Deutsche Bahn and Eurostar plan direct connection to London
Deutsche Bahn and Eurostar plan a direct train connection from Germany to London. Many hurdles need to be overcome.
This is what the Eurostar Celestia, ordered by Eurostar from Alstom, is intended to look like. The train could play a role in a direct connection between Germany and London.
(Image: ALSTOM SA)
Deutsche Bahn and high-speed train operator Eurostar want to work together on a direct connection from Germany to the British capital, London. Both companies have now signed a Memorandum of Understanding. The start of the connection is planned for the early 2030s, the railway company announced. Along the way, numerous technical challenges, as well as legal and operational ones, need to be overcome.
The railway company envisions long-distance trains running directly from major German cities such as Cologne or Frankfurt am Main to London in the future. The new double-decker Celestia trains from Eurostar are to be used for this purpose. The project is to be driven forward in a newly founded task force. The immense challenges have been detailed by the German-Briton Jon Worth in a detailed blog post.
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Various approvals necessary
A train that travels directly between Germany and London requires approval for operating in the tunnel under the English Channel and, at the same time, approvals for four countries: Great Britain, France, Belgium, and Germany. For this, it must be capable of operating on multiple power systems, whereby Great Britain with 25 kV AC at least corresponds to the standard in France. However, Deutsche Bahn cannot run its ICEs, which are approved for these countries, through the Channel Tunnel because they do not meet the high safety standards required for it. This includes, among other things, double traction so that the train can leave the tunnel under its own power in an emergency, as well as obtaining high fire resistance classes.
However, trains must also support different signaling systems. With the gradual implementation of ETCS (European Train Control System), a simplification is in sight here. Currently, however, there is no way around supporting national systems such as PZB/LZB in Germany and TBL in Belgium. Different platform heights also need to be considered. Even if trains like the Celestia fit reasonably well, they have to go through complex approval procedures. Cooperation is intended to help here.
Further challenges include border controls, as Great Britain is not part of the EU. For this, suitable border and security zones, similar to those at airports, would have to be created at the train stations. Issues such as track availability and railway operating rights across four infrastructure operators also need to be clarified.
(mki)
