEO of Eurostar Group since it was formed as the holding company for Eurostar and ...
-
NewsEurostar Group formed as holding company for Eurostar and Thalys
EUROPE: Eurostar Group has been established as the holding company for international high speed train operators Eurostar and Thalys, and the shareholders have announced their ambition for the combined services to carry 30 million passengers/year within 10 years, compared to 18 million in 2019. ...
-
NewsMerger approval ‘should ensure the rebound and growth ambitions of Thalys and Eurostar’, says SNCF
EUROPE: The European Commission has approved the planned merger of cross-border high speed train operators Thalys and Eurostar. SNCF Voyageurs told Railway Gazette International the merger ‘should ensure the rebound and growth ambitions of Thalys and Eurostar.’ Announcing its decision on March 29, the Commission said ...
-
NewsEurostar biometric trial goes live
EUROPE: Eurostar has begun live trials of the SmartCheck biometric face authentication system, enabling passengers boarding at London St Pancras International to complete secure ticket verification and UK exit checks on their mobile devices before travel.
-
NewsEurostar brand to remain after Thalys merger
EUROPE: European high speed operators Eurostar and Thalys confirmed on October 4 that their planned merger announced in September 2019 is on course to be completed ‘within two to three years’, with a formal submission to the European Commission’s competition authority expected in 2022. Being taken ...
-
NewsEurostar to increase services and complete Thalys merger as £250m refinancing agreement secured
EUROPE: Cross-Channel high speed train operator Eurostar has announced a £250m refinancing agreement with its shareholders and banks, which it said would enable it to continue to operate services and meet its short to mid-term financial obligations. The refinancing package announced on May 18 comprises £50m ...
-
NewsCall for Eurostar trains to be made available to support on-rail competition
EUROPE: The ALLRAIL association of new entrants to the rail market has said any government support which might be offered to Eurostar during the coronavirus pandemic should be accompanied by conditions designed to facilitate cross-Channel competition.
-
Rail Business UKEurostar to make cash refund option clearer
UK: International high speed train operator Eurostar has agreed to make it clearer that passengers have a right to cash refunds for cancelled services, following an intervention by the Office of Rail & Road. ORR said Eurostar’s service cancellation e-mails to passengers had provided prominent information about ...