Eurostar sees fall in passenger numbers

Channel Tunnel high-speed train company Eurostar today reported a 6% dip in passengers in the first part of this year.

The company carried a total of 4.34 million passengers in the first three months of 2009 compared with 4.63 million in the January-March 2008 period.

Leisure passenger ticket sales rose 4% but a dip in business-class business led to an overall fall of 7% to £342.2 million in ticket sales for the first three months of this year.

Eurostar chief executive Richard Brown said: "As with all businesses in the transport sector, we have long acknowledged that we would face challenging times this year. Also for the first seven weeks of this year we operated a reduced service as a direct result of a fire on a shuttle in the Channel Tunnel in September 2008.

"The fact is that some of our biggest business clients are from the financial and banking sectors, and it follows that as they tighten their travel budgets, we, like the airlines, feel the effects. We continue to seek ways to reduce costs and increase efficiency."

He went on: "Despite market conditions, we still have good reason to be optimistic. We are benefiting from the strong euro and seeing substantial increases in travellers from Belgium, France, Germany and the Netherlands, which is also helping the UK economy.

"In addition, there is growing evidence of travellers switching from plane to high-speed train for longer, connecting journeys.

"The increase in leisure sales also shows that now, more than ever, people are prioritising the need to take a break and relax."