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Eurostar marks 30 years of cross-Channel service

YUI MOK/PA A busy train station, with a blue sign reading "Eurostar" in white letters. There are rows of white pillars the people are queueing in-between and a lot of the people are wearing backpacks.YUI MOK/PA
Eurostar is a high-speed rail service that connects the UK to mainland Europe

Thursday marks 30 years since Eurostar began carrying passengers from London across the Channel.

The tunnel, which opened in 1994, was built by 13,000 workers over eight years and completed in 1993.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip attended the inauguration of the Eurostar at Waterloo International station, the original home of the service, in May 1994.

The service has since carried millions of passengers across 28 stations.

GARETH FULLER/PA A train station with a series of glass window exterior, and a road in front of it. There is a sign on the left wall which reads "Ebbsfleet International" in large white letters.GARETH FULLER/PA
Rail services linking the UK to Europe have not stopped at purpose-built stations at Ashford or Ebbsfleet since March 2020

In November 2007, London St Pancras International became the new home for Eurostar services.

At the time, the company said the move would benefit Kent commuters, by freeing up domestic train lines into Waterloo station.

But since the COVID-19 pandemic, Eurostar has not used any stations in Kent.

Getty Images A building site behind Waterloo station with cranes, diggers and other construction vehicles seen. The train tracks are seen above the site and going off into the distance, with the city visible beyond itGetty Images
An extension to London Waterloo station opened in 1994

Rail services linking the UK to Europe have not stopped at purpose-built stations at Ashford or Ebbsfleet since March 2020.

The rail company has previously cited financial factors and the post-Brexit border situation as reasons for the Kent services not returning immediately.

A petition was started in April 2023 by Keith Hillier-Palmer, calling for Eurostar stops in Kent to be reinstated, and has since gained nearly 60,000 signatures.

Eurostar previously confirmed the stations would "remain closed throughout 2024/2025", and an update would be provided when there was any change.

"We understand this is disappointing for the local communities, and we will continue to work closely and openly with the local councils on the future of the stations," they said.

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