Geografia d'Europa: textos de suport

• HISTORY
• CHRONOLOGY
• CONSTRUCTION CONSORTIUM
• ORGANIZATION OF THE EUROTUNNEL GROUP
• THE EUROTUNNEL SYSTEM
• RAILWAY SERVICES: THE EUROSTAR
• EUROSTAR HISTORY
• TECHNICAL FIGURES
• SAFETY

13,000 years ago Britain was still connected to continental Europe by a natural isthmus. It was Nicolas Desmarets, an 18th-century French geologist who first recognised this and so paved the way for the idea of a fixed link between England and France.

The true pioneer of the Channel Tunnel was the mining engineer Albert Mathieu who in 1802 designed the first major fixed link - apparently considered with interest by Napoléon Bonaparte. The plan was to dig a tunnel comprising two levels: the upper level consisting of a paved thoroughfare for stagecoaches, the lower level being designed to collect the seepage water. The plan also included lighting by oil-lamps and ventilation by several shafts protruding at regular intervals above the water. In 1803, the Englishman Henri Mottray proposed a submerged tunnel, made up of assembled metal sections. However, this project posed two major problems : corrosion and resistance to water pressure.

After 1830, with the advent of steam trains and the construction of the rail network in Britain, ideas for a rail link started to emerge.

In the mid-19th century Thomé de Gamond, a French mining engineer, spent 30 years working on the fixed link project. In all, he proposed seven schemes: the first was a submerged tube tunnel, this was followed by proposals for causeways and finally, for a bored tunnel (1851). He then began a long exploration programme and on three occasions dived without a suit more than 30 metres to the Channel sea bed. In 1855 he finalised his project and proposed a route for the undersea link from cap Gris-Nez to East Wear Bay (between Folkestone and Dover). In 1856 he submitted the proposal to Napoléon III, who was a childhood friend. It was well received, both by the French and the British. Nevertheless Lord Palmerston is reported to have exclaimed: "What? You wish to make us contribute towards a scheme, the purpose of which is to reduce the distance we find already too short!" In 1858 discussions were halted by a cooling of relations between Britain and France, but by the 1860s they had resumed.

The first attempt at tunnel excavation began in 1880, when the ‘Beaumont & English’ tunnel boring machine dug limited undersea tunnels on both sides of the Channel. The project was scuppered by Sir Garnet Wolseley who set British public opinion against the tunnel by claiming that it would increase the risk of invasion. On 12 August 1882 after 1883 metres had been dug on the UK side, and 1669 metres on the French side, the work was halted...

The idea of a fixed link nevertheless continued to exercise the minds of engineers between the 1880s and 1945, but all the projects remained on the drawing board. In 1955 there was a dramatic turn of events - the British Defence Minister announced he no longer opposed the project on military grounds. On 16 July 1957 a Channel Tunnel study design group was formed.

In 1960 the group proposed a railway tunnel system comprising two main tunnels and one service tunnel, the three tunnels being connected by cross passages. After lengthy negotiations between Britain and France, the project was officially launched in 1973.

On 20 January 1975 however, due to financial difficulties precipitated by the fuel crisis, it was announced that the project was to be abandonned. Construction work was halted and the matter shelved.

The idea resurfaced in 1978, when a small-diameter rail tunnel was proposed. In 1980 the British stipulated there should be no commitment of public funds. Then on 11 September 1981 Margaret Thatcher and François Mitterrand approved the resumption of studies. On 30 November 1984, the British and the French governments indicated their joint intention to draw up an invitation to private promoters for the construction and operation of a cross-Channel fixed link, without public funding. This invitation was issued in March 1985 and four serious proposals were submitted by the deadline of 31 October 1985.

