Eurostar to resume 'restricted' service on Tuesday, but backlogs remain

Eurostar has said it would provide "restricted" service between Paris and London on Tuesday, with two out of three trains expected to run - and initially only passengers originally due to travel on Saturday or Sunday will be eligible.

AFP - Eurostar said it would run a "restricted" service Tuesday on trains connecting Britain and mainland Europe after around 75,000 people were left stranded by weather-related problems.

It said trains would depart between 0730 and 1800 GMT, adding: "Only customers who hold a ticket that was originally for travel on Saturday 19 or Sunday 20 December will be eligible for travel on Tuesday 22 December."

A spokesman told AFP that around two-thirds of normal services would operate Tuesday and the trains would carry around 26,000 people.

Customers with tickets for Monday and Tuesday this week will be eligible for travel on Wednesday, the firm said, adding that those with tickets for Wednesday or Thursday could travel on Thursday.

A statement on its website also said the company is advising "customers whose journeys are not essential, not to travel and to change their tickets for travel on a later date or have their tickets refunded."

The Eurostar delays, linked to heavy snow falls which got past screens into train engines, come in one of the busiest weeks of the year as thousands travel to see friends and family during the Christmas holidays.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy earlier ordered Eurostar to get the trains back on track by Tuesday. Eurostar ran tests on its trains Monday in a bid to resolve the problem.

 

Date created : 2009-12-22