Trenitalia orders 19 trains for London-Paris service, challenging Eurostar's 30-year monopoly
Italian state railway operator Trenitalia has ordered 19 new high-speed trains from Hitachi Rail as part of a €2 billion investment, confirming its plan to launch direct London-Paris services through the Channel Tunnel in 2029. The move will end Eurostar's three-decade monopoly on passenger rail services through the tunnel, which has been in place since operations began in 1994.
Ten of the new Frecciarossa trains will operate exclusively on the London-Paris route, with the remaining nine serving Trenitalia's existing French network connecting Paris to Lyon, Marseille, and Milan. Commercial Director Fabrice Toledano announced the company aims to run 10 daily round-trips between the two capitals starting in 2029.
The new trains measure 202 meters in length and can accommodate between 460 and 500 passengers. They are designed to operate at speeds up to 300 km/h in regular service, with a certified maximum speed of 360 km/h. The single-deck configuration allows the trains to operate on multiple European high-speed routes, including the Channel Tunnel and the UK's Dover-London line.
Infrastructure challenges and solutions
Trenitalia's path to launching the service faced a significant obstacle when its request to use Temple Mills depot near London was denied in October 2025. The facility, which opened in October 2007 and is owned by HS1 Limited but operated by Eurostar, is currently the only British railway depot accessible to high-speed trains with the larger continental European loading gauge required for Channel Tunnel services.
The UK rail regulator ORR instead granted access rights to Virgin Trains, determining that Virgin's plans were more financially and operationally robust. Virgin is now set to launch its own competing service in 2030.
To circumvent this restriction, Trenitalia is investing €80 million in a new maintenance facility near Paris that will house all trains and materials, eliminating the need for UK-based infrastructure. Construction on the facility has already begun.
Market context and capacity
The entry of new competitors comes as Eurostar carried 20 million passengers in 2025, representing a 3% increase from the 19.5 million passengers transported in 2024. Since the Channel Tunnel opened in 1994, more than 476 million people and 98 million vehicles have traveled through it, and it now carries 25% of UK-EU trade.
The tunnel currently handles approximately 400 trains per day, operating at various speeds depending on service type. However, tunnel operator Getlink stated in 2023 that it wants to double the number of services and believes the infrastructure can handle up to 1,000 trains per day following recent upgrades, including a €45 million investment in STATCOM technology developed in partnership with GE after five years of research.
Trenitalia has been operating high-speed rail services in France since 2021, following the EU-mandated opening of French rail routes to competitors. The company already runs routes between Paris-Lyon, Paris-Marseille, and cross-border Paris-Milan services, giving it operational experience in the French market.
Industry support for competition
Multiple stakeholders have expressed support for increased competition on the cross-Channel route. Getlink has actively encouraged more operators to use the tunnel, while British rail authorities want to maximize usage of the high-speed line between London and Dover and shift more passengers from air travel to rail. Currently, around 40% of journeys between London and Paris are made by air.
Even Saint Pancras, London's international rail terminal, is calling for increased competition. Recent improvements at the station could enable approximately 5,000 passengers per hour to use the international terminal.
Industry analysts anticipate that increased competition could drive ticket prices down by as much as 30%. Another proposed competitor, Gemini, has indicated that dynamic fares for cross-channel services could start at around £37, compared to current average prices of £144 for London-Paris tickets.
Eurostar is responding to the competitive threat by planning to order up to 50 new trains by 2031 to expand services across its Europe-wide network.
