Activity and performance
The Channel Tunnel is the fastest, easiest, most reliable and environmentally-friendly way to cross the Short Straits.
Eurotunnel is developping a long-term strategy for profitable growth, by giving its customers, passengers, road hauliers, railway operators, high value-added solutions through the Channel Tunnel and beyond.
The services provided by Eurotunnel Truck and Passenger Shuttles deliver a strong competitive edge by continuously strengthening its commercial offers and in particular its quality of service, security and fluidity of trafic through its digital transformation plan and investments.
Leadership consolidated on the Short Straits in 2018
- A positive trend with a +3% growth in car traffic
- Car market share stable at 54.6%
- Pricing power of service
- Increase in yield.
A service of quality and personalised
million cars transported on Le Shuttle in 2018
pets crossed the Short Straits with Le Shuttle in 2018
of the vehicles travelling with Le Shuttle choose Flexiplus
2018, a record year
- A new all-time traffic record for trucks, up +3%
- Market share gain of 1.8 pts to 40.9% in a market declining by 1.1%
- Yield consolidation.
A premium service in line with the market
trucks transported on Shuttles in 2018
trucks, the all-time daily traffic record set in December 2018
express delivery parcels transported each day via the Channel Tunnel
Eurostar trains link the United-Kingdom to the continent via the Channel Tunnel and in particular Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam as well Disneyland Paris and other destinations in the South of France or in the Alps depending on the seasons.
New record of traffic in 2018
- Traffic record Eurostar, with traffic up by +7% for the year
- Opening of the new direct service between London and Amsterdam on 4 April 2018, with journey times from London of 3 hours and 50 minutes to Amsterdam and 3 hours and 10 minutes to Rotterdam.
- Launch of a 3rd daily service to Amsterdam in June 2019
- Upgrading of the Business Premium lounge in the London St Pancras International station in September 2018.
- Eurostar also operates a direct service to Disneyland Paris and to Lyon, Avignon and Marseille during the spring and summer and a service to Bourg-Saint-Maurice in winter.
A steady momentum in 2018
- Cross-Channel rail freight traffic up +3%
- Growth of the number of rail freight trains is linked to the positive effect of the ETICA (Eurotunnel Incentive for Capacity Additions), a Eurotunnel scheme which supports the start-up of new services
- The complete train scanner, which will be operated by French Customs, will enable the inspection of up to thirty 750m-long freight trains per day on the Fréthun yard.
- Crossing of the first Chinese container train to connect Yiwu and London, in January 2017, via the Silk Road and the Channel Tunnel.
Eurostar passengers travelled through the Channel Tunnel in 2018
rail freight trains through the Tunnel in 2018
Eurostar passengers have travelled through the Tunnel since 1994
An operational and commercial success
The traffic figures and the records consistently broken over the course of time have shown the resilience in all circumstances of the commercial services offered by Eurotunnel. And beyond, the Fixed Link has generated new traffic flows which have been made possible by the Tunnel since 25 years:
- More than 430 million passengers have travelled through the Channel Tunnel on board the Eurotunnel Shuttles and high-speed Eurosstar trains, the equivalent of three times the populations of the United Kingdom and France combined.
- Almost 410 million tonnes of goods have been carried through the Tunnel mainly on board the Eurotunnel Truck Shuttles but also on the freight trains of the Railway Operators.
- More than 86 million vehicles have been transported in 25 years, of which 58 million cars, coaches, camper-vans and motorcycles by Le Shuttle and 28 million trucks by Le Shuttle Freight.
- More than 2.6 million pets (dogs and cats) have travelled on board Le Shuttle since the opening of the service in February 2000.