The planned direct rail route between Switzerland and the UK has moved one step closer to becoming reality after two international rail companies signed off on an ‘important milestone”.
The easiest way currently to reach London by public transport is to take the train from Geneva’s Cornavin station to Gare de Lyon in Paris, which takes just under four hours.
From there, passengers must take the Metro or the RER across town to Paris Gare du Nord and then embark on a connecting Eurostar train to London’s St Pancras station — after having gone through border and security checks.
So getting from Geneva – and other Swiss cities – to the UK capital is not exactly hassle-free, but Switzerland’s rail company, SBB, has been committed to literally speed up this slow and time-consuming process.
What’s the plan?
In February 2025, French company Getlink, which manages the Eurotunnel, signed a partnership agreement with London St. Pancras Highspeed, the operator of the rail line on the British side of the Channel, “to facilitate the increase in connections between Great Britain and continental Europe.”
These plans target “a range of new destinations,” including Switzerland, according to Yann Leriche, Getlink’s CEO.
On the Swiss side, the demand for direct train link from Switzerland has gathered support at the political level, with a number of MPs speaking out in favour of this project.
In March 2025, the national rail company, SBB, also announced its commitment to not only expanding its international destinations in general (read more about this below), but to London as well.
What is happening now?
Fast-forward to March 2026, when the SBB and France’s SNCF Voyageurs signed a cooperation agreement aimed at developing new international routes – including to the UK.
On May 11th, the two companies took another step forward: they signed a ‘memorandum of understanding’ with Eurostar to establish a direct connection between Swiss cities and London.
“This marks an important milestone in the long-term planning for establishing a new direct connection to the United Kingdom,” the SBB said
“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,” the company pointed out, adding that “direct connections between Zurich and London with a travel time of 6 hours, between Basel and London with a travel time of 5 hours, and between Geneva and London with a travel time of 5.5 hours could respond to a market demand and to international travellers’ expectations.”
But first, overcoming challenges
“The three partners aim to offer the direct connection to London as soon as possible and are continuously driving the project forward,” the SBB said. “However, several steps are still required before the new service can be introduced.”
There are several to be tackled — for instance, some adaptations are necessary at Swiss stations and on the train routes to accommodate the new link.
Additionally, there are “entry formalities, the required infrastructure and intergovernmental agreements, as well as ensuring the availability of suitable trains and train paths,” the SBB pointed out.
When would the train start running?
The SBB is looking at a timeline of several years.
“Implementation would be feasible at the earliest sometime in the course of the 2030s,” the company said.
