Further growth in 2014 for Eurostar

Year on year sales revenue and passenger numbers both increased in the first quarter of 2014 for high-speed operator Eurostar.

Sales rose by 7 per cent to £227 million while passenger numbers also continued to grow, up by 3 per cent to 2.3 million.

Business travel, in particular, continued its recovery, with passenger volumes on the service’s Business Premier class up 6 per cent on 2013.

Nicolas Petrovic, chief executive of Eurostar, said: “The improvement we have seen in the corporate travel market in recent months underpins the strong performance reported today.

“Coupled with the benign winter weather which saw far lower levels of weather-related disruption than in previous years, the first quarter has set us on course for continued growth throughout the year.”

The Eurotunnel Group as a whole experienced a strong start to 2014, recording an 8 per cent increase in revenue to €260.5 million and an improved freight performance.