The four rival projects

• Europont: this project, a bridge with 5000 metre spans suspended by means of Kevlar cables, was soon eliminated because of its projected cost (£6 billion) and the fact that it was based on untried techniques;
• Euroroute: this proposal comprised both a drive-through bridge and tunnel system with artificial islands and a bored undersea rail tunnel;
• Channel Expressway: a last minute submission by James Sherwood, the American owner of Sealink (UK), this project consisted of road and rail tunnels;
• Eurotunnel: this proposal was submitted by the Channel Tunnel Group Ltd/France Manche SA (CTG-FM), later renamed Eurotunnel. This bid was based on the 1972-75 project, with twin rail tunnels with shuttle trains to carry road vehicles, and a third tunnel running between the two.

On 20 January 1986, Margaret Thatcher and François Mitterrand announced in Lille Town Hall that the Channel Tunnel Group-FM bid had been selected. Three weeks later on 12 February, Sir Geoffrey Howe and French Foreign Minister Roland Dumas signed the Franco-British treaty in Canterbury. On 14 March the Concession was awarded, granting the two concessionaires "jointly and severally...the right and the obligation to carry out the development, financing, construction and operation" of the tunnel. At the same time, the Intergovernmental Commission and the Safety Authority were set up with specific responsibility for relations between the two governments and the concessionaires. The concession was initially awarded for 55 years to 2042 and later extended to 65 years and then to 99 years in December 1997. On 29 July 1987 Margaret Thatcher and François Mitterrand ratified the Fixed Link Treaty, paving the way for the Channel Tunnel to become a reality.
 

CHRONOLOGY
 

CONSTRUCTION CONSORTIUM

The fixed link contract covered the design and construction of the Channel Tunnel and the supply of the transport system (including shuttles). It was a "turnkey" contract and was awarded by Eurotunnel to the consortium Transmanche Link (TML), formed from two joint ventures, Translink (UK) and Transmanche Construction (France), bringing together 10 major British and French construction companies, namely :
 

• Transmanche Construction :
	Bouygues Dumez Société Auxiliaire d’Entreprise (S.A.E.) Société Générale d’Entreprise (S.G.E.) SPIE Batignolles

• Translink :
	Balfour Beatty  Costain  Tarmac  Taylor Woodrow  Wimpey

Estimates in 1987 put the cost of the works at £2.842 billion and the total financing requirement at £4.874 billion (operating costs and interest included). In reality, construction costs and the total financing requirement eventually rose to £4.65 billion and £8.93 billion, respectively.

These increases are attributable mainly to the increase in construction costs, which itself generated substantial financial costs, and to the delays in the start of commercial services. It should be remembered that a rail tunnel of this length did not exist anywhere else in the world and most equipment had to be designed specifically for the Eurotunnel.

Breakdown of the principal factors in the rise in costs :

• Tunnelling costs rose due to the slow progress made initially by the tunnel-boring machines and to higher than expected labour costs (the cost of works, originally estimated at £1.329 billion, actually totalled more than £2.11 billion).
• The bids received following the invitations to tender issued by TML indicated prices which were significantly higher than those forecast in the construction contract. It was also necessary to incorporate additional safety features in the shuttles which had not originally been specified. (This contract, which was projected to cost £245 million in 1987, actually cost £705 million).
• The intial contract forecast that the system would open to passenger-shuttle, freight-shuttle and through-train services in June 1993. Due to problems with finalising the specification, meeting it, and then co-ordinating the simultaneous commissioning of infrastructure, rolling stock and terminals, it was not possible to meet his planned date. Services were introduced progressively between June and December 1994. The freight services were introduced first in June and July for through freight trains and freight shuttles respectively. The stringent safety requirements for passengers shuttle and Eurostar operations required a number of further tests and a lengthy period of trial running before services commenced in December 1994. This considerable delay has had major financial consequences as the revenue expected in mid 1993 was very limited until the end of 1994.

Eurotunnel’s mission is to be Europe’s finest transportation service, unparalleled in customer satisfaction, in reliability and with an outstanding safety record, the route of choice across the Channel.

