Eurostar FY 2006 sales up 11.7 pct with over 5 pct rise in passengers
LONDON (AFX) - Eurostar, the high-speed passenger train service that links Britain with the Continent, said 2006 was a record year as more travellers switched from airlines.
Sales for 2006 were up 11.7 pct year-on-year to 518.3 mln stg with 7.85 mln travellers carried, up over 5 pct.
Of these, the company saw a 17 pct increase in business traveller numbers.
The company said it benefited from increased security at airports since the summer and foggy weather in the UK before Christmas. Many of these travellers were using Eurostar for the first time and Eurostar estimates that 1000 business customers a week have now permanently transferred from flying to high-speed rail.
Punctuality in 2006 was a record 91.5 pct.
Source: http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2007/01/11/afx3319864.html
Eurostar profits surge thanks to 'Da Vinci Code' effect
The success of The Da Vinci Code film led to soaring sales for Channel Tunnel high-speed train company Eurostar in 2006, it has been announced.
The thriller movie, set in London and Paris and promoted by Eurostar, helped the company record an 11 per cent increase in sales to 518 million last year.
The company, which operates to Paris and Brussels from London's Waterloo station, carried 7.85 million passengers in 2006 - an increase of more than five per cent on the 2005 total.
Business traveller numbers rose 17 per cent and the number of trains on time improved from 86.3 per cent in 2005 to 91.5 per cent last year.
Source: http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23381350-details/Eurostar+profits+surge+thanks+to+'Da+Vinci+Code'+effect/article.do
Travellers suffer from storm's aftermath
But there was better news for Eurostar passengers, with the Channel Tunnel high-speed train company able to run a full service today, except for one early Paris to London train which was cancelled.
Severe weather in northern France had led to a suspension of Eurostar's London to Paris and Brussels services in the second half of yesterday.
A Eurostar spokesman said: "We're running alright today and the trains are very full, as a number of passengers were unable to travel with us yesterday."
A severely-reduced service was operating on GNER's East Coast main line between London and Edinburgh while an emergency timetable was in operation on the Virgin West Coast main line.
Source: http://travel.guardian.co.uk/article/2007/jan/19/travelnews.weathernews
Eurostar looks seriously at IT business
Eurostar are presently distributing LCD monitors, optical storage devices and printers. This mainly includes brands such as Samsung, Astone, Liteon, IC Intracom and Razer.
The vendor will be using its current distribution network spread across the middle east and Africa. Infact for its IT distribution its got sub distributors for Iran, CIS, Libya and Pakistan and have plans to expand this on a larger scale. It will also look at consolidating brands in its portfolio and at a later stage add more to its present product line.
Source: http://www.cpilive.net/v3/inside.aspx?scr=n&NID=1106&cat=LOCAL%20NEWS&pub=RESELLER%20WORLD%20MIDDLE%20EAST&k=Eurostar
Eurostar sees record sales
EUROSTAR, the train operator running services to Europe through the Channel Tunnel, said today that it achieved record sales in 2006, with sales rising 11.7 per cent to £518.3 million.
Passenger numbers for the operator, whose trains link London with Paris and Brussels, were up 5.4 per cent to 7.85m.
The group said it expected just as strong a performance over 2007.
Eurostar said it had benefited from increased security at airports and foggy weather in Britain.
Related topics
Channel Tunnel
http://business.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=508The railways
http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=168 This article: http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/business.
Source: http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/business.cfm?id=56762007

3, 2, 1 ... Let's go: Tips and top spots for travel in 2007
The high-speed Eurostar systems between London and Paris will finally be realized in November with the completion of a new rail bed through southeastern England. Eurostar also gets a new London home at the stately St. Pancras rail station. The new service will cut the travel time between London and Paris to one hour, 51 minutes. Meanwhile, in London, o2, the onetime Millennium Dome, will reopen as an entertainment complex.
Luxembourg (the city and country) and Sibiu, Romania, will be the co-European Cities of Culture for 2007, with a series of arts and music exhibitions and events sponsored by the European Union.
Berlin's famed Tempelhof Airport, built by the Nazis and later used by the U.S.
Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/living/travel/16517694.htm
Air travel troubles benefit Eurostar
Eurostar enjoyed its best year yet in 2006 as the increasing stress of air travel and the damage it does to the environment persuaded more business travellers to switch to the high-speed rail service to Paris and Brussels.
A record 7.85 million passengers travelled on Eurostar - 5 per cent up on the previous year - while sales rose nearly 12 per cent to top pound;500m for the first time.
