Olympics leads to loss of revenue for Eurostar
Eurostar saw revenues drop 5% over the summer despite carrying 31,000 more passengers during the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The high-speed rail operator said passenger numbers were up 4% during the Games compared with 2011 but the number of leisure travellers coming from the Continent to London in July was lower than last year.
The business market was similarly impacted as companies advised their employees to steer clear of the capital in the run-up to the Olympics, it said.
These factors, combined with the movement in the Sterling-Euro exchange rate over recent months, resulted in sales revenues for the third quarter falling from £197m in 2011 to £188m this year.
However, since the end of the Games, Eurostar has seen growth in passenger numbers and sales revenues, signalling a positive outlook for the fourth quarter.
Overall for the year to date, passenger numbers are up from 7.3m to 7.4m with sales revenus down 1% to £612m.
Chief executive Nicolas Petrovic said: "Whilst many corporate clients and business customers decided to steer clear of London during the Games, we nonetheless delivered a solid performance.
"Looking ahead to the end of the year, the outlook is strong. Bookings have bounced back and we are now seeing a return to more typical travel patterns. With the tremendous boost that London has experienced over the summer we are looking forward to capitalising on the city’s post-Olympic glow."
Eurostar is in the process of upgrading its fleet at a cost of £700m, which will include 10 new e320 trains. The process is due for completion by 2015.
This winter, it will begin a new weekly service between London and some of Switzerland’s most popular ski resorts with the international high-speed train service, TGV Lyria. The new service will travel from St Pancras and Ashford International to the heart of the Swiss Alps and the Valais region.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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