The Eurostar train service between Amsterdam and London will be cancelled for up to 11 months because of work on the Dutch capital’s main railway station, transport minister Vivianne Heijnen has confirmed.

The Eurostar service requires space for passport and baggage checks, and that won’t be possible during part of the renovation work, Heijnen told MPs in a briefing. 

Work will start next year and the new Eurostar terminal will be located in one of the passageways under the tracks. But that part of the project won’t be completed before the end of May 2025 – which means no direct cross-channel train services from June 2024.

At best services will be halted for seven months, at worst, 11, Heijnen said. Direct services between the two cities started five years ago. 

Eurostar currently provides four trains a day between the two capitals and is furious about the cancellations. “We calculate it means 21 extra flights between Schiphol and London and that is crying shame,” a spokesman told the Parool. 

Rotterdam is not a suitable alternative because it can only process 160 passengers per train, over 100 fewer than Amsterdam. “And that makes Rotterdam as a departure point loss-making,” the spokesman said. Other options, such as Schiphol airport, also have logistical problems. 

Eurostar chief executive Gwendoline Cazenave is coming to the Netherlands on Monday for talks with ministers and train operators, the Parool said.

Passengers organisation Rover has described the situation as incredible and has called on ProRail and the ministry to make sure the service can continue to operate, the Parool reported.  

Eventually, Eurostar services will move to Amsterdam Zuid station, which is currently being expanded. But that terminal won’t be ready before 2036.