On December 30, 2025, people sit with their luggage at St Pancras station in London as the Eurostar train service connecting the UK and continental Europe is suspended.
Carlos Yasso | AFP | Getty Images
Eurostar on Tuesday urged passengers to change their travel plans as the Channel Tunnel was closed due to an overhead power problem.
“Due to an overhead power issue and the resulting failure of the Le Shuttle train, the Channel Tunnel is currently closed. Unfortunately, this means we have no choice but to suspend all services today until further notice,” Eurostar said in a statement on its website warning of “massive disruption”.
“Please do not come to the station. We deeply regret that this situation may affect your travel plans,” the company said.
The disruption has brought one of Europe’s busiest international rail lines to a near standstill during the New Year travel season.
Photos released showed crowds of people sitting around bags at St Pancras station in London and long lines of passengers waiting to enter the Eurotunnel site in Folkestone, Kent.
A statement from Le Shuttle, which provides rail services for people and vehicles through the Channel Tunnel between Folkestone in the UK and Calais in France, said its services were “temporarily suspended” for up to three hours due to power supply issues. LeShuttle apologizes for the inconvenience.
In contrast, Eurostar’s services are only for passengers traveling to cities such as Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.
People stand next to a Eurostar train at Gare du Nord after Eurostar announces power supply problems in the Channel Tunnel connecting the UK and France, December 30, 2025 in Paris, France.
Stephanie Lecoq | Reuters
GetLink, which owns and operates Channel Tunnel Infrastructure, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC.
Eurostar, which operates flights from London to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam, carried 19.5 million passengers in 2024, its most successful year in its history.
