Virgin Trains is preparing to launch a direct rival to Eurostar and has confirmed it is exploring the possibility of stopping its new cross-Channel services at Stratford International in east London. If approved, the station would finally live up to its name, as it has never actually served an international train since it opened.
Stratford International's Long-Awaited International Service
Despite its name, Stratford International has never hosted an international train. The station has been described as the rail equivalent of claiming fluency in a language on a CV without the skills to back it up. Now, Virgin Trains is moving forward with plans that could change that.
The company has secured approval from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to run up to 20 new daily return services through the Channel Tunnel, connecting London to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam from 2030. A Virgin Group spokesperson said the company is 'looking forward to exploring additional stops, including Stratford International'.
Political and Commercial Backing for the Plan
The push for international services at Stratford has come from East Ham MP Sir Stephen Timms, who has campaigned for this since the late 1990s when he chaired Newham's planning committee. Timms has argued that for east London, 'it's a big and fast growing commercial opportunity' and has said a Stratford stop would ease pressure on an increasingly stretched St Pancras while boosting the area's regeneration.
The idea has also gained support from Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, which operates the large Westfield shopping centres on either side of the city. If the plans receive the green light, St Pancras will no longer be the sole departure point for international rail journeys from London.
Competition Heating Up in the Channel Tunnel Market
Virgin is not the only company eyeing a share of the cross-Channel market. Italy's state-owned railway Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS Group) is preparing to launch a service in 2029, while Spanish-backed operator Evolyn and Gemini Trains, led by Labour peer Tony Berkeley, are also both circling the route.
This follows a separate dispute over depot space at Temple Mills in east London. Eurostar had argued the site was already at capacity, but the ORR ruled that two of its eight underused maintenance lanes could be freed up for Virgin and other new entrants. The development suggests Eurostar's 30-year monopoly on the Channel Tunnel may not last much longer.
