LONDON: Eurostar, the high speed rail service between the UK and mainland Europe, has reported a 6% rise in passenger numbers and an 18% increase in revenue during the first six months of 2010. This growth is due in part to the impact of the ash cloud disruption but also reflects a strengthening of the business market and an underlying increase in both business and leisure travellers during the period.

Over the last six months there has been a notable increase in the number of passengers choosing Eurostar (http://www.eurostar.com/) and high speed rail as an alternative to short haul air travel in Europe. Shorter journey times to the South of France, Germany and the Netherlands are prompting customers to take advantage of the ease and comfort of city centre to city centre travel.

The number of international passengers is also on the increase as visitors from the US and Australia in particular see travelling by Eurostar as an integral part of their European tour. June reported a very strong performance in international sales revenues which were up 24% in comparison to the same period last year.

To meet the increase in demand for its services over the summer, Eurostar has announced that during August it will put on 20 extra trains - four each weekend - to and from Paris with every seat available at a special price of GBP69 return.

Nicolas Petrovic, Chief Executive of Eurostar, said:"Over the last six months, we have delivered strong growth in both business and leisure bookings. As the economic environment has strengthened we have seen uplift in the business market and an overall increase in the number of passengers travelling.

"Whilst our core routes continue to be busy more and more people are opting to travel further afield and explore new destinations by train. Forward bookings are looking strong and with the increasing appetite for high speed rail travel in Europe, the trend looks set to continue."

Notes to Editors:

*During the ash cloud disruption Eurostar put on 70 extra trains and carried 100,000 more passengers than were scheduled to travel at that time.

** Eurostar is the high-speed train service linking St Pancras International, Ebbsfleet International, Ashford International, Paris, Brussels, Lille, Calais, Disneyland Paris (http://uk.eurostar.com/uk/travel-to-france/travel-to-ile-de-france/travel-to-disneyland-paris/), Avignon and the French Alps.

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About Eurostar:

Eurostar is the high-speed rail service directly linking the UK to France and Belgium via the Channel Tunnel. The fastest London-Paris Eurostar journey time is 2 hours 15 minutes, London-Brussels 1 hours 51 minutes and London-Lille just 1 hour 20 minutes.

Eurostar is a founder member of Railteam, a partnership between Europe's leading high-speed train operators that is developing simpler ways to book and travel on the fast-expanding, European high-speed rail network.

Eurostar and Eurotunnel are entirely separate companies. Eurostar operates high-speed passenger trains, while Eurotunnel operates vehicle shuttle services and the Channel Tunnel itself. Eurostar is Eurotunnel's biggest customer.

    
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