Europe cleans up after killer storm
The Eurostar service between Britain and continental Europe has been restored in full. London's London Bridge station reopened after being closed when part of a roof collapsed.
Source: http://www.gulfnews.com/world/United_Kingdom/10098189.html
Eurostar back on track
Eurostar confirmed a full recovery from the aftermath of the July 7 bombings today as it announced record sales.
The cross-channel train service suffered a dip in customer growth following the attacks two years ago, as tourists stayed away from London and continental Europe.
Eurostar said it had overcome the slump to post revenues of 518.3m last year, an increase of 11.7% on 2005. Passenger numbers on the London-Paris-Brussels service rose 5.4% to 7.85 million, double the rate of growth in the previous year.
Article continuesRichard Brown, Eurostar chief executive, said an improvement in punctuality - which resulted in nine out of ten trains arrving on time - had helped win back customers.
Source: http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,1988127,00.html
Eurostar Reports Increased Sales And Passenger Numbers In 2006
Eurostar train services through the Channel Tunnel from Britain to France and Belgium Thursday reported a rise in sales and passenger figures in 2006, helped in part by its promotion of the film hit The Da Vinci Code, the company said. Presenting its results in London, the high-speed Anglo-French train company said sales had risen by 11 per cent in 2006 to 518 million pounds (one billion dollars). 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 on the 2005 total. The Hollywood film based on the controversial book by Dan Brown was set in London and Paris and promoted by Eurostar.
Source: http://www.playfuls.com/news_10_8528-Eurostar-Reports-Increased-Sales-And-Passenger-Numbers-In-2006.html
Record Year for Eurostar as More Travelers Switch From Airlines
Eurostar, the high-speed passenger train service linking the UK with France and Belgium, saw record sales and traveler numbers in 2006, as it attracted thousands of passengers from the airlines.
Sales topped half a billion pounds for the first time, rising 11.7% from pound;463.8 million to pound;518.3 million. North American sales of Eurostar tickets by Rail Europe, Eurostar's official North American representative, increased 6% for the year, with exceptionally strong sales August-December, with an average monthly increase of 30%.
A total of 7.86 million travelers chose Eurostar in 2006, up 5.4% over 2005. Of those, more than 200,000 bought tickets in North America from Rail Europe.
Source: http://www.etravelblackboard.com/index.asp?id=60423&nav=8
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
Airport woes boost Eurostar sales
Tightened airline security and foggy weather at UK airports in December, which caused widespread disruption to flights, helped lift Eurostar.
The firm forecast that demand for its services would remain strong in 2007.
"We expect 2007 to be another good year," said chief executive Richard Brown, adding that the Tour de France in July and the France-hosted Rugby World Cup in the autumn were already generating strong demand.
When launched, Eurostar was owned by French state-run railway operator SNCF, Belgium's SNCB and British Rail.
The UK interests are currently held by Eurostar UK.
Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6250977.stm
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