Eurostar is the Winner in Reporters’ Race to Paris

Chris Millar: taxi to Heathrow, BA flight to Charles de Gaulle MY long, slow journey to the Eiffel Tower started in a black cab at Piccadilly Circus just before the peak of the rush hour.

Until after the Knightsbridge bottleneck there was no respite from the traffic thanks to a combination of roadworks and tailbacks. Almost an hour later we were approaching Terminal 4 and I started to feel anxious.

Because I was buying a ticket at the very last minute, the only seat available was in business class and cost a whopping 390.

The flight left on time at 10.55am and the consensus among my fellow passengers was that the service to Paris was fairly reliable, by BA standards at least. My neighbour, a businessman who takes the flight up to twice a week, said he never used the Eurostar because he lived in north London and getting to Waterloo was “sheer misery”.

“Terminal 4 is quite civilised because it is exclusively used by BA but the other Heathrow terminals are a nightmare,” he said. “I have had some truly terrible experiences.” The plane landed at Charles de Gaulle at 1pm local time, exactly on schedule. The airport was a picture of Gallic efficiency hailing a cab couldn’t have been easier, unlike at Heathrow.

By 2pm I was being whisked down the Parisian boulevards, beginning to think I could win the race thanks to the lack of roadworks.

However, when we pulled up in the shadow of the famous landmark, Alex had already been there for half an hour.

AS increasing numbers of business travellers shun Heathrow and shuttle between London to Paris on the train, the Evening Standard sent two reporters to test which route was the fastest. Setting off from Piccadilly Circus at 8am, one flew from Heathrow while the other took the Eurostar from Waterloo.

looking for a cab Piccadilly Circus cab at Heathrow departure lounge takes off time): Flight touches Charles de Gaulle airport in a cab Eiffel Tower half an hour 8am: Start looking for a cab 8.10am: Leave Piccadilly Circus after finding a cab 9.15am: Arrive at Heathrow 9.58am: Reach departure lounge 10.55am: Flight takes off 1pm (local time): Flight touches down at Paris Charles de Gaulle 1.25pm: Leave airport in a cab bound for the Eiffel Tower 2.15pm: Arrive half an hour after Alex By air

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