LNW-GW Joint
Veteran Member
The BBC is reporting (on its live news ticker) that Eurostar is to mothball Ebbsfleet and Ashford International stations, because of the impact of quarantine restrictions on travel to France and Belgium.
Services will be suspended "until 2022".
Presumably this won't affect the basic frequency of Eurostar services from London.
There's nothing about this on Eurostar's own web site yet.
Services will be suspended "until 2022".
Presumably this won't affect the basic frequency of Eurostar services from London.
There's nothing about this on Eurostar's own web site yet.
Ebbsfleet and Ashford stations, in Kent, are to be mothballed after an "unprecedented fall in demand".
It means passengers in Kent will need to start their journeys at St Pancras, in London.
In a statement Eurostar said: "Covid-19 has had a severe impact on the travel industry and on our business and we continue to operate in very challenging conditions.
"We have experienced an unprecedented fall in demand, with bookings down by 90% compared to last year.
"The environment remains very unpredictable and has been exacerbated by quarantine restrictions which are now across all of our markets."
The rail operator said it had not taken the decision not to reopen Ebbsfleet and Ashford before 2022 lightly, but said because of the "severity of the situation" it had to take action.