The
contest
to
provide
competing
services
through
the
Channel
Tunnel
is
warming
up.
A
new
contender
has
been
announced,
led
by
a
long-standing
critic
of
HS2.

Gemini
Trains
has
applied
to
the
Office
of
Rail
and
Road
for
an
open
access
licence
to
operate
between
London
and
Paris,
with
other
routes
planned
to
follow.
Gemini
has
also
applied
for
access
rights
to
the
Temple
Mills
Eurostar
depot
in
east
London,
which
is
already
at
the
centre
of
a
dispute
with
another
international
open
access
contender.

Trains
started
running
through
the
Channel
Tunnel
in
1994,
and
the
route
became
open
access
in
2010
as
a
result
of
a
chnage
in
general
EU
policy
affecting
international
routes.

Although
Deutsche
Bahn
expressed
an
interest
in
the
same
year,
there
have
been
no
competing
services
through
the
Tunnel
so
far.

More
recently
interest
in
competing
with
Eurostar
has
been
revived,
and
the
latest
indication
had
come
from
Virgin
Trains
earlier
this
month.
Virgin
did
not
deny
reports
that
it
is
seeking
to
raise
£700
million
for
potential
routes
between
London
and
cities
like
Paris
and
Brussels.

Spanish
Evolyn
has
also
unveiled
a
proposal
to
start
services
linking
London
and
Paris,
using
Alstom
rolling
stock.

Gemini
is
being
led
by
its
chair
Lord
Tony
Berkeley,
who
has
been
a
critic
of
HS2
for
many
years.

He
said:
‘Our
team
has
real
strength,
depth,
vision
and
dynamism
and
is
superbly
placed
to
offer
customers
choice
on
what
is
currently
a
monopoly
route.’

His
colleague,
CEO
Adrian
Quine,
added:
‘The
high-speed
line
connecting
London
and
the
continent
through
the
Channel
Tunnel
is
one
of
the
great
rail
routes.
With
a
whole
new
generation
now
choosing
trains
over
planes,
there
is
a
great
opportunity
to
bring
real
entrepreneurial
flair
and
dynamism
with
competitive
fares
to
Europe’s
premier
route.’

The
owners
of
the
HS1
concession,
London
St
Pancras
Highspeed,
signed
a
memorandum
of
understanding
with
Eurotunnel’s
parent
company
Getlink
last
month,
in
what
was
being
described
as
a
‘landmark
partnership’
intended
to
increase
the
growth
of
cross-Channel
traffic,
possibly
adding
services
to
Germany
and
Switzerland.
The
number
of
international
passengers
through
St
Pancras
could
be
tripled.

Readers’
comments

When

will
operators
go
to
more
destinations
in
France
to
compete
with
Eurostar?
There
are
so
many
other
destinations
to
go
to,
for
example
the
mountains,
the
Mediterranean,
Switzerland,
Germany,
Belgium,
Netherlands,
Italy,
where
you
can
reduce
the
use
of
the
plane.
It’s
easy
to
do
this. Also
we
need
more
trains
to
connect
with
European
services
from
all
over
the
UK.
With
joined
up
thinking
on
electrification
projects,
this
would
be
achievable.

Hugo,
Berkshire

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