Monday 31 Mar 2025

Rail regulator says some capacity can be made available at Eurostar depot

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) says Eurostar’s London depot would be able if required to accommodate additional trains, following its receipt of an independent report it commissioned to investigate the matter. The report, published today, assessed the capacity at the operator’s Temple Mills International facility.

The rail regulator added that changes to operational and maintenance arrangements at the depot, as well as possible alterations to infrastructure, would be required to access extra capacity and allow more trains to be stabled/maintained there.

The independent report was commissioned by ORR following growing interest in providing extra services between St Pancras and continental Europe. Access to a suitable depot close to London for maintenance and storage has been cited by industry as a critical requirement for more operators to take on the route.

Following publication of the report, stakeholders are now being asked to provide evidence that they believe would support or change ORR’s initial findings.

Stakeholders have until 28 April to submit their evidence, and ORR’s final conclusions will be published after the regulator has considered their responses.

Contact Information

Lisa O'Brien
Office of Rail and Road
020 7282 2188
Lisa.O'Brien@orr.gov.uk

020 7282 2188

Emergency media calls (out-of-hours): 020 7282 3882

Notes to editors

Independent report capacity assessment of Temple Mills International
Consultation on ORR draft conclusions
ORR is the independent safety and economic regulator for Britain’s railways. ORR ensures that passenger train companies and freight companies have fair access to the rail network and that best use is made of capacity. This includes access to depots, such as Temple Mills International.
Under section 17 of Railways Act 1993, a train operator can request that the rail regulator give directions to a ‘facility owner’, being the party whose permission is needed to use the facility, including a depot, requiring it to enter into an access contract with an applicant.