Eurostar, the high speed train service between London and Paris and Brussels, won a record share of the rail/air market in August.
On the Paris route, it won 71% of the market compared to 68% in August in 2004 while on the Brussels route it captured 64% compared with 63% a year ago.
The nearest airline on the Paris service was Air France with just under 12%. All other carriers, including BA, saw their share drop.
On the Brussels route, BA and SN Brussels held onto just over 20% of the market with bmi securing 13%.
Eurostar said the number of passengers using its trains grew by 4.3% in the first nine months of 2005 to 5.63m while sales were up 10% to £354m because more travellers were buying flexible tickets.
The train company also reported a “strong growth” in business travellers, which helped cushion a slowdown in the leisure market.
“The number of business travellers, who are traditionally less frequent users over the summer period, actually increased by 15%,” the train company said.
Paul Charles, Eurostar's director of communications, said: “Our market share has risen to record levels on the most competitive routes in Europe. Travellers are recognising the beauty of high-speed rail, which is environmentally superior to airlines, as well as being far more comfortable in terms of journey quality.”
Alitalia approves new industrial plan
Near bankrupt Italian carrier Alitalia is looking for a loan of up to 403m to help it pay for the sharp rise in fuel prices.
Directors have approved the loan as part of a new industrial plan for 2005-2008 and said they would offer the carrier's planes as a guarantee.
The plan also involves bringing forward already agreed restructuring of the airline including reducing labour costs.
The airline has also agreed with trade unions on a deal to save 65m by increasing productivity.
Pressure on the ailing airline was increased this week when easyJet announced that it was setting up its first hub in Milan's Malpensa Airport.
The low cost carrier said it would “significantly expand” its services in Italy with five new routes from Milan to Athens, London Gatwick, Madrid, Malaga and Paris.