Low-cost rival to Eurostar proposed – with slower trains and departures from Stratford

Budget cross-Channel trains may soon come into service between London and Paris as a cheaper but slower alternative to the high-speed Eurostar service.

Getlink, which operates the Channel Tunnel, is proposing to open the route to a new service between Stratford, in east London, and Roissy station, beside Charles de Gaulle Airport, north of Paris.

Jacques Gounon, the chairman of Getlink, formerly known as Eurotunnel, said the model was budget flights. “Rail transport is about to be transformed in the same way as air travel was between 2003 and 2005, with the appearance of budget airlines in Europe. The rail market is ready for budget and premium services to coexist.”

Just as budget flights use secondary airports, the new London-Paris rail service would use “peripheral stations and older tracks which are not as fast but have lower toll charges,” Mr Gounon said.

The journey would take just over three hours, compared with two hours 20 minutes on Eurostar.

The operating costs of the budget service would be 25 to 30 per cent lower than for Eurostar, according to a study by the Roland Berger consultancy, commissioned by Getlink. The difference would be reflected in lower fares, Mr Gounon said.

“Stratford Station has benefited from good public transport links since the 2012 Olympic Games and offers very fast access to central London.” Mr Gounon said. “The planned opening of an express rail service linking Charles de Gaulle airport with the Gare de l’Est station in central Paris, and the presence of customs officers within the airport make Roissy an ideal destination for a budget service.”

The plan would also help to increase use of the Channel rail tunnel, now operating at only 58 per cent of capacity.

Mr Gounon said research showed that “within the next 10 years, five million new passengers could use the new service, and that’s without taking into account natural market growth.” 

He acknowledged that it was still unclear which rail operators might be interested in providing the budget London-Paris service, but said Getlink was ready to help with funding. 

“We will grant start-up aid for the operator or operators who go into the budget service, in the same way that small airports are linked with Ryanair.” 

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It is still unclear how long it may take to launch the service. “Getting rail projects up and running is a lengthy process,” Mr Gounon said. “If a new company wants to launch a budget service between London and Paris, it would take at least 18 months for it to begin operating.”

A new operator would need time to acquire specially designed trains able to run on both British and French track.

Eurostar, which runs the existing high-speed service, could open a new budget service within about six months, Mr Gounon suggested.

He said Getlink may send out an invitation to tender. Other possible operators could include Virgin, SNCF, the Franco-Belgian company Thalys or Italy’s Italo.

At a glance | Eurostar journey times

Asked about the uncertainties of Brexit, Mr Gounon said: “Even if there’s a hard Brexit, flows between Europe and the United Kingdom will continue. With a budget service, they could even increase.”

New services are also under consideration between London and Bordeaux, Frankfurt and Geneva.

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