A spokesman said that an estimated 1,000 business passengers a week were switching from plane to train because of increased airport security and the general hassle of air travel.
He also said the environmentally friendly nature of rail was of growing importance to big corporate customers such as banks and multinationals who were looking to cut their carbon emissions.
Source: http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2145181.ece
Travellers suffer in storm's wake
But there was better news for Eurostar passengers, with the Channel Tunnel high-speed train company able to run a full service, except for one early Paris to London train which was cancelled. Severe weather in northern France had led to a suspension of Eurostar's London to Paris and Brussels services in the second half of Thursday.
A severely-reduced service was operating on GNER's East Coast main line between London and Edinburgh while an emergency timetable was in operation on the Virgin West Coast main line. GNER spokesman Alan Hyde said: "We have been working hard to ensure that our trains and crews are in the right places to run as normal a service as possible.
Source: http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=33852&in_page_id=34&in_a_source=
Huge rise in business use of Eurostar
The number of business travellers using Eurostar grew by 17 per cent in 2006, according to the cross-Channel rail operator. Some 630,000 business travellers used the high-speed rail service during the year, up from 538,000 the year before.
The company said: #147;Many of these travellers were using Eurostar for the first time and it is estimated that 1,000 business customers a week have now permanently transferred from flying to high-speed rail. #148;
Richard Brown, Eurostar #146;s chief executive, added: #147;I am delighted at the strong growth in the number of business travellers, who are discovering the punctuality and productivity advantages that Eurostar offers compared with the experience of flying.
Source: http://travel.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,11250-2542217,00.html
Eurostar, Taxes and Michael O'Leary
Bad news for airlines in Europe -- Eurostar saw record sales and traveler numbers in 2006 as it attracted thousands more travelers from the airlines. Sales topped half a billion pounds for the first time, rising 11.7% from £463.8 million to £518.3 million. In total 7.85 million travelers chose Eurostar in 2006, up 5.4 % on 2005. Leisure traveler numbers rose by 4.5%, while the largest increase was in business traveler numbers, rising over 17% and generating an 18% increase in business sales revenue. Eurostar continues to see strong year-on-year growth. It is now carrying 28% more travelers than in the 12 months before the opening in September 2003 of the first section of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, now named High Speed 1.
Source: http://iagblog.blogspot.com/2007/01/eurostar-taxes-and-michael-oleary.html
Eurostar enjoys a green boost
Eurostar today reported that it carried 7.85m passengers in 2006, 410,000 more than in the previous year, a leap of 5.4%.
That sent revenues through the pound;500m level for the first time with sales up 11.7% at pound;518m, hastening the day the train operator can say that it makes a profit.
It has been deep in the red since its first trip under the Channel 13 years ago.
Much of the growth is coming in business class where passenger numbers jumped by 17%.
"'We have seen the big environmental impact, especially over the last six months, icirc; said Eurostar director Simon Montague.
"'Big corporates like HSBC and PwC have taken decisions about being carbon neutral and that is changing their travel programmes.
Source: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing-and-markets/article.html?in_article_id=416304&in_page_id=3
Eurostar Says Full-Year Sales Rose
Eurostar Group Ltd., the operator of the train service connecting Britain with continental Europe, said Thursday that full-year sales rose 11 percent as more people switched away from aircraft travel.
Revenue in the year through Dec. 31 rose to 518 million pounds (US$1 billion; euro773.3 million) compared with 463.8 million pounds in 2005, Eurostar said in a statement.
The train operator carried a total 7.85 million travelers in 2006, a 5 percent increase on the previous year. Leisure traveler numbers rose by 4.5 percent, it said, while the largest increase was in business travelers, rising over 17 percent.
Source: http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/01/11/ap3320286.html
Eurostar posts record sales
Eurostar, the cross-Channel rail service, today reported record sales figures and traveller numbers for 2006 as it won customers from a troubled airline industry.
a.headersmall { font-family: verdana, arial, Helvetica,sans-serif; color: #660000; font-size: 10px; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none}a:Visited.headersmall { font-family: verdana, arial, Helvetica,sans-serif; color: #660000; font-size: 10px; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none}a:Hover.headersmall { font-family: verdana, arial, Helvetica,sans-serif; color: #990000; font-size: 10px; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none}a:Active.headersmall { font-family: verdana, arial, Helvetica,sans-serif; color: #990000; font-size: 10px; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none}.
Source: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9077-2542082,00.html