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Scottish Sun
7 days ago
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Huge boost for Brits as UK railway station set to get first direct trains to Europe in nearly a decade
And the three other train operators wanting to take on Eurostar ON TRACK Huge boost for Brits as UK railway station set to get first direct trains to Europe in nearly a decade Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A MAJOR UK train station could get new routes to Europe again - five years after they were scrapped. Ebbsfleet International in Kent used to be a stopping station for Eurostar. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 A railway station in Kent could get international trains again - the first in nearly a decade Credit: Alamy 3 Ebbsfleet International used to be a stopping station for Eurostar Credit: Alamy This included six trains a day to Paris and Brussels as well as four trains a week to Disneyland Paris. However, these were suspended back in 2020 due to the pandemic, with them yet to be restored. The station is now only currently used by HS1 between London and Kent. But Eurostar rival Gemini - who recently confirmed they had partnered with Uber - has revealed plans to stop at the station when they launch their new routes. Gemini CEO Adrian Quine told the BBC: "It's very important because Eurostar no longer stop in Kent and there's eight million people who live in the south-east of England, outside the M25, for whom having a direct service to the continent is extremely important. "Ebbsfleet is a perfect station. It's designed for international traffic, it's got a massive car park, it's very well connected via the road network and it's connected to the rest of Kent via the HS1 service. "We're proposing every train stops there." The new European route is likely to start from 2029, nearly a decade after the station stopped having international train services. And Gemini also revealed plans to operate from Stratford International Station rather than London St Pancras. If this goes ahead, it would be the first time the station ever has trains to Europe, despite being an "international" station. Top 5 Picturesque Train Journeys in Europe This also means it would have to undergo huge infrastructure improvements to be able to handle passport and security control. Until then, Brits can only hop on a train to Europe from St Pancras, with Eurostar also suspending routes via Ashford International during the pandemic. International routes from the Kent train station are unlikely to return anytime soon, with a Eurostar spokesperson saying they would "look into it" again in 2026. And it's not just Gemini wanting to take on Eurostar. Start up operator Evolyn announced plans for trains between London and Paris back in 2023. Earlier this year, FS Italiane Group said they wanted to launch a new train service between London and Paris by 2029. And Virgin also wants to launch UK-Europe routes, with plans to buy 12 trains, costing £500million. Here are seven European cities that could get a direct train route from the UK in the future. And we've rounded up the four Eurostar routes that have been scrapped in recent years.
The Sun
7 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Huge boost for Brits as UK railway station set to get first direct trains to Europe in nearly a decade
A MAJOR UK train station could get new routes to Europe again - five years after they were scrapped. Ebbsfleet International in Kent used to be a stopping station for Eurostar. 3 3 This included six trains a day to Paris and Brussels as well as four trains a week to Disneyland Paris. However, these were suspended back in 2020 due to the pandemic, with them yet to be restored. The station is now only currently used by HS1 between London and Kent. But Eurostar rival Gemini - who recently confirmed they had partnered with Uber - has revealed plans to stop at the station when they launch their new routes. Gemini CEO Adrian Quine told the BBC: "It's very important because Eurostar no longer stop in Kent and there's eight million people who live in the south-east of England, outside the M25, for whom having a direct service to the continent is extremely important. "Ebbsfleet is a perfect station. It's designed for international traffic, it's got a massive car park, it's very well connected via the road network and it's connected to the rest of Kent via the HS1 service. "We're proposing every train stops there." The new European route is likely to start from 2029, nearly a decade after the station stopped having international train services. And Gemini also revealed plans to operate from Stratford International Station rather than London St Pancras. If this goes ahead, it would be the first time the station ever has trains to Europe, despite being an "international" station. Top 5 Picturesque Train Journeys in Europe This also means it would have to undergo huge infrastructure improvements to be able to handle passport and security control. Until then, Brits can only hop on a train to Europe from St Pancras, with Eurostar also suspending routes via Ashford International during the pandemic. International routes from the K ent train station are unlikely to return anytime soon, with a Eurostar spokesperson saying they would "look into it" again in 2026. And it's not just Gemini wanting to take on Eurostar. Start up operator Evolyn announced plans for trains between London and Paris back in 2023. Earlier this year, FS Italiane Group said they wanted to launch a new train service between London and Paris by 2029. And Virgin also wants to launch UK-Europe routes, with plans to buy 12 trains, costing £500million. Here are seven European cities that could get a direct train route from the UK in the future. And we've rounded up the four Eurostar routes that have been scrapped in recent years. 3
