Major travel disruption between London and Paris – as Olympics get underway

French railway lines have bee hit by co-ordinated arson attacks

One in four Eurostar trains are cancelled today (Fri 26th July) and over the weekend following “co-ordinated” vandalism which caused disruption ahead of the Olympics in France.

The rail operator, which runs international services from London St Pancras, confirmed 25% of its trains would no longer run on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Several of its trains to Paris had been cancelled while others were diverted or subject to delays because of the ongoing issues over the Channel, with customers told to cancel their trips where possible.

The disruption comes hours ahead of the opening of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and as millions embark on summer getaways.

French rail company SNCF said a series of incidents overnight had affected travel to and from London beneath the Channel, to Belgium and across the west, north and east of France.

French prime minister Gabriel Attal said the vandals strategically targeted the main routes from the north, east and west towards Paris.

Speaking to reporters, Mr Attal said there will be “massive consequences,” with “hundreds of thousands” of people stuck while trying to visit Paris for the Games or holidays.

Eurostar said in a statement: “Due to co-ordinated acts of malice in France, affecting the high-speed line between Paris and Lille, all high-speed trains going to and coming from Paris are being diverted via the classic line today Friday July 26.

“This extends the journey time by around an hour-and-a-half.

“Eurostar expects this situation will last until Monday morning.

“Today, Eurostar will cancel 25% of its trains. It will also be the case on Saturday 27 and Sunday 28.

“Eurostar’s teams are fully mobilised in stations, in the call centres, and onboard to ensure that all passengers are informed and can reach their destination.

“We encourage our customers to postpone their trip if possible.”

PM: situation is “concerning and incredibly frustrating”

Sir Keir Starmer’s spokeswoman said the situation was “concerning” and “incredibly frustrating”.

She said: “He would urge people to continue to follow the travel advice and the statements from the travel operators.”

The majority of Team GB athletes were arriving at the Games via Eurostar.

The British Olympic Association confirmed that only two athletes were scheduled to arrive on Friday and had been subject to only minor delays.

The company said customers were being informed via email, text and on the Eurostar website.

Any affected passengers can cancel or refund their tickets or modify their journey free of charge.

We spoke to Tom and his family who’d travelled from York to London St Pancras – hoping to get to Paris on the Eurostar. He told us he wasn’t too worried: “we’ll get to where we get to and as long as we’re all together, we’ll be fine.”

David from Suffolk – also off to the Olympics – was equally pragmatic about things: “in this day and age this type of stuff happens, you can’t worry about it – you just have to carry on.”

While Daphne from south London says he’s found it very stressful after getting an email first thing this morning tell her her 5am train had been cancelled: “I changed my ticket and I’m here now so I’m hoping I’m going to travel.

“It was so frustrating. I didn’t want to cancel. I just had to travel.”

Adam Wigley, 28, who was planning to attend the opening ceremony, told PA: “I’m unclear on the system. It’s a little difficult to see what’s going on.

“Our train gets into Paris an hour late, so it’ll be a little bit of a rush (to reach the ceremony).”

SNCF said the situation should last “at least all weekend” but that teams were already on site carrying out checks and beginning repairs.

The operator advised all its passengers to postpone their journeys and “not to go to the station”.

Speaking to Sky News, French sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera said: “I condemn them extremely strongly. It’s just unacceptable.

“It’s probably a large-scale sabotage with some malicious acts, probably co-ordinating.”

A spokesperson for Eurotunnel Le Shuttle, which transports vehicles from Folkestone to Calais in northern France, said its services had not been affected by the incident.

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