Euro-vision realised in Eurostar's new home
Posted Monday, July 30, 2007, 4:11 PM by Lonely Planet
High-speed rail has arrived in London, and Lonely Planet got a sneak preview this week. BBC Breakfast was doing a live broadcast from what will soon be St Pancras International Station, and we were invited along for a glimpse of the future home of Eurostar and to pass on our thoughts about the big move.
These are exciting times for Eurostar, the train service which since 1993 has linked London and Ashford in Kent with Paris, Lille and Brussels. A new high-speed line has been built through south-east England including two new stations at Ebbsfleet and Stratford, which handily happens to be the site of the 2012 Olympic Games.
Journey times between London and the Continent will be cut by at least 20 minutes, with non-stop times of:
- London to Paris - 2h 15m,
- London to Brussels - 1h 51m
- London to Lille - 1h 20m
all at a top speed of 186mph.
Named after a Roman Martyr beheaded in 304AD (we think), the red-brick masterpiece of late Victorian Gothic design is being revamped with glass, metal and brick. When complete, the station will boast some slightly random features, including a farmer's market and the world's longest champagne bar.
Trains start running to St Pancras on November 14 - the day after the last France-bound trains leave Waterloo. If you're in London you can take a stroll in and look around the nearly-finished station. At the risk of being labelled a train geek, you really should.
- Tom Hall, in London
Labels: Europe, London, Rail Travel
Join the Discussion:
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
« Read more on the blog homepage