Another level: Eurostar to run doubledeckers across Channel

Eurostar is to start running double-decker trains through the Channel tunnel to meet growing demand for international rail travel from the UK.

- Gwyn Topham

The rail operator announced it had signed a €2bn (£1.7bn) deal for at least 30 - and up to 50 - new trains from the manufacturer Alstom. The doubledeckers will start operating from 2031, with each able to carry more than 1,000 passengers.

Eurostar said the Celestia trains, the first high-speed doubledeckers to run on the UK mainland, would have about 20% more seats than its biggest existing trains.

Some of the extra space would be taken up by stairs, but it would also be used for wheelchairs, bicycles, more legroom and as-yet unannounced “surprises”, it said.

The upper deck, traditionally in Britain a place for smokers, dreamers and now those who might enjoy a fleeting panoramic view of Kent, will be priced the same as the lower deck in each carriage. Passengers will be allowed to choose where they sit.

In France, where similar double-decker TGVs run on some high-speed routes, few express a preference for upstairs or downstairs, Eurostar’s chief executive, Gwendoline Cazenave, said.