Eurostar Reports Return Of Business Travelers, Revenue Growth
July 23, 2010, 11:40 AMBy Amon CohenEurostar said Thursday that it is experiencing a resurgence
in business travelers after reporting a 6 percent growth in passenger numbers
and 18 percent rise in revenues to €483 million for the first six months of
2010. The company attributed the jump in average ticket price to an improvement
in the corporate market. "As the economic environment has strengthened, we
have seen an uplift in the business market and an overall increase in the
number of passengers traveling," said chief executive Nicolas Petrovic.
The ash crisis also played a part in Eurostar's success. The
Channel Tunnel rail operator carried 100,000 more passengers and added 70 extra
trains when ash clouds grounded flights in April and May.
Eurostar also reported a significant increase in passengers
beyond Paris and Brussels in the first half of 2010, although it was unable to
provide supporting figures for this claim. London-Amsterdam is now 4 hours and
16 minutes, while London-Cologne is 4 hours and 11 minutes, after the opening
of more high-speed track beyond the Belgian and French capitals, respectively.
Eurostar also claimed to be continuing to win marketshare
from airlines, with its share of both the London-Brussels and London-Paris
routes now standing at 80 percent. Earlier this week, Carlson Wagonlit Travel
confirmed its customers are continuing to move toward rail on both routes.