Gemini Trains partners with Siemens, Rock Rail and Uber to launch new London to Europe fleet

Gemini Trains has announced a major partnership with Siemens Mobility and Rock Rail to deliver a new fleet of high-speed trains connecting London with Paris, Brussels and Cologne. The new services will be co-branded with Uber, marking a significant step towards Gemini’s goal of providing high-quality and competitively priced international rail travel.

After months of evaluation, Gemini selected Siemens Mobility to supply the trains, identifying Rock Rail as the ideal financing partner. The new trains will be based on Siemens’ Velaro Novo platform, the latest generation of the Velaro fleet already operating across Europe.

Why a collaboration with Uber, Siemens and Rock Rail

Adrian Quine, CEO of Gemini Trains, said: “Our collaboration with Uber, Siemens and Rock Rail creates a powerful partnership as we move towards our goal of running regular high quality and competitively priced trains connecting the UK to France, Belgium and for the first time ever, Germany. This is great news for UK jobs, the economy and of course passengers.”

Siemens Mobility, which employs 5,500 people across 30 UK sites including Ashby, Chippenham and Goole, will oversee the manufacturing and assembly of the new fleet. The company’s facilities are responsible for building new trains and overhauling components from existing fleets. Sambit Banerjee, Joint CEO Siemens Mobility UKI, said: “We’re delighted to be working with Gemini, Rock and Uber on these proposals which could see our state-of-the-art Velaro Novo trains transform rail travel for people travelling between the UK and Europe.”

Rock Rail, known for structuring institutional funding for rolling stock projects, will lead the financing of the Gemini fleet. The company has already raised close to £6 billion for new trains across the UK and Europe. Mark Swindell, CEO of Rock Group, commented: “We are delighted to be partnering with Siemens and Gemini on this prestigious and innovative project. This deal follows on from Rock’s extensive experience in bespoke rolling stock, delivering 10 fleets across the UK and Germany. Rock managed the procurement, design and delivery of those trains into service in partnership with the Operator and manufacturer. Rock has raised close to £6bn for new trains and we look forward to working with Siemens again on these proposals.”

Gemini’s services will utilise both Stratford International and Ebbsfleet stations, aligning with UK Government aspirations to make better use of existing cross-Channel infrastructure. The company is currently awaiting a decision from the Office of Rail and Road regarding access to the Temple Mills Maintenance Depot, operated by Eurostar. This facility will be essential for maintaining the new Siemens-built trains.

As part of the collaboration, Uber will co-brand the new international service and enable ticket bookings directly through its app. Andrew Brem, General Manager of Uber UK, said: “As more and more people use the Uber app to book train tickets, our collaboration with Gemini is an exciting opportunity to remind people of all the potential ways Uber can help them get wherever they need to go; right across the UK, Europe and beyond.”

The project has also received support from business and regional leaders. Beckie Hart, CBI Regional Director for Yorkshire & The Humber, stated: “The announcement that Gemini’s new fleet will be built by Siemens has the potential to drive growth, strengthen supply chains and signal confidence in our world-class manufacturing. We have already seen this in Yorkshire & The Humber where Siemens’ commitment to Goole has created high-quality jobs and built skills for the future.”

Henri Murison, Chief Executive of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, added: “The opportunity for more competition in the market for international rail services is hugely important for the Greater South East and the Thames Estuary in particular. In the North, the investment Siemens has made in skilled manufacturing jobs in Goole at the Rail Village has already had a huge impact economically to the Humber.”

This new partnership signals a significant development in international rail connectivity, promising to enhance competition, passenger choice and sustainable travel between the UK and continental Europe.