Passengers are stranded at St Pancras station in London.Image: www.imago-images.de
December 30, 2025, 1:43 p.mDecember 30, 2025, 4:28 p.m
Nothing works anymore: Many train travelers between Great Britain and the European continent had to come to terms with this one day before the turn of the year. For many, their plans for New Year’s Eve may have been canceled.
Due to problems with the overhead lines in the Eurotunnel, train traffic under the English Channel was suspended until further notice. The reason: A car train was stranded due to the power outage, according to a statement from the train operator Eurostar. The tunnel is therefore closed. They had no choice but to suspend all connections.
The Eurostar connections have been canceled.Image: www.imago-images.de
Operations should be gradually resumed
The car train operator Le Shuttle later announced that operations would gradually resume in the afternoon. But when the Eurostar trains should run again remained unclear.
According to Eurostar, those affected can rebook their connections free of charge, exchange their ticket for a voucher or have the fare refunded. But for many that will be little consolation. The BBC spoke to travelers who had tried in vain to get plane tickets.
Passengers stranded in London
Eurostar had previously urged its customers to postpone their trips that morning. Initially, a number of connections were shown on the website as planned or simply delayed. Later, almost all trains were canceled.
Eurostar operates passenger trains between Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam and London. The Le Shuttle car train allows motorists to travel through the Eurotunnel between Calais in France and Folkestone in England. The Le Shuttle website said operations were currently suspended due to a problem with the power supply on both sides of the English Channel.
Photos showed hundreds of people gathered in the waiting area at St. Pancras station in London, waiting in vain for their train. The British train operator LNER said, according to PA, that passengers stranded in St. Pancras could travel home free of charge. Many travelers also got stuck at the Gare du Nord in Paris. (awp/sda/dpa)
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