New Chunnel routes to lift passenger numbers
EUROTUNNEL said more than 14m passengers a year could be using the rail link to the Continent by 2020, as demand is lifted by new, faster routes into Europe.
The Channel Tunnel operator said yesterday that Eurostar traffic could rise from last year’s record of 10m passengers if plans for extra services are followed through. Deutsche Bahn and Eurostar are considering new high-speed services linking London directly to Cologne, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Geneva from 2016.
PwC said in a report for Eurotunnel that the extra routes will generate 2.5m extra passengers a year, as direct services will cut journey times and make the train more attractive than flying. Meanwhile, growing demand for the current service as the economy improves will add a further 1.8m over six years.