Eurostar orders double-decker trains to increase capacity and expand routes
Eurostar will introduce double-decker trains for the first time, following a major order placed with the French manufacturer Alstom. The high-speed rail operator announced on Wednesday that it would buy up to 50 new trains as part of its plans to reach 30 million passengers a year.
More than a year after unveiling plans to renew and enlarge its fleet, Eurostar has now finalised the deal with Alstom. The double-decker trains, when coupled together, will provide over 1,000 seats per journey.
Thirty trains have been confirmed, with an option for 20 more, bringing the potential total cost to 2 billion euros. “Working with an option is a normal procedure for such an order, but we fully intend to exercise it,” said Eurostar CEO Gwendoline Cazenave. “Financing is secured.”
Expanding the fleet
The new rolling stock will replace older trains, notably the red Thalys models, while expanding the fleet from 51 to 67 units. They will operate alongside Eurostar’s existing 17 e320 trains built by Siemens.
Eurostar carried 19.5 million passengers in 2024, with the current fleet’s capacity capped at around 25 million. The new trains, offering 20 per cent more seats per train, according to the operator, will allow for both increased frequency on existing routes and the launch of new ones, including Geneva and Frankfurt.
“We want to increase frequencies to existing destinations and open new routes,” said Cazenave.
The first six double-decker trains are expected in early 2031, entering service from May that year. Eurostar will then receive around 15 trains a year. All units will be compatible with operations through the Channel Tunnel and across Eurostar’s five current markets, including Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, as well as Switzerland.
"Working with an option is a normal procedure for such an order, but we fully intend to exercise it"
“We talked to all the train manufacturers, but Alstom was able to deliver much faster than the others,” Cazenave said. The manufacturer already has a framework agreement with SNCF, Eurostar’s majority shareholder, which had ordered similar Avelia Horizon high-speed trains, allowing the Eurostar order to be added.
Ten of Alstom’s 14 sites in France will take part in building the trains, with Belgian expertise involved. “The Charleroi site will be involved in supplying static converters, electronic components that convert energy,” said company spokesperson Mattias Baertsoen. The Bruges plant will not participate.
SNCF holds a 55.75 per cent stake in Eurostar, while Belgian railway company SNCB owns 18.5 per cent.
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