High-Speed Train Sets Record For Paris-London Trip

"Eurostar set a new Paris to London rail speed record of just over two hours on Tuesday with the first train to use Britain's long-awaited high speed track at over 186 mph (299 kph)."

"The journey time was 2 hours, 3 minutes and 39 seconds, compared with the usual 2 hours 35 minutes."

"The official switch to St Pancras takes place on Nov. 14, and the station will eventually link with the site of the 2012 Olympics at Stratford in east London."

"Eurostar's faster service arrives at a time of booming demand for rail travel in Britain after a series of foiled terrorist attacks have led to tighter security and delays at UK airports."

"Eurostar also says it has been helped by people switching from plane to train due to concerns about the environment."