As operators of a remarkable feat of engineering, the Channel Tunnel, Eurotunnel is in business to provide drivers and passengers of cars and trucks with the fastest, simplest and most efficient link between Kent and Nord Pas-de-Calais as well as a no delay, all-weather conduit for passenger and freight trains between Britain and the Continent. Eurotunnel maximises this business through additional activities in retail sales, telecommunications and property development .

Group structure :

A private group managing a public-service concession

The Eurotunnel Group, which was created on 13 August 1986, comprises two holding companies : one French, Eurotunnel SA (Chairman : Patrick Ponsolle) and one British, Eurotunnel plc (Chairman : Charles Mackay), whose shares are twinned to form "units" (comprising one share in each company). These shares are listed in the London, Paris and Brussels markets. Two operating companies, The Channel Tunnel Group Limited and France Manche SA, which are wholly owned subsidiaries of Eurotunnel plc and Eurotunnel SA respectively, hold jointly and severally the concession to operate the Channel Tunnel, which has now been granted for a period of 99 years to 2086.

The Channel Tunnel Group and France Manche have formed a partnership which operates under the name of Eurotunnel. The combined accounts of the Group are consolidated in £ sterling and French francs: the accounts of Eurotunnel plc and of Eurotunnel SA being prepared in £ sterling and French francs, respectively.

The activities of the Group are led by a Joint Board of Eurotunnel plc, Eurotunnel SA, The Channel Tunnel Group and France Manche. The Directors are British, French and Belgian and the Executive Chairman is Patrick Ponsolle. Consistent with business best practice, the Joint Board has created several sub-committees including the Audit Committee, the Remunerations Committee and the Safety Committee.

Shareholders

The preliminary financing of the Eurotunnel project was raised by two equity issues for Eurotunnel plc / Eurotunnel SA :

• Up to September 1986, the five banks and the 10 construction companies, Eurotunnel’s founder shareholders, contributed FRF 0.5 billion.
• In October 1986, Eurotunnel increased its equity to approximately FRF 2.5 billion by a "private placing" involving major international investors.

The shareholding has evolved over the years, the number of shareholders rising from 615.000 in 1990 to 721,000 in 1994. The number fell again to 690,000 as of 31 December 1997, at which point 683,000 individual shareholders held 69 % of the equity, 11 % being British and 58 % French.

Following the Financial Restructuring and the issue of equity to the banks on 7 April 1998, in exchange for a reduction of part of the debt, the number of Eurotunnel units has increased from 919,553,419 to 1,688,784,219. The inclusion of these new shareholders and the reclassification of certain shares have modified the shareholding structure : at the end of June 1998, individual shareholders own just over 48 % of the equity.

A bi-national group : a single management structure

Eurotunnel is neither British nor French. It is a bi-national company which, in line with its mission statement, has a policy of integrating staff from both cultures. This policy manifests itself in the single management structure and in the creation of other structures to ensure equal benefits and opportunities for employees. For example in the UK a "Company Council" has been established, on which members of the UK staff and management are represented, to mirror the French "comité d’entreprise". Employment contracts are either French or English and governed by the legal regime of that country.

Since 1996, Eurotunnel’s activities have been divided between two service divisions : Eurotunnel Shuttle Services which manages the passenger and freight shuttle services and the Railway Services responsible for providing services to the railway companies. These divisions are supported by :

• the Planning and Development Division, whose task is to develop and co-ordinate medium and long-term strategies for optimising the profitability of the Group’s assets,
• the Technical Division is responsible for the engineering and maintenance of the infrastructure and rolling stock,
• the Business Services Division, which is responsible for support services including overseeing the cash-flow, financial control, computer systems, purchasing, taxation, legal matters and insurance.

Eurotunnel employs approximately 3,200 people in the UK and France. The average age of employees is 36, and average length of service : 31/2 years. Women make up more than one third of the staff. Almost 2,300 people work on shift, providing a continuous service, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.
 

