A third rail company has unveiled plans for direct trains between the UK and Europe

Virgin Trains had big cause for celebration at the end of last year. The operator beat a bunch of other bidders to be granted permission to store trains at the Temple Mills International depot. You know what that means? It’s on track to become the very first rail operator to challenge Eurostar’s 30-year monopoly of the Channel Tunnel. But those celebrations may turn out to be short-lived, as there’s now another rail operator that could beat Virgin to it. 

Italy’s state-owned railway Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS Group) was one of the operators that lost to Virgin over use of the Temple Mills depot. However, that defeat hasn’t stopped it from pursuing its cross-channel ambitions.

Last week FS Group revealed that it would be partnering with a US private investment firm called Certares to develop a high-speed rail connection between London and Paris by 2029 with its Trenitalia France subsidiary. That’s a year ahead of when Virgin plans to launch its cross-Channel services.

Instead of storing its trains at Temple Mills, the group says that it’ll build a new £87 million facility just outside of Paris. The new space would store a fleet of 10 vehicles and eliminate the need to store trains in the UK. It would only require one train from the first morning departure from St Pancras to remain in Britain overnight. Right now, the tunnel is only operating at 50 percent capacity, so it could feasibly have room for Eurostar, Virgin and FS Group trains. 

A spokesperson for FS Group said: ‘The company intends to further expand its network with the addition of the Paris–London route and the launch of additional cross-border services.

‘The partnership [with Certares] aims to position France, the Paris-London corridor and the future areas included in the joint venture as showcases for the future of sustainable European transport, for the benefit of French, UK and European customers.’

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