11 May 2026
London, 11 May 2026 - Following the Cooperation Agreement signed in March between SBB and SNCF Voyageurs, aiming at strengthening the partnership between the 2 companies and developing new routes, Eurostar, SBB, and SNCF Voyageurs took the next step with the signature of a memorandum of understanding to establish a potential direct connection between London and Switzerland. This marks an important milestone in the long-term planning for the establishment of a potential new direct connection to the United Kingdom.
Eurostar, SBB, and SNCF Voyageurs have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the launch of a potential rail service between London and Switzerland. This is an important milestone.
The demand for international rail travel is high, and Eurostar, SBB, and SNCF Voyageurs see significant potential for connecting London to Switzerland. This is because London is the number one flight destination from Switzerland, and at the same time, there is strong customer demand for a direct rail connection to the United Kingdom. Studies show that direct connections between London and Zurich with a travel time of 6 hours, between London and Basel with a travel time of 5 hours, and between London and Geneva with a travel time of 5.5 hours could respond to a market demand and to international travellers' expectations.
Cooperation with experienced partners
A Cooperation Agreement has been signed in March between SBB and SNCF Voyageurs, aiming at strengthening the partnership and developing potential new routes, among them links between the United Kingdom and Switzerland, and mentioning SNCF Voyageurs’ subsidiaries to achieve this objective.
The three companies SNCF Voyageurs, its subsidiary Eurostar and SBB have now signed a MoU, and are dedicated to work together on the project of potential direct connections between London and Switzerland. The partners are ideally suited for this: SNCF Voyageurs already works closely with SBB today, and a direct connection to London would necessarily run through France; Eurostar has been operating cross Channel connections between continental Europe and the United Kingdom for more than 30 years.
The signed MoU is an important milestone. The next step is to analyse potential timetables and operational concepts. Based on this, the key steps and milestones for the potential introduction of such a direct connection from London to Switzerland.
Further steps required
The three partners aim to offer the potential direct connection to London as soon as possible and are continuously driving the project forward. However, several steps are still required before the new service can be introduced, for example preparing the entry formalities and the necessary infrastructure and intergovernmental agreements, and ensuring the availability of suited trains and train paths. Implementation would be feasible at the earliest sometime in the course of the 2030s.
Previous steps towards a direct connection to London
Building on previous studies and on the MoU for an intergovernmental agreement signed in London on 8 May 2025 by Swiss Federal Councillor Albert Rösti, and by UK Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander, SBB is conducting further studies on behalf of the Federal Office of Transport, while Eurostar and SNCF Voyageurs are looking to continue their development with new international connections.
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About SNCF Voyageurs
Established on 1 January 2020, SNCF Voyageurs is the SNCF Group company dedicated to passenger rail transport, carrying 5 million passengers every day on 15,000 trains. It offers long-distance and high-speed travel to 230 destinations in France and Europe, with TGV INOUI, OUIGO, Eurostar and TGV Lyria. SNCF Voyageurs also operates trains under public service contracts on behalf of transport authorities (regions and the State) with Transilien in the Île-de-France region, TER in 11 regions, and Intercités day and night services for regional development routes. Thanks to the expertise of its 65,000 employees, it offers its customers – whether passengers, transport authorities or businesses – low-carbon transport solutions. It also provides engineering solutions for services and rolling stock, as well as maintenance services through Masteris. Its subsidiary SNCF Connect & Tech develops digital solutions and services, with Tesmo for businesses and local authorities, and SNCF Connect, the leading all-in-one platform for sustainable travel for passengers. SNCF Voyageurs generated a revenue of €20.9 billion in 2025.
About Eurostar
With a fleet of 51 high‑speed trains, Eurostar operates the largest international high‑speed rail network in Western Europe, serving more than 20 destinations across Germany, Belgium, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
In 2025, Eurostar carried 20 million passengers.
To support its long‑term growth, Eurostar has placed an order of up to 50 Celestia double-decker trains with Alstom, which will be introduced as from May 2031.
Eurostar’s shareholding structure is as follows:
About SBB
In 2025, SBB (Swiss Federal Railways) transported 1.43 million people every day across Switzerland. They connect people and places, people and goods, rural regions, urban areas and cantons – day after day, 24 hours a day. Around 35,800 employees make SBB the backbone of public transport in Switzerland. They ensure that customers reach their destinations punctually and reliably. Today and in the future.