Europe’s Next High-Speed Train Operator
I was alerted to Heuro Train, by this article in Railway Gazette International, which has this opening paragraph.
A proposal to launch high speed train services from Amsterdam to London and from Groningen to Paris has been announced by Dutch start-up Heuro, while Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson is also reported to be looking at competing with Eurostar on cross-Channel routes.
The Heuro Train web site was easily found and the title of this post, was part of their mission statement on the home page.
I have read the web site and have a few initial thoughts.
Technology-Driven Excellence
This is their first sub heading and this is the text.
In a world where technology defines possibilities, Heuro develops the latest innovations into every aspect of our service. From advanced train systems to intuitive in-seat features that cater to your needs, our technology is the driving force behind a seamless, state-of-the-art travel experience.
We’ve all written things like that in the past.
Meeting The Human Need
This is their second sub heading and this is the text.
Heuro emerged from human desires, informed by analyses from Marveltest.
There’s been a 32% annual increase in online interest for train travel over five years. High-Speed Trains are 98% full at peak times. Over half of Europeans prefer train travel under 2 hours as a greener option. Introducing High-Speed Operators in train monopolies boosts demand by 45%.
They appear to have done their research and those are interesting figures.
Lightning Speed Connectivity
This is their third sub heading and this is the text.
In our digital age, both work and leisure have found a substantial home on the internet for urban humans. Whether sealing a business deal, streaming a favorite show, or connecting with loved ones, online interactions have become integral to our daily lives. At Heuro, we don’t just commit—we guarantee the best internet experience.
This is actually irrelevant these days, as there will be a high standard of Internet experience on all modes of transport in a few years, although some will get it earlier than others.
Planned Routes
This is their sixth sub heading and this is the text.
We will connect Amsterdam with Brussels, Paris, and London with intermediate stops at Schiphol Airport, Rotterdam Central, Antwerp Central & complimentary services to Groningen, Assen, Zwolle and Almere (continuing to Paris, 2 times per day)
This route map is shown.
Note.
- It is not a large network.
- It makes a lot of use of the Dutch high speed line; HSL-Zuid, that runs between Amsterdam and the Belgian border.
- I suspect it has been designed to be extended.
The Railway Gazette Article has these two paragraphs, which give more information on services and Heuro’s thinking.
On November 15 Heuro told Railway Gazette International that it aims to launch in 2028, offering 16 Amsterdam – Paris and 15 Amsterdam – London trains each day with intermediate stops at Schiphol Airport, Rotterdam Centraal, Antwerpen Centraal and Brussels. Two of the Paris trains would run to and from Groningen via Assen, Zwolle and Almere.
The company said ‘every day, 55 planes fly from Amsterdam to London, while only four trains make this journey. Heuro intends to change that, aiming for more trains to depart from Amsterdam than flights’.
With other train companies wanting to serve London, will St. Pancras International be able to incorporate another fifteen trains per day from Amsterdam?
Web Site Language
Everything is in English! It also appears to be English English.
Les français ne seront pas amusés.
Extensions From London
Much of Central and Eastern England, and Eastern Scotland can be reached from St. Pancras International station, by a hundred metre walk to change platforms.
There is even a signed walking route between St. Pancras International and Euston stations, that isn’t the most arduous of walks.
The St. Pancras International and Euston stations connection could also be handled by a frequent electric shuttle bus.
Extensions From Amsterdam
Heuro are already indicating their intention to extend to Almere, Zwolle, Assen and Groningen.
I have taken that route and extended it via Leer, Oldenburg and Bremen to Hamburg.
Could this be in Heuro’s long term thinking?
Extensions From Paris
The French probably have ideas.
Conclusion
I like Heuro’s philosophy and starter kit.
Eurostar Plans To Start Direct Amsterdam – London Trains In October
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette International.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Cross-Channel high speed operator Eurostar has confirmed its intention to launch direct Amsterdam – London St Pancras services from October 26, complementing the London – Amsterdam trains which have run since April 2018.
The article then goes on to give more details of the service.
- Security checks will be undertaken at Amsterdam CS and Rotterdam Centraal stations.
- Amsterdam to London will be nine minutes over four hours.
- There will initially be two trains per day.
- There was a hint of more next year.
- It will carry Shengen area passengers between Amsterdam and Brussels.
Eurostar says it will offer flexible booking options to help, if the Government changes COVID-19 quarantine regulations.
Conclusion
It looks a sensible offering and as I’ve used it between London and Amsterdam three times, I will be trying to fit in a trip before the end of the year.
Eurostar To And From Amsterdam
On Tuesday I took Eurostar to Amsterdam.
The trip took three hours and forty-one minutes with stops at Brussels and Rotterdam.
The Brussels stop allows passengers to leave and join, but Rotterdam only allows passengers to leave.
As the number of passengers grow between London and Amsterdam, could there come a time, when some or all Amsterdam services don’t need to stop at Brussels.
If so, how much time would this save?
