Gemini Trains, the start-up rail operator aiming to challenge Eurostar’s three-decade monopoly on Channel Tunnel routes, has placed an order with Siemens Mobility for a fleet of next-generation high-speed trains.
The order, covering an initial ten new Velaro Novo trains, marks a major step in Gemini’s plan to operate competitive passenger services between London, Paris, Brussels and Cologne. The company, which is partnering with Uber, intends to integrate its ticketing and connections through the Uber app — potentially branding the new services as Uber Trains.
Gemini said the Siemens trains could be part-assembled at the company’s new Goole facility in East Yorkshire, a move that would add a UK manufacturing dimension to the cross-border project.
“Our collaboration with Uber, Siemens and Rock Rail creates a powerful partnership towards our goal of running competitively priced trains connecting the UK to France, Belgium and, for the first time ever, Germany,” said Adrian Quine, chief executive of Gemini Trains.
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