Eurostar scrambles to avoid capacity squeeze at St Pancras

Eurostar has ramped up preparations for the introduction of much-delayed Brexit checks at St Pancras International station.

Bosses had hoped they could rely on a biometric check-in system that allows passengers to upload photographs of themselves to an app and scan their passport chip in advance.

Instead, Eurostar has spent big to double the number of physical pre-registration kiosks at the London terminus.

Extra capacity is needed to avoid mammoth queues at St Pancras, the only UK station currently serving international rail passengers.

Eurostar trains haven’t stopped at Ashford International and Ebbsfleet International in Kent since 2020, or at Stratford International, which despite its name has never served international trains.

Changing that would relieve pressure on St Pancras, but Eurostar isn’t keen. Meanwhile, Eurostar’s passenger numbers are rising fast – so too is the appetite to end their monopoly.