Bonjour, London: the stunning success of Europe's rail star

[depakid]

http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2007/11/15/EurostarTrain_wideweb__470x304,0.jpg
The Eurostar is a carbon friendly way to travel.

The champagne is flowing at Eurostar's magnificent new St Pancras International station in London - courtesy of the chic, exceptionally long (90 metres) Champagne Bar St Pancras which is stocked to the brim with some of France's best drops.

It is said to be the longest champagne bar in Europe and - set amid the vast Gothic grandeur of St Pancras International - is the new gathering place for the tens of thousands of Australians who make the journey each year.

Travellers can relax over a few glasses of bubbly before they board the Eurostar for the fast - very fast - ride to Paris.

The champagne should also be flowing at the Eurostar offices with the train notching up a record 8.26 million passengers in 2007 - up 5.1 per cent on 2006 - and ticket sales close to £600 million ($1303 million).

The introduction last November of HS1, as the new line is known, means passengers can travel from London to Paris Gare du Nord in twohours 15 minutes, London to Brussels in one hour 51 minutes and London to Lille in onehour 20 minutes - slicing up to 20 minutes off the old times.

And, while the train can reach speeds of up to 320kmh and drop you in the heart of Paris, Brussels or Lille in an incredibly short time, it isn't all just about speed, says Eurostar's Australian representative, Timothy Hackett from Walshes Group.

"St Pancras is simply a beautiful building. It is Gothic-Victorian and captures all the grandness of that period of 19th century architecture," Hackett said.

"It definitely adds glamour and style to the train journey; it is a magnificent station."

More: http://www.smh.com.au/news/europe/speedy-stunning-success/2008/01/17/1200419955324.html

[fenriswolf]

1. wow

mass transit, what a concept. wish we had our system fixed up.

[Greeby]

2. Yeah, except now you can't go on the main trainshed platforms no more

Could do that anytime when it was purely a domestic station, now it's all screened except for if you're actually going on a Eurostar :(

[hunter]

3. We could be building these sorts of trains all over the U.S.

Too bad the aerospace, airline, oil and "defense" industries run the government here.

[ConcernedCanuk]

4. Problem is "rails". Ya gotta have well built lines to keep them on the tracks.

.
.
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And here in North America, including Canada, our rails are so bad that even 100km/hr is a shaky ride.

Anything approaching 300km/hr, or even 200km/hr would just fly

Right off the tracks!

[NNadir]

5. "On that train all graphite and glitter, undersea by rail..."

It brings to mind Donald Fagen's marvelous sarcasm about 1960's futuristic thinking.

On that train all graphite and glitter
Undersea by rail
Ninety minutes from new york to paris
(more leisure for artists everywhere)
A just machine to make big decisions
Programmed by fellows with compassion and vision
Well be clean when their work is done
Well be eternally free yes and eternally young

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/s/steely+dan/i+g+y_20130155.html

...eternally free and eternally young...

Trains like this are beautiful things, but at the end of the day, it's a little late.

[freethought]

6. I was actually able to do some train travel in Europe

And you know what? I absolutely f_____g LOVED IT!!! Took a train from Rome to Venice, and another from Venice to Vienna and back again. The Venice/Vienna trip was absolutely gorgeous!! Right through the ALPs. I actually came off that trip thinking "WOW! That was a nice ride!" I tend to remember a High-Speed from Rome to Milan.
It was comfortable, relaxing, and a great visual experience. Just the opposite of the experience of the cattle truck flying that is done on airlines these days.
GOD! I wish we had something even close to the European Rail system. It just works!!

Since then I have gotten a little defensive about the European Union. Especially when it gets attacked by people who have never even been there. Just because they may do things differently does not make it wrong or inferior.