Post-Brexit, Eurostar Trains Run with Hundreds of Empty Seats

JAKARTA - Hundreds of seats on the Eurostar train between London and Paris will be vacant due to Brexit and staff shortages.

The company's Chief Executive Gwedoline Cazenave said post-Brexit border checks were leading to "jamming at the station".

That has forced companies to limit ticket sales between the two capital cities, to avoid long lines and delays.

How did Brexit cause problems for Eurostar? Post-Brexit border controls mean all passengers must have their passports stamped, even when using eGates.

But a shortage of border staff to carry out these checks is a problem. The time it takes to process passengers departing from St. Pancras London has increased by 30 percent due to the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit.

If the first trip of the day does not leave on time, it can cause unmanageable delays for the rest of the day.

"If you delay the first train, then you delay the second and it is a very bad customer experience," Cazenave said, citing Euronews, January 26.

The first trains daily between London and Paris have the capacity to carry 900 passengers. However, Eurostar must limit ticket sales to 550. This means that 350 seats will not be sold.

Furthermore, the cramped conditions of Amsterdam Central station made matters worse there. Only around 200 passengers can be processed before departure on services to London.

Passengers are advised to arrive 90 minutes before their train departs, three times longer than before the pandemic, to allow enough time to pass through passport control.

No new Eurostar routes until border delays are fixed,

Cazenave explained that the problem had also prevented the operator from restarting previously suspended services, including the ski route from London to the Alps.

"As long as we can't operate at our best from a customer experience standpoint in London and Paris, why do we have to go to Bourg-Saint-Maurice 10 times a year?" he said.

The company's main focus, he adds, is to fix these major problems before considering what it will do in the future for destinations of this kind.

Cazenave's comments came as Eurostar announced its new brand, following a merger with French-Belgian high-speed rail operator Thalys, with hopes of carrying 30 million passengers a year by 2030.