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Virgin Trains wins approval for up to 20 daily cross-Channel services
The Office of Rail and Road granted track access for services running from Oct. 1, 2030 through Dec. 31, 2040.
Virgin Trains has been granted track access by the Office of Rail and Road to operate new passenger services between London and Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam through the Channel tunnel, a regulatory step aimed at challenging Eurostar's cross-Channel passenger monopoly. The approval covers up to 20 daily return trains.
The approval period runs from October 1, 2030 through December 31, 2040, and it positions Virgin Trains to move forward with international service plans into the late decade. The agreement is part of a broader effort that includes prior approval to share Eurostar's Temple Mills depot in east London for train maintenance and storage.
The report notes that Eurostar has held the passenger-services monopoly on the tunnel route since the service opened in 1994. It also highlights that Eurostar, controlled by French rail operator SNCF, has faced criticism over high prices and has reduced its network over the past decade.
The story adds that Eurotunnel operates the LeShuttle vehicle service on the route, while Virgin Trains plans to run services from St Pancras to the same European destinations used by Eurostar. It also says demand for international rail travel from the UK has been rising.