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Eurostar thrives as sterling hits the buffers
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/to...cle5507604.ece
From Times Online January 13, 2009 Eurostar thrives as sterling hits the buffers Carl Mortished, World Business Editor The collapse of sterling is giving an extra boost to Eurostar, the Channel Tunnel passenger rail operator, as shoppers from Paris and Brussels flocked to London last month in search of bargains. Eurostar's volumes rose by a tenth overall last year; however, traffic from the Continent to London rose by 15 per cent in December. Richard Brown, the chief executive of Eurostar, said that the weakness of the pound was helping the business as it generated more traffic from passengers in the eurozone. He said: "We are an international business, and while the pound is weak, that means that London is much cheaper for people coming from France and Belgium, so we have seen 15 per cent and more growth in visitors coming to London, a lot of them using our shops and buying stuff here in London." Related Links * Train plan to allay environmental fears * Germans seek to buy British out of Eurostar * Plans for a new 200mph rail network Ticket sales rose by 11 per cent in 2008 to £664 million, helped by the publicity generated from the opening of High Speed 1, the dedicated rail link from St Pancras International station in London to the Channel Tunnel. Eurostar said that the fire in the tunnel in September, the effect of which is still hindering the frequency and speed of journeys, has affected the rate of growth in traffic. However, the economic downturn was having no visible effect on passenger traffic. Mr Brown said that the million extra passengers during the first year of High Speed 1 operations, despite the fire incident, demonstrated that people prefer rail to short-haul air travel. He said: "They are switching because rail journeys are faster, more punctual, more convenient and have less environmental impact." He said that Eurostar had achieved punctuality levels of 92 per cent of trains arriving on time, compared with 65 per cent for airlines travelling the same routes. |
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Eurostar thrives as sterling hits the buffers
In message
, at 06:13:25 on Tue, 13 Jan 2009, Katherine Wiel remarked: He said: "They are switching because rail journeys are faster, more punctual, more convenient and have less environmental impact." While it would be nice to think this was true (and I support the use of E*), I expect the main reason people choose one over the other is ticket price. And it's odd to see them ignoring this, when the article starts by quoting them as saying it's London's lower shop prices (in Euros) that's driving the increase. -- Roland Perry |
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Eurostar thrives as sterling hits the buffers
Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 06:13:25 on Tue, 13 Jan 2009, Katherine Wiel remarked: He said: "They are switching because rail journeys are faster, more punctual, more convenient and have less environmental impact." While it would be nice to think this was true (and I support the use of E*), I expect the main reason people choose one over the other is ticket price. More of a PR stunt as regards the benefits of Eurostar travel. Ticket prices for those coming in from France or Belgium won't have come down in price. E* have a set of round trip rates set in EUR for that market. Of course prices will fluctuate according to the normal yield management quotas. Traditionally January is a slack month and no doubt some cheap deals can be found because there are plenty of seats. And it's odd to see them ignoring this, when the article starts by quoting them as saying it's London's lower shop prices (in Euros) that's driving the increase. The same is happening in Ireland. Shops in the North were seeing a huge influx of customers before Christmas coming in from quite some distance in the South because of the exchange rate: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7794882.stm -- Phil Richards, London, UK 3,600+ railway photos since 1980 at: http://europeanrail.fotopic.net http://britishrail.fotopic.net |
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Eurostar thrives as sterling hits the buffers
In message , at 20:01:55 on Tue, 13
Jan 2009, Phil Richards remarked: He said: "They are switching because rail journeys are faster, more punctual, more convenient and have less environmental impact." While it would be nice to think this was true (and I support the use of E*), I expect the main reason people choose one over the other is ticket price. More of a PR stunt as regards the benefits of Eurostar travel. Ticket prices for those coming in from France or Belgium won't have come down in price. It's not that E* prices are now cheaper, but that they [might] cost less than a plane. E* have a set of round trip rates set in EUR for that market. Of course prices will fluctuate according to the normal yield management quotas. Traditionally January is a slack month and no doubt some cheap deals can be found because there are plenty of seats. Indeed, I'm getting a Leisure Select trip this month for a little under £70 each way. The same is happening in Ireland. Shops in the North were seeing a huge influx of customers before Christmas coming in from quite some distance in the South because of the exchange rate: But they are driving! -- Roland Perry |
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michaelnewport doesn't thrive, he stinks !!
"Katherine Wiel" a écrit dans le message de ... http://business.timesonline.co.uk/to...cle5507604.ece From Times Online January 13, 2009 Eurostar thrives as sterling hits the buffers Carl Mortished, World Business Editor The collapse of sterling is giving an extra boost to Eurostar, the Channel Tunnel passenger rail operator, as shoppers from Paris and Brussels flocked to London last month in search of bargains. Eurostar's volumes rose by a tenth overall last year; however, traffic from the Continent to London rose by 15 per cent in December. Richard Brown, the chief executive of Eurostar, said that the weakness of the pound was helping the business as it generated more traffic from passengers in the eurozone. He said: "We are an international business, and while the pound is weak, that means that London is much cheaper for people coming from France and Belgium, so we have seen 15 per cent and more growth in visitors coming to London, a lot of them using our shops and buying stuff here in London." Related Links * Train plan to allay environmental fears * Germans seek to buy British out of Eurostar * Plans for a new 200mph rail network Ticket sales rose by 11 per cent in 2008 to £664 million, helped by the publicity generated from the opening of High Speed 1, the dedicated rail link from St Pancras International station in London to the Channel Tunnel. Eurostar said that the fire in the tunnel in September, the effect of which is still hindering the frequency and speed of journeys, has affected the rate of growth in traffic. However, the economic downturn was having no visible effect on passenger traffic. Mr Brown said that the million extra passengers during the first year of High Speed 1 operations, despite the fire incident, demonstrated that people prefer rail to short-haul air travel. He said: "They are switching because rail journeys are faster, more punctual, more convenient and have less environmental impact." He said that Eurostar had achieved punctuality levels of 92 per cent of trains arriving on time, compared with 65 per cent for airlines travelling the same routes. |
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Eurostar thrives as sterling hits the buffers
"Phil Richards" wrote The same is happening in Ireland. Shops in the North were seeing a huge influx of customers before Christmas coming in from quite some distance in the South because of the exchange rate: At least the cross-border trade is legal these days. It wasn't legal during WW2, but an enormous amount of smuggling took place, mainly by train. On one occasion in July 1942 the 5 pm from Bundoran was so delayed while its occupants were searched that it didn't get to Belfast until 4 am. On another occasion a search of a Dublin - Belfast express produced something from practically every passenger, including 800 lb of butter, boxes of chocolates, saucepans, kettles, knives, forks, boots, shoes, vast quantities of every commodity scarce in the uk and plentiful in Eire. Peter |
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Eurostar thrives as sterling hits the buffers
Katherine Wiel wrote: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/to...cle5507604.ece From Times Online January 13, 2009 Eurostar thrives as sterling hits the buffers Carl Mortished, World Business Editor The collapse of sterling is giving an extra boost to Eurostar, the Channel Tunnel passenger rail operator, as shoppers from Paris and Brussels flocked to London last month in search of bargains. ------------------ GM replies: It appears to be an auto - erotic system of sensational spectacle with no end in sight... -- Best Greg |
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