Forget train cab – the vibe is bridge-of-the-Starship-Enterprise.
I’m standing behind veteran driver Dominic Bampton as he eases a 21,000-horse-power Eurostar out of St Pancras International for a morning service to Paris Gare du Nord.
Dom sits Captain Picard-like in front of a bank of levers, switches and computer screens and a colossal sloping windscreen. We move so smoothly and quietly it’s as if we’re gliding out of a starport.
Something else strikes me – the sheer size of the space. There’s enough room for the driver and six guests – and with coffee-cup holders, charging points and two fold-down seats, it’s a surprisingly comfortable and civilised place to be.
Before joining affable and chatty Dom in the cab, I watch him wash the windscreen with a long-handled mop. But as he pushes the acceleration lever forward and applies 40 per cent power to take the e320 – named for its maximum speed of 320kph (200mph) – out of the station towards Kent, it’s explained by Dom’s manager,…