THE EUROTUNNEL SYSTEM

The Eurotunnel transport system, linking the UK and France, comprises three tunnels under the Channel, each approximately 50 km long.

This tunnel system is used by four different rail transport services:

• two services operated and marketed directly by Eurotunnel: passenger shuttle services (carrying cars, motor-cycles, coaches, campervans and caravans) and freight shuttle services (carrying goods vehicles)
• two services operated and marketed by the railway networks: Eurostar (high-speed passenger through-trains, currently operated by a joint consortium with British, French and Belgian partners) and freight through-trains (operated by SNCF/EWS)

INFRASTRUCTURE USED BY EUROTUNNEL'S SHUTTLES AND BY THE RAIL NETWORKS SERVICES

• Tunnels

• Rail control centres

Thirty controllers work in shifts, operating two complex electronic systems: the Rail Traffic Management (RTM), which controls the rail traffic system, and the Engineering Management System (EMS) which controls the fixed equipment. The Control Centre staff are all fully bi-lingual in French and English.

Although the transport system is automated, controllers are in attendance 24 hours a day, ready to take manual control in the event of technical failure.

• Signalling

After travelling through the tunnel, the through-trains operated by the railway companies continue their journey on the UK or French rail networks, which are connected to the tunnel tracks at Dollands Moor and Frethun, respectively. The shuttles operated by Eurotunnel remain within the Eurotunnel system: the rail layout of the Eurotunnel system is a large figure of eight shape.

Eurotunnel's shuttle services

Eurotunnel's shuttle services began in 1994: the official opening ceremony was held on 6 May, freight services began in October and passenger shuttle services commenced in December of that year. In the four years since then, Eurotunnel has grown to become market leader in both the car and HGV cross-Channel markets.

The Tunnel is linked to the UK and French motorway networks : the London-bound M20, and the A16 in France, taking traffic northbound towards Lille and Belgium and southbound to Normandy and Paris. Eurotunnel's shuttles between Folkestone and Calais/Coquelles operate round the clock, travelling at up to 140 kph through the tunnel, and are unaffected by sea conditions. With a crossing time of 35 minutes, Eurotunnel offers a fast, flexible and reliable service.

Passenger shuttles: Passenger shuttles carry private vehicles : cars and coaches mainly, but also campervans, caravans and motorcycles. In addition, there are privately operated bus services for pedestrians. There are up to four shuttle departures per hour, 24 hours a day, depending on demand. The journey time from motorway to motorway is approximately one hour. Each shuttle can carry up to 120 cars and 12 coaches.

Freight shuttles: Freight shuttles transport goods vehicles. Drivers travel in a Club Car at the front of each shuttle where they are served a meal. There are three departures an hour at peak times.

Restrictions: The carriage of goods is closely regulated by Eurotunnel, who, for safety reasons, prohibits the carriage through the tunnel of certain hazardous goods. Eurotunnel prohibits the transport of livestock through the tunnel. In addition, it is currently not permitted to bring domestic animals into the UK. At present LPG vehicles are not allowed on shuttles. Eurotunnel is currently discussing this restriction with the Intergovernmental Commission.

Access for the disabled: Eurotunnel has a commitment to ensure that passengers travel safely and easily. All areas within the terminal are easily accessible, parking is close by. Eurotunnel staff are available to give special assistance. Disabled passengers are given priority when boarding the shuttles to ensure that staff are on hand to provide assistance if necessary. One of the main advantages for disabled people travelling with Eurotunnel is that there is no requirement to leave their vehicles during the crossing.

Terminals: Access to the terminals is via the Check-in area. At the UK terminal, there is a single Check-in area for passenger and freight traffic, while on the French side, there are two separate access routes: one for passenger vehicles and one for freight vehicles. There are separate terminals serving freight and passenger traffic:

• The Passenger Terminal provides customers with an opportunity to take a break, have something to eat or drink, change money and do some shopping. Eurotunnel's duty free shops are open 24 hours a day and stock more than 4000 different product lines. The duty free system is due to be abolished at the end of June 1999.
• Freight vehicles board in the same way as passenger vehicles, except that they have separate terminal facilities and segregated access routes. A service area is provided for lorry drivers, with toilets, showers, a restaurant, a duty-free shop and a rest area on each terminal.

