An artist's impression of a Virgin train at St Pancras International
Virgin's plan to run a rival rail service to Eurostar through the Channel Tunnel has moved closer after it was granted track access by the regulator.
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) said the approval will allow Virgin to run up to 20 daily return services between London and Paris, Brussels or Amsterdam, with the agreement running from 1 October 2030 to 31 December 2040.
The ORR said, external it was "a significant step forward" in introducing competition on the route, where Eurostar has held a monopoly on passenger services since the tunnel opened in 1994.
However, the regulator said Virgin still had to secure rolling stock for the services and get safety approval from UK and EU authorities.
The approval from the ORR only covers the HS1 route from London St Pancras to the Channel Tunnel and the regulator said Virgin also needed to secure access to rail networks in mainland Europe.
The ORR's deputy director of access and international, Martin Jones, said: "This is an important next step in bringing competition and growth to the market for international rail services.
"While there is still more work to do, we are supporting Virgin and the wider industry to grow international services."
The ORR said increasing competition on the route would provide "significant benefits" for passengers.
As well as Virgin, Italy's FS Italiane Group is also planning to run services through the Channel Tunnel from 2029 using its subsidiary Trenitalia France.
Last week, Trenitalia France signed an agreement for 19 new high-speed trains from Hitachi Rail, which it plans to use on the service.
Virgin is planning to buy 12 high-speed trains from Alstom to operate on the route.
A Virgin Group spokesperson said: "Our plans for a new London-Europe rail service from 2030 are moving at pace.
"We welcome the ORR's pre-approval of our track access agreement and the opportunity to bring competition and Virgin's award-winning customer experience to the Channel Tunnel."
Last year, Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, had said it was "time to end" Eurostar's monopoly on the route.