The Anonymous Widower

National Express Owner Plans To Launch Eurostar Rival

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Financial Times.

I have documented a few attempts to start a competitor to Eurostar.

• Express London-Amsterdam Eurostar Service Being Explored
• Getlink Pushes Budget Train Service Between London And Paris To Rival Eurostar
• RENFE Aims To Compete With Eurostar On Paris – London Route
• Transmanche Metro
• The Wikipedia entry for Eurostar details German and Italian attempts to start a service.

Note.

1. None of the proposals seem to have got past being announced.
2. The only useful fact given in the article, is that the service will be called Evolyn.

Searches of the Internet reveal virtually no more facts, rehashes of the FT article and a lot of waffle.

These are my thoughts.

Would Eurostar Give Up And Slots At St. Pancras International?

I use slots deliberately, as British Airways don’t seem keen to ever give up slots at Heathrow or Gatwick.

And I suspect Eurostar would be the same!

St. Pancras International Doesn’t Have Enough Space

This article on Kent & Surrey Bylines, which is entitled Why Are There Such Queues At St Pancras For Eurostar?, is typical of many you can find on the Internet.

This is the sub-heading.

Eurostar no longer stops at Ebbsfleet or Ashford International, and the queues at St Pancras are becoming intolerable

This is the first paragraph.

Passengers are complaining. The queues at St Pancras are now intolerable. The lines stretch back into the main hall. It is like an airport with the slow shuffle towards the security kiosks. Then, once you are through that, you go to the departure lounge. However, there is not enough seating for the waiting passengers (see picture above taken this month). Because you have to check in 90 minutes before the train starts, one can be stuck standing in this waiting room for an hour. Unless, that is, one is white-haired and venerable, in which case one is usually offered a seat by someone younger and fitter.

It was written on the 9th of last month. But the problems have been bad for some years, as St. Pancras station is too small.

Could Ashford International Station Be Used As A Terminal?

The station has platforms  on High Speed One, but the Financial Times says the service will be run between London and Paris.

I doubt even Ryanair would stretch it to say that Ashford was in London.

Could Ebbsfleet International Station Be Used As A Terminal?

It might be possible to say that Ebbsfleet was in London, but then it is not well-connected to Central London.

Does That leave Just Stratford International?

In Platforms 1 And 4 At Stratford International Station, I came to this conclusion.

I have come to these conclusions about Platforms 1 And 4 at Stratford International station.

• The platforms are designed to take the longest Eurostar trains.
• The access to Platforms 1 And 4, doesn’t appear to be designed for continuous heavy use.
• The diamond crossover at the Eastern end of the station would allow Stratford International station to be used as an emergency terminus.

The track layout at the London end of High Speed One appears to have been designed for all eventualities.

But I suspect that Stratford International station will need a lot of money spent to provide Customs and Immigration facilities.

Could Victoria Station Be Used As A Terminal?

National Express is primarily a coach company, so could they be planning a service to connect the long distance coach networks of London and Paris?

This OpenRailwayMap shows the link between High Speed One and the Chatham Main Line.

Note.

1. Ebbsfleet International and Northfleet stations are at the top of the map.
2. High Speed One is the red line going through Ebbsfleet International station.
3. The orange line going across the South-West corner of the map is the Chatham Main Line between Victoria station and Chatham.
4. The Chatham Main Line is connected to High Speed One, by the Waterloo Connection or the Fawkham Junction Link.

This route was the original route for Eurostar to Waterloo.

But it could just as easily go into Victoria.

• Southeastern’s Victoria and Dover service takes this route.
• The distance between Victoria and Fawkham junction is 22.6 miles.
• Trains take 28 minutes with a stop at Bromley.
• I wrote some more about the Fawkham Junction Link in Kent On The Cusp Of Change – Fawkham Junction Link.
• I also wrote some more about Victoria as a High Speed terminal in Kent On The Cusp Of Change – Victoria As A Highspeed Terminal.

Note that the two Kent On The Cusp Of Change posts were based on an article in the July 2017 Edition of Modern Railways.

I am convinced that Victoria could be used as a terminal for Continental trains.

Where Would The Service Terminate In France?

Everything I said about congestion also applies to Gare Du Nord, so would it be better to use Marne-la-Vallée–Chessy station that serves Disneyland Paris and Charles de Gaulle Airport, which used to be used by Eurostar.

There are certainly possibilities to do something different.

What Trains Would Be Needed?

The FT article says that the consortium have talked to Alstom, who build the Class 373 trains.

The trains would probably need a specification like this.

• Maximum speed of at least 200 mph, like Eurostar’s Class 374 trains.
• Ability to run on tracks with a UK loading gauge.
• Ability to use both 750 VDC third rail and 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
• Less than 240 metres long, which are the platform lengths at Victoria.

Would a High Speed Two Classic-Compatible Train be suitable?

• The trains will have a maximum speed of 224 mph.
• It has been designed for a UK loading gauge.
• The two partners in these trains; Alstom and Hitachi, have both built high speed trains capable of running at slower speeds using third rail electrification.
• The standard length of the trains are 200 metres.

I suspect they would do nicely.

Conclusion

I suspect that the National Express service could use High Speed Two Classic-Compatible Trains between Victoria and Marne-la-Vallée–Chessy stations.

• The trains would be standard with the ability to use third rail electrification
• They would use a single International platform at Victoria and Marne-la-Vallée–Chessy.
• Victoria station is well-connected to the Underground.
• Marne-la-Vallée–Chessy station is connected to Charles de Gaulle airport and Disneyland Paris.

I feel that there is a feasible service that can be designed.

August 1, 2023 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Alstom, Ashford Station, Channel Tunnel, Charles de Gaulle Airport, Chatham Main Line, Ebbsfleet International Station, Eurostar, Fawkham Junction Link, Gare Du Nord, High Speed One, High Speed Two Classic-Compatible Trains, Hitachi, Marne-la-Vallée–Chessy Station, National Express, St. Pancras Station, Stratford International Station, Victoria Coach Station, Victoria Station | 6 Comments