Buying tickets: Eurotunnel offers customers several ways to buy tickets. Tickets can be purchased on the day of travel at Check-in. Customers can also make a reservation and take advantage of current special offers. Reservations can be made through travel agents, or by contacting the Eurotunnel Call Centre which is staffed by multi-lingual operators (0990 353535).
 

RAILWAY SERVICES: THE EUROSTAR

Eurotunnel manages the use of the Channel Tunnel infrastructure by the railway companies and ensures that freight trains and Eurostars travel reliably and safely through the tunnel.Under the terms of the Usage Contract, the railway companies are entitled to use up to 50 % of the total capacity of the tunnel. The use of the tunnel by Eurostar and freight trains generates revenue for Eurotunnel. The railway companies pay Eurotunnel an amount relating to the number of passengers and volume of freight carried plus a fixed usage charge and a proportion of the operating costs. The Usage Contract guarantees that Eurotunnel will receive specified minimum payments until 2006. In 1997, revenue from the railway companies accounted for 32% of Eurotunnel’s total revenue.

Eurostar

Eurostar high-speed passenger trains are operated jointly by Eurostar (UK) Ltd, SNCF (French Railways) and SNCB (Belgian Railways). Designed to operate on the rail networks of the UK, France and Belgium, as well as through the tunnel, Eurostar takes three hours to travel between London and Paris and two hours 40 minutes between London and Brussels. On completion of the high-speed rail link in the UK, scheduled for 2003 and 2007, the journey times will be reduced to 2 1/2 hours and 2 hours 10 minutes, respectively. Eurostar’s Call Centre number is 0990 186186.

Eurostar services not only link London with Paris and Brussels : some also call at Ashford, Calais-Frethun, Lille-Europe (for connections elsewhere in France), Marne-La-Vallée (Disneyland Paris) and in winter, Bourg-Saint-Maurice (Alps).

Eurostar, which operates up to 21 services daily between London and Paris and up to 10 between London and Brussels, carried 6,044,268 passengers in 1997 and 6,307,849 in 1998.

Freight through-trains

This is a new market, created as a result of the Channel Tunnel. Previously trains were loaded in small sections onto ferries fitted with rail tracks and then reformed into complete trains. As of early 1998, freight trains only accounted for approximately 3 % of the freight market, but this is slowly growing.

The freight through-train services are operated by SNCF and by English, Welsh & Scottish Railways Limited (EWS), a subsidiary of Wisconsin which, in November 1997, took over British Rail’s freight subsidiary, Railfreight Distribution.

In 1998 8918 freight trains carrying over 3.1 million tonnes of freight travelled through the Tunnel in 1997 (2.8 million tonnes in 1997). The majority of these were intermodal trains carrying swap-bodies and containers. France/UK and Italy/UK traffic accounted for the largest part of the market.

Under the terms of the agreement between the UK and French governments for the extension of the Concession until 2086, Eurotunnel undertook to contribute to the development of freight through-train traffic. The Group has submitted a proposal to the UK and French governments and to the railways, and it is now under consideration.

The Channel Tunnel Rail Link

Under the terms of the agreement between the UK Government and London and Continental Railways, the latter retains financial responsibility for the project. Provision is made for the high-speed rail link to be constructed in two stages, Railtrack having committed to build Stage 1 and having taken an option on Stage 2 :

• stage 1, between the tunnel and Ebbsfleet to the south of London, represents two thirds of the distance and will be completed by 2003, permitting a time-saving of 17-20 minutes out of the expected total saving of 30 minutes when both stages of the link are complete ;
• stage 2, which will be much more difficult and expensive to construct because of the need to cross built-up areas in London, is scheduled for completion in 2007 and will terminate at St-Pancras station in north London.

