London’s Next Eurostar Stop Might Be a Station Most Travelers Overlook

London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, is backing a plan to run international trains from Stratford International in east London. Paris services have left from St Pancras for two decades, but Stratford’s international platforms sit largely unused. The proposal would make Stratford an extra stop, not a new terminal.

The scheme is estimated to cost about £20 million, and reopening could come within four years. Under the idea, roughly one in three trains to and from France might stop there, with Paris, Brussels, Rotterdam and Amsterdam as intended destinations and Germany and Switzerland under consideration. Virgin is reportedly exploring stopping services as it plans to compete with Eurostar from 2030.

Supporters say about five million people would gain easier access to the Continent, at a cost of five to eight extra minutes on each journey. Business groups and the train drivers’ union Aslef are backing it. A funding decision was expected around the UK Budget on October 28.

There are limits. Stratford’s capacity is a fraction of St Pancras’s, serving roughly 250 to 300 passengers at a time against 2,500 to 3,000 per hour at the larger station, so it would supplement the existing terminal rather than replace it.

Sources: Rail Business Daily, Journal Arta