Tunnel boss says cross-Channel competition for Eurostar would be ‘great news’

The boss of Channel Tunnel operator Getlink, Yann Leriche, has welcomed the prospect of passenger rail competition between London and Paris.

A new operator, Evolyn, has vowed to launch services in competition with Eurostar, which has held a monopoly on the route since 1994. Evolyn, which has Spanish backers, plans a new fleet of 12 trains for the service.

The Getlink chief executive told BBC Today: “It is great news – great news for customers, for the environment and for our group, of course, as it will unlock the growth potential of the UK to Europe high-speed passenger market.

“There is still room for more than doubling the traffic in the Channel Tunnel. So you see the there’s a lot of available capacity for growth.

“With Evolyn the market will be more dynamic, all operators will improve their offer.

“If you look at what happened in in Italy, for example, with new competition on high-speed rail: service quality has improved and prices have been contained. And in the end, there is more service to more customers, which is good, of course for passengers but also for the economy and the environment.”

Getlink, formerly Groupe Eurotunnel, benefits from the access charges paid by train operators. Figures for 2019, analysed by The Independent, indicate that Eurostar paid €21.36 (£18.50) for each passenger travelling through the Channel Tunnel.

Mr Leriche speculated that Evolyn could run trains to Germany and Switzerland as well.

“Evolyn has indicated that they will start with London to Paris and then extend to other destinations,” he said.

“We don’t know yet what these other destinations will be, but the arrival of Evolyn will most certainly speed up the opening of new routes to Germany or Switzerland, for example.

“We have made our own analysis and shown that those countries, Switzerland and Germany, have great potential. So we can expect in the coming years, direct services from London to Frankfurt, Cologne, Zurich or Geneva, for example.”

But the trainmaker Alstom has dampened optimism about the new entrant’s prospects. Evolyn appeared to imply a deal had been agreed for a dozen new trains for the Channel Tunnel operation.

The manufacturer then issued a statement saying: “Alstom and Evolyn have established a short-term agreement to proceed with initial train system engineering activities with the objective of accelerating activities, should the parties eventually enter into a contract for the purchase and delivery of a certain number of trains, provided that Evolyn is capable of securing project financing.

“With regards to potential future delivery dates for new trains, at this time, the final train delivery dates will be confirmed when a firm and final contract will be agreed upon, to be signed at a later date.”

A spokesperson for Eurostar said of Evolyn’s plans: “We have seen the announcement, which is not for us to comment on. Our focus remains on growing sustainable travel in Europe.”

Getlink runs LeShuttle, the car-carrying operation between Folkestone and Calais, which does not compete directly with Eurostar.