Eurostar has introduced contactless fast-track facial biometric technology at London St Pancras Station to speed up the check-in process.
SmartCheck, supplied by biometric specialist iProov, means Business Premier and Carte Blanche passengers now only need to go through one passport check instead of two, avoiding queues for ticket and UK border exit checks in the station.
After downloading the SmartCheck iProov.me app to their smartphone, they can securely enrol their ticket, passport and face before they travel.
At St Pancras, they can pass through a dedicated SmartCheck corridor with its walk-past facial biometric checkpoint.
This faster, contactless route replaces the existing check-in at gates and the manual UK border exit check.
After this, passengers still have to pass through baggage inspection and one passport check at the French border control.
Gwendoline Cazenave, Eurostar Group CEO, said: “By introducing SmartCheck, we become the first rail travel operator to adopt biometric face verification. This innovation will enhance our customer departure journey, which is crucial to provide Eurostar’s unique travel experience.”
Andrew Bud, founder and CEO iProov, added: “By creating a biometric corridor, we are moving security checks away from the station, saving precious time and space at the border, streamlining the boarding process to one that’s far faster, more convenient, less crowded and stressful, yet even more secure.”
As part of the ‘First of a Kind 2020’ competition run by Innovate UK, the trial of the iProov solution was funded by the Department for Transport.