EUROSTAR HISTORY

11/09/1981: France and the United Kingdom announce the launch of studies of a fixed link under the Channel

20/01/1986: Margaret Thatcher and François Mitterand announce that they have chosen the Eurotunnel project: a dual rail tunnel for trains and shuttles carrying motor vehicles

15/12/1987: Channel Tunnel construction begins

28/06/1991: The tunnel boring is completed

17/05/1993: Waterloo International Terminal is completed

20/06/1993: The first Eurostar train travels through the Tunnel

11/11/1993: British Government announces competition for private sector interest in construction of Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), the British high speed line

06/05/1994: British Government announces competition for private sector interest in construction of Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), the British high speed line

06/05/1994: Inauguration of the Tunnel by Queen Elizabeth and President François Mitterand

17/08/1994: First introductory journeys with personnel from the three companies on board Eurostar trains

23/05/1995: One millionth passenger travels by Eurostar

08/01/1996: Start of service from Ashford International station

12/06/1996: Five millionth passenger travels by Eurostar

29/06/1996: Direct Eurostar service from London to Disneyland Paris commences

18/12/1996: Royal Assent granted for the construction of the CTRL

07/05/1997: Ten millionth passenger travels by Eurostar

13/12/1997: Ski Trains, direct Eurostar service from London and Ashford to Moutiers and Bourg St Maurice in the French Alps commences

14/12/1997: Opening of the Belgian High-Speed Line reduces London-Brussels time to two hours 40 minutes

17/05/1998: Opening of major improvements and additional facilities at Paris Gare du Nord

01/10/1998: Start of work on the UK high-speed line (CTRL)

15/12/1998: The Inter Capital and Regional Rail (ICRR) consortium assumes operating responsibility for Eurostar (UK), the British operating arm of Eurostar

17/12/1998: 20 millionth passenger travels by Eurostar

18/12/1998: First overnight Ski Train from Waterloo to the French Alps

03/09/1999: Creation of Eurostar Group: Eurostar Group determines the commercial direction and service development of the overall Eurostar business. Eurostar services are jointly operated by Eurostar (UK), French Railways (SNCF) and Belgian Railways (SNCB/NMBS).
 

TECHNICAL FIGURES

Eurotunnel currently has 9 passenger shuttles, 7 freight shuttles and 38 locomotives. The passenger shuttles were built by the Canadian group Bombardier and its two French companies ANF based in Valenciennes and BN at Bruges, Belgium. The freight shuttles were built by Breda. A further three freight shuttles are being built by ARBEL-Douai, each consisting of 32 carrier wagons and three loader wagons. The first of these wagons was delivered on 4 June 1998. The electric locomotives were built by Brush traction in the UK using electronics from ABB in Switzerland. They are the most powerful locomotives for their size in the world.
 

Each passenger shuttle consists of:
- 2	locomotives (one at each end of the shuttle)
- 2	single-deck loaders
- 12	single-deck carriers
- 2	double-deck loaders
- 12	double-deck carriers

Each freight shuttle consists of:
- 2	locomotives (one at each end of the shuttle)
- 1	Club Car for the freight vehicle drivers
- 4	loaders in the BREDA shuttles, 3 in the ARBEL shuttles
- 29	carriers in the BREDA shuttles, 32 in the ARBEL shuttles

