Business tickets boost to Eurostar

From the archive, first published Tuesday 17th Jan 2006.

CHANNEL Tunnel operator Eurostar revealed that a surge in demand for business class tickets helped boost passenger numbers in 2005.

The cross-channel train operator carried 7.5 million passengers last year compared with 7.3 million in 2004, following a 14 per cent increase in the number of people travelling in Business Premier class. Eurostar restructured its fares to compete more with low-cost airlines.

, claimed this gave it a record 71% share of the market for passengers travelling between London and Paris.

It came as tunnel operator Eurotunnel, which runs car and truck services, unveiled its first increase in shuttle revenues since 2002 after a rise in the number of trucks carried.

However, debt-laden Eurotunnel also reported a 16% decline in the amount of freight carried through the tunnel by other operators, as factors such as a lack of infrastructure discouraged users. The group revealed it had set up a working group with train operators to try to address these problems in a bid to increase rail freight volumes.

Archive Home