Virgin Trains has received approval from the Office of Rail and Road to utilize Eurostar’s east London train depot, enabling the company to introduce international services through the Channel Tunnel. This decision marks the end of Eurostar’s long-standing monopoly on Channel services, dating back to its inception in 1994. The ORR has granted Virgin Group access to the Temple Mills facility for train maintenance and storage.

Having been absent from UK train operations since the conclusion of its contract for the West Coast Main Line in December 2019, Virgin Group faced a rejection by the ORR for running access services on key routes like London, Birmingham, Liverpool, and Manchester. The ORR’s Martin Jones emphasized that the decision supports customer choice and competition in international rail, potentially unlocking significant private sector investment and fostering growth.

Sir Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Group, welcomed the ORR’s move, highlighting the opportunity to introduce innovation and competition to the cross-Channel route. Rail minister Lord Hendy expressed enthusiasm for the decision, anticipating enhanced options, better value, and improved connectivity for passengers. Plans are underway to establish additional depot capacity in the UK to support market needs and stimulate further growth.

Despite the underutilization of the Channel Tunnel, accommodating only half of its capacity, the ORR turned down requests from other operators like Evolyn, Gemini Trains, and Trenitalia to utilize the Temple Mills depot. Eurostar’s bid to access the site’s spare capacity for expansion was also unsuccessful.