EUROSTAR announced on October 22 that it will invest €2 billion to order up to 50 Avelia Horizon double-decker high-speed trains from Alstom. Under the framework agreement between Alstom and SNCF Passenger, Eurostar’s parent company, Eurostar has confirmed an order for 30 trains with an option to purchase a further 20 trains.
The high-speed operator says Alstom has secured production slots for all 50 trains. The first trains are scheduled to be delivered in January 2031, with six trains entering service in May of that year.
Once all 50 trains have been delivered, the new Alstom fleet will operate alongside 17 e320 Siemens Velaro high-speed trains, with a total fleet of 67 cross-channel trains representing “an overall increase of 30% compared to today”, according to Eurostar. On services to and from London, Eurostar also operates eight E300 high-speed trains supplied by Alstom for the opening of the Channel Tunnel in 1994.
Eurostar says the new 200-metre-long trains will be a custom design drawn from Alstom’s Avelia Horizon platform. In addition to High Speed 1 services in Britain, these aircraft will be able to operate in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland, to be deployed on the new Eurostar services from London to Frankfurt and Geneva.
Subject to the final design, each 200-meter double-decker train is expected to have approximately 540 seats, representing a 20% increase in capacity per train compared to the current fleet. Two trains operating in sets will provide 1,080 seats with a total length of 400 metres, matching the length of Eurostar’s existing cross-channel fleet.
Eurostar says the new fleet has been designed with sustainability and accessibility at its core, with input from passenger and accessibility groups as well as 100 Eurostar employees. The new trains will be the most sustainable Eurostar has ever operated, according to the company, featuring 97% recyclable components and 25% made from recycled materials.
The new trains are expected to reduce energy consumption by between 20% and 50%, and have been designed to withstand the impact of climate change in order to ensure long-term resilience, according to Eurostar.
The new fleet will be known as Eurostar Celestia, a name chosen by Eurostar staff and derived from the Latin word caelestis, meaning heavenly. “It evokes the stars and the essence of travel, perfectly embodying the spirit of the company that connects a constellation of cities across Europe,” says Eurostar.
Eurostar plans to maintain the entire fleet at its Temple Mills International (TMI) depot in east London, which will be upgraded to accommodate the new trains at a cost of €80 million. Eurostar says this will create 350 new highly-skilled jobs at the depot, which already employs 450 people.
Seeking to compete with Eurostar in the cross-channel market, potential new entrants Evolyn, Gemini Trains, Trenitalia France and Virgin have all applied for access to TMI as the only depot capable of maintaining high-speed trains operating to London. In its submissions to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), which is expected to announce its decision by October 31, Eurostar rejected the assessment by ORR that there was enough capacity at TMI to accommodate another operator.
“Customers can expect a very special new train with Eurostar Celestia, which will provide exceptional comfort, a unique Eurostar experience and new surprises to be revealed,” says Eurostar CEO, Gwendoline Cazenove.
“We are particularly proud to be bringing double-decker trains to the UK for the first time.”
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