London passengers could soon be able to choose from a variety of international train services through the Channel Tunnel, following an announcement from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR).
The regulator said it will allocate spare capacity at Eurostar’s Temple Mills depot in north London to either a new operator or Eurostar itself, which has plans to grow.
Eurostar currently has a monopoly on Channel Tunnel passenger services.
However, other organisations are now looking to launch rival services between London and the continent.
These include Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, Italy’s state-owned railway company FS Italiane Group and Gemini Trains, chaired by Labour peer Lord Berkeley.
Last month, the UK and Switzerland signed an agreement which could see direct trains from London to Geneva, taking just five hours.
Access to space at Temple Mills for maintaining and storing trains is a critical requirement for new operators or Eurostar to boost services.
It is the only UK site able to support trains that can be used in the Channel Tunnel and on tracks in continental Europe.
From London St Pancras, Eurostar serves Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam, as well as running seasonal ski trains to the French Alps.
Getlink – the French owner of the Channel Tunnel – believes there is potential for services between London and destinations including Bordeaux, Cologne, Frankfurt, Geneva, Marseille and Zurich.
The ORR’s deputy director for access and international, Martin Jones, said: “The growing appetite to provide international rail services is great news for passengers.
“We now need operators to set out more detail on their proposals at pace, and will work quickly and as thoroughly as possible to determine the best use of capacity at Temple Mills.”
The ORR said it will consider several factors, such as how proposed new services will impact performance, the financial and operational “readiness” of operators, and the “economic and societal benefits”.
We've written this morning to Eurostar and applicants seeking to run cross-channel train services to set out next steps for access to Temple Mills International depot.
— ORR (@railandroad) June 5, 2025
Access to depot capacity is crucial for providing more international services ⬇https://t.co/88XRiB4iTv pic.twitter.com/rpWL8uTFFS
It expects to reach a conclusion later this year.
Initial findings from an independent assessment of Temple Mills commissioned by the regulator were published in March.
The review found there is some capacity available for more trains without any changes to current practices, and more capacity could be created through further investment.
The ORR said it has reviewed evidence submitted in response to this by stakeholders such as Eurostar, and concluded the assessment is “an accurate reflection” and “suggests there is room for at most one new operator, or for Eurostar to grow”.
The regulator said it will be “some time” until services from a new operator would be able to start even after access to Temple Mills is secured.
That is because they would need to receive regulatory approval in France, access to the High Speed 1 line between London and the Channel Tunnel, and procure trains.
