Is the Eurostar route to Amsterdam a new railway track?

Is the Eurostar route to Amsterdam a new railway track? - Unrecognizable woman riding train and looking out window

The Eurostar from London to Amsterdam has just launched.

Is this route built on a brand new railway track / infrastructure? Or is it simply using an exising network with updated links?



Best Answer

No. The reason it took so long for this route to appear was because the original Eurostar trains (e300/Class 373) don't support the new European standard in-cab signalling and automatic train protection system used in the Netherlands; nor do most units support the 1.5kV DC overhead electrification used on its conventional railways. However, now they have replaced many of the older trains with the new e320/Class 374 trains, which support both of these (along with the systems used in Germany, also unsupported by the original trains).

The trains use High Speed 1 from St. Pancras, before proceeding through the Channel Tunnel onto LGV Nord, then diverging onto HSL 1 towards Brussels, joining the conventional rail network just south of there until Antwerp, where it joins HSL 4 to the Dutch border, where it continues as HSL-Zuid to Rotterdam and Amsterdam (though it must use the Dutch conventional railways around the immediate vicinity of these two stations). The latest of these lines opened to passengers in 2009.




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Is Eurostar a bullet train?

Eurostar is a high-speed train connecting Great Britain to Continental Europe. The Eurostar travels via the Channel Tunnel, and brings you from London to Paris, Brussels or Amsterdam in just a few hours. The Eurostar also travels direct to Lille, and Disneyland Paris (Marne-la-Vall\xe9e).

Does the train from London to Amsterdam go underwater?

Trains from London to Amsterdam do go underwater. In fact, the Channel Tunnel is the longest continuous underwater tunnel in the world at 31 metres in length. Travelling at speeds of up to 100 mph, the Eurostar train takes around 35 minutes to travel this underwater stretch.

What is the difference between Eurostar and Thalys?

Thalys currently runs high-speed routes between France, the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium while Eurostar runs services through the Channel Tunnel from London to Paris Brussels and Amsterdam. Both companies are majority-owned by French train company SNCF.

Is there a high-speed train from London to Amsterdam?

How fast does the Eurostar go? Between London and Amsterdam, the high-speed lines allow our trains to drive at a maximum speed of 186 miles per hour (300 km/h).



London to Amsterdam by Eurostar




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Images: Genine Alyssa Pedreno-Andrada, Pixabay, Ellie Burgin, Laura Tancredi