London St Pancras: The European cities new trains could go to and why it might not happen

Could the departure boards from London St Pancras International see new destinations? That is the hope of station and rail link operator London St Pancras Highspeed and the owners of the Channel Tunnel, Getlink.

At present, Eurostar is the only passenger train service through the tunnel, a monopoly it has enjoyed since services began in 1994.

What’s the story at St Pancras?

Eurostar runs trains to Lille, Paris, Brussels, Rotterdam and Amsterdam. Since Brexit, the number of destinations it serves from London has shrunk, with Eurostar abandoning routes to the Mediterranean, the French Alps and Disneyland Paris.

Train calls at two stations in Kent and Calais on the French coast have been cut due to the additional red tape the UK negotiated after leaving the European Union.

The British demand to be subject to the EU’s new Entry/Exit System has severely limited the number of passengers that can be handled.

All of this is bad news for the track and tunnel operators. The 68-mile HS1 rail line from London to the Channel Tunnel has plenty of spare capacity, as does the 31-mile undersea link itself.

Who are London St Pancras Highspeed and Getlink?

London St Pancras Highspeed is simply the brand name used by HS1 Ltd, which has the concession to run the line from London to east Kent through to 31 December 2040. It earns money from the current Eurostar and Southeastern trains. The more trains that run, the more cash it makes.

Getlink was formerly Groupe Eurotunnel. It is the French firm that runs the Channel Tunnel and operates the LeShuttle car- and coach-carrying trains between Folkestone and Calais. Getlink charges around £20 per passenger carried through the tunnel – is keen to extract more from its expensive asset.

Surely it’s the green way to go?

Yes. Gwendoline ​Cazenave, chief executive of Eurostar, says: “Eurostar is committed to being the most sustainable form of international travel when it comes to carbon emissions. On average, the carbon footprint of travelling on our trains is 95 per cent less than flying.”

Mark Smith, the international rail guru known as The Man in Seat 61, adds: “90-95 per cent of Eurostar trains arrive on time or within 15 minutes, competing short-haul flights typically manage only 65-70 per cent by the same standard.

“From central London to central Paris, Eurostar is…