Deutsche Bahn is still considering trains between Germany and London via Channel Tunnel | Abroad

“Train traffic between London and mainland Europe through the Eurotunnel remains fundamental to Deutsche Bahn,” a spokesperson said. Deutsche Bahn’s international train traffic is growing strongly and it also sees a trend towards more sustainable travel in traffic to the United Kingdom.

However, the tracks and trains are currently not yet equipped with the European safety system ETCS over their entire length, the spokesperson added. “The admission of our ICE high-speed trains in Belgium, Northern France and England depends on this.” The concrete implementation of Deutsche Bahn’s planning therefore depends on the timing of the technical upgrade of the tracks.

Deutsche Bahn originally planned to run ICE trains between Frankfurt and London in 2013, via Cologne, Brussels and Lille. But years of discussions about safety requirements thwarted those plans.

The Channel Tunnel will celebrate its 30th anniversary on May 6, 2024. As far as passenger trains are concerned, only Eurostar – partly owned by the Belgian railway company NMBS – currently uses the rail tunnel.

Getlink, the operator of the tunnel, has already indicated several times that it wants more competition. He has the ambition to see the number of direct high-speed connections through the Channel Tunnel double over the next ten years. A recent presentation by Getlink mentions possible connections between London and Germany (Frankfurt, Cologne), Switzerland (Basel, Zurich, Geneva) and the south of France (Bordeaux, Marseille, Lyon).

In addition to Deutsche Bahn, the Spanish railway company Renfe, the British initiative Evolyn and the Dutch Heurotrain have indicated that they are looking at high-speed connections through the Channel Tunnel.