The Irish Sun
7 days ago
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Huge boost for Brits as UK railway station set to get first direct trains to Europe in nearly a decade
A MAJOR UK train station could get new routes to Europe again - five years after they were scrapped. Ebbsfleet International in Kent used to be a stopping station for Eurostar. 3 A railway station in Kent could get international trains again - the first in nearly a decade Credit: Alamy 3 Ebbsfleet International used to be a stopping station for Eurostar Credit: Alamy This included six trains a day to Paris and Brussels as well as four trains a week to Disneyland Paris. However, these were suspended back in 2020 due to the pandemic , with them yet to be restored. The station is now only currently used by HS1 between London and Kent. But Eurostar rival Gemini - who recently Read more on UK trains Gemini CEO Adrian Quine told the England , outside the M25, for whom having a direct service to the continent is extremely important. "Ebbsfleet is a perfect station. It's designed for international traffic, it's got a massive car park, it's very well connected via the road network and it's connected to the rest of Kent via the HS1 service. "We're proposing every train stops there." The new European route is likely to start from 2029, nearly a decade after the station stopped having international train services. Most read in News Travel And Gemini also revealed plans to operate from If this goes ahead, it would be the first time the station ever has trains to Europe , despite being an "international" station. Top 5 Picturesque Train Journeys in Europe This also means it would have to undergo huge infrastructure improvements to be able to handle passport and security control. Until then, Brits can only hop on a train to Europe from St Pancras, with Eurostar also suspending routes via Ashford International during the pandemic. International routes from the K And it's not just Gemini wanting to take on Eurostar. Earlier this year, And Virgin also wants to launch UK-Europe routes, with plans to buy 12 trains, costing £500million. Here are And we've rounded up the 3 The station is currently only used by HS1 between London and Kent Credit: Alamy
Time Out
27-05-2025
- Business
- Time Out
Uber has revealed plans to run trains to Europe from Stratford in east London
For a long time, the Eurostar has been the only passenger train ferrying Brits from London, under the Channel and onto the Continent. But not for long. In recent years cross-Channel ambitions have been revealed by the likes of Deutsche Bahn and Evolyn, while Virgin has announced a new service that will be a direct competitor with the OG London-Paris line, due to launch in 2029. Now there's been an update for yet another Eurostar competitor. It involves Gemini Trains, which is led by Labour peer Tony Berkeley and was launched back in March. Gemini will be teaming up with Uber to launch a new international train line, that could take Londoners en train to Paris and Brussels from Stratford in the heart of east London. 'Stratford is a bit of a blank canvas,' said Adrian Quine, chief executive of Gemini Trains. 'It's a bit like London City airport as opposed to Heathrow or Gatwick: it's very quick and easy to get through. It's going to be far less crowded, so we think it's a bit of a jewel in the crown.' When the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (AKA High Speed 1, HS1) was built back in 2007 Stratford International station was fitted out to handle passengers heading across the Channel from London, but it was never used for this purpose. The HS1 Stratford station has only been used by domestic Southeastern trains using the high-speed track to stations in Kent. Quine said a Stratty to Paris train could be 'as quick, if not quicker' than the service from St Pancras. He said that Londoners could be hopping on in east London and hopping off at Paris Nord or Brussels Midi by 2030.
BBC News
27-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Uber set to reopen Ebbsfleet International by 2029
Trains to and from Europe via the Channel Tunnel will stop in Kent up to 10 times each day under new plans by Gemini Trains and services stopped calling at Ebbsfleet and Ashford international stations at the beginning of the pandemic, and have so far not rail operator Gemini Trains and transport app Uber recently announced they were teaming up and planned to rival Eurostar by operating trains between London St Pancras and the Quine, CEO of Gemini, said the new service could be introduced by 2029 and would stop at Ebbsfleet, although Ashford is not in the plans for now. Mr Quine told BBC Radio Kent: "It's very important because Eurostar no longer stop in Kent and there's eight million people who live in the south-east of England, outside the M25, for whom having a direct service to the continent is extremely important."Ebbsfleet is a perfect station. It's designed for international traffic, it's got a massive car park, it's very well connected via the road network and it's connected to the rest of Kent via the HS1 service."We're proposing every train stops there."The deal, similar to that between Uber and the London Thames Clipper boats, would see tickets offered through the app but operations remaining the responsibility of Quine said he was between 60 and 70% sure that the project between Gemini and Uber would be green lit by the rail regulator.