Current stops by Eurostar take the following times.
- Ashford – 9 mins.
- Calais – 3 mins
- Ebbsfleet – 6 mins.
- Lille – 14 minutes
These times have been calculated by looking at similar services that have different stopping patterns.
Note that, Calais and Ebbsfleet are faster as they are stops on the direct route.
So I suspect that if an Amsterdam service could go through Brussels without stopping, something between 9-12 minutes could be saved.
This could bring the journey time between London and Amsterdam closer to three and a half hours.
What would that time do for sales of tickets?
Eurostar Hold A Lot Of Cards
Eurostar are in a very good position on this route.
- They could run a flagship express service twice a day for those in a hurry.
- This could be backed up by slightly slower services calling at places from or to where passengers want to go. These would include Ebbsfleet, Ashford and Antwerp.
- Immigration and security clearance is probably under thirty minutes at the start of the journey and perhaps ten at the end.
- Immigration and security times will be reduced, as procedures get better.
- St. Pancras, Rotterdam Centraal and Amsterdam Centraal are all very well-connected stations.
- Extra services can be added as demand dictates.
- Eurostar is more diabled-friendly and those in smaller scooters can drive in!
- They could extend some Brussels services to Amsterdam.
- I estimate that just under 4,000,000 people live within the North and South Circular Roads and have easy access by public transport to St. Pancras.
They can also create a very intelligent booking computer system, that optimises their services. Budget airlines have been doing this for years.
What About The Airlines?
Note the numbers of passengers who fly.
According to Skyscanner, there are upwards of two hundred flights a day between London and Amsterdam. An Airbus A320 holds 150 passengers, so if there are only a hundred per flight, that is 20,000 passengers per day.
Looking at the 6th of June, Eurostar are running nine trains between London and Brussels. As each new Class 374 train can hold 900 passengers, that is around 8,000 seats per day.
So the airlines have much more capacity than Eurostar and they can add and remove it, easier than Eurostar can?
The Comfort Factor
I haven’t travelled in steerage on the new trains, as I always pay about thirty-forty pounds extra for Premium Economy, so I get the following benefits.
- A very pleasant gluten-free meal.
- A much more spacious environment.
- It’s also rare that I don’t get a window seat.
But if I did use steerage, it would be a more pleasant experience than flying on a budget airline.
I think it’s been about ten years since I flew to a city within a two-hour flight of London, where there was a rail alternative.
I also tend to come home by rail, where I often get a connection to Brussels or Paris to catch a late Eurostar to London.
Comparing London-Amsterdam With London-Edinburgh
Both routes take about four hours by train, with the Dutch route slightly quicker.
Generally, trains operate between London and Edinburgh half-hourly for much of the day, whereas Eurostar only runs twice a day.
Amsterdam/Rotterdam/Schipol Airport is surely a much bigger market in terms of possible passengers, than the Edinburgh catchment area.
I think we’ll see the astute Dutch, using Eurostar as a marketing tool to attract more passengers to the Netherlands and London’s next airport at Schipol.
Especially, as the British seem very happy with a four-hour train ride in comfort.
Eurostar Will Grow Between London And Amsterdam
For these and other rambling reasons, I think that Eurostar to Amsterdam will grow to be a successful route.
The one thing they must do, is to make it possible to come back to London, without having to clear immigration and security in Brussels.
But Eurostar know that!
Amsterdam Is Just The Hors D’Oeuvre!
Once Eurostar and the Dutch get the route between London and the Netherlands working smoothly, I don’t think it will be long before other routes are inaugurated.
Eurostar have said these could be.
- Bordeaux
- Cologne and Frankfurt
- Geneva
The key will be getting the immigration and security smooth.
I think it will continue to improve, as it seems to do, every time I travel.
Remember, the Belgians, Dutch, French, Germans and Swiss will want it to be smooth, as they will want to market their delights to a whole new market, so suspect a lot of co-operation, despite the decision of Brexit.
But, I think that a limit on a journey time of four or five hours would cut out a lot of other destinations.
Although many of the destinations like Brussels, Cologne, Frankfurt, Geneva and Paris will be places to have an enjoyable day or two before taking another train ride further afield.
The 15:00 From Amsterdam Centraal To Berlin
This train that leaves Amsterdam Centraal just under two hours after the Eurostar arrives and can take you all the way to Berlin, arriving at 21:22.
But this train with a change at Osnabruck, gives you a stopping-off point to Bremen, Hamburg and the Northern part of Germany.
I first came across Osnabruck, when I was left there without a train by Deutsche Bahn, as I wrote about in From Hamburg To Osnabruck By Train.
But I found a delightful hotel on the station forecourt, called the Advena Hotel Hohenzollern.
Trip Advisor give it four out of five and currently say deals are available at under seventy pounds a night.
Osnabruck is not a tourist town, but it sits where the North-South and East-West rail routes cross.
Conclusion
As the network develops, I believe that a whole new form of tourism will take advantage.
The Anonymous Widower 