General specifications of the Eurotunnel shuttles
 

	Passenger shuttle	Freight shuttle (BREDA)	Freight shuttle (ARBEL)
Maximum length (excluding loco)	750 m	727 m	741 m
Locomotive
Length	22.8 m	22.8 m	22.8 m
Width	2.966 m	2.966 m	2.966 m
Height	4.2 m	4.2 m	4.2 m
Carrier wagon
Weight	63 t (double-deck and single-deck)	37 t	35 t
Length	26 m (dd and sd)	20 m	20 m
Width	4.10 m (dd and sd)	4.10 m	4.10 m
Height	5.75 m (dd and sd)	5.60 m	5.60 m
Loader wagon
Weight	64.5 t (dd) 54.5 t (sd)	55 t	52 t
Length	27.5 m (dd) 26 m (sd)	25 m	25 m
Width	4.10 m (dd) 4.09 m (sd)	4.10 m	4.10 m
Height	5.60 m (dd) 5.57 m (sd)
Weight of a Club Car		45.5 t	46 t
Tonnage hauled, normal conditions	2,200 t	2,380 t	2,370 t
Maximum theoretical tonnage	2,400 t	2,700 t	2,730 t

The terminals and tunnels which make up the transport system constitute a huge industrial complex.Each rail tunnel has a single rail track, overhead line equipment (catenary) and two walkways (one for maintenance purposes and the other for use in the event of an emergency evacuation, the latter being wider and on the side nearest the service tunnel). The walkways are also designed to maintain a shuttle upright and in a straight line of travel in the unlikely event of a derailment.

The track in each rail tunnel has two continuously welded rails laid on precast concrete supports embedded in the concrete track bed. Cooling pipes, fire mains, signalling equipment and cables are fixed to the sides of the tunnels.

The overhead catenary supplies traction power to the shuttles and through-trains in the rail tunnels. It is divided into sections, to allow maintenance work to be carried out in stages.

Electrical power supplying the tunnels, drainage pumps, lighting and trains, is provided by substations on each side of the Channel. In the event of loss of power from one side, the entire system can be fully supplied from the other side.

In addition, Eurotunnel has its own standby generators to provide power in emergency situations.The tunnels and connecting passages have lighting for operational, maintenance and emergency purposes.The fixed lighting installations can be switched on from the control centres or from within the tunnels. Various fire-protection and detection systems are installed along the length of the tunnels.

Principal items of fixed equipment

Mechanical equipment in the tunnels (120,000 supports and 550 km of pipes)

• plant for the 2 ventilation systems (normal and standby) at each end;
• the cooling system with the cooling plants at Shakespeare Cliff in the UK and Sangatte in France;
• the drainage system with 6 pumping stations;
• the fire main;
• 600 special doors, including the cross-passage evacuation doors every 375 m and the giant crossover doors.

• 200 km of track, including 100 km in the tunnels, and 176 points, including 4 crossovers ;
• the catenary (950 km of cables and 15,000 supports).

• 2 principal substations connected to the British and French grids to supply 160 megawatts at 25kV for traction (equivalent to the supply for a town of 250,000 inhabitants) and 21kV (three-phase) for other fixed equipment ;
• 175 secondary substations (high, medium and low-voltage supply), 350 km of supports and more than 1,300 km of cables in the tunnels ;
• 20,000 lighting fixtures.

SAFETY

Safety was one of the prime considerations when the Eurotunnel system was designed and developed. With the system fully operational and transporting millions of people each year, the safety of customers and staff continues to be a guiding principle.

Safety Regulation and the Safety Case

The Channel Tunnel has its own, independent safety regulator, the Channel Tunnel Safety Authority, which reports to the Intergovernmental Commission, set up jointly by the Governments of the UK and France. The regulator considers the best practice from other industries and does not take into account commercial considerations.

All aspects of the operation have been considered as part of the Eurotunnel Safety Case. This formal document contains a risk analysis and assessment for all activities. It is used as a point of reference for any changes. A further risk analysis is done on any proposed change to ensure that it will further improve the safety of customers and staff. The document is continually updated in the light of experience and further technological developments. Eurotunnel was the first railway company in the world to use this approach, and it has subsequently become a legal requirement for all rail operators in the UK.

System Design

The system was designed to make the most of technical developments from all modes of transport. Many systems are duplicated so that there is added protection built in. The following examples illustrate this approach.

There are two rail tunnels for the trains to use, operating normally one in each direction. This separation, and the fact that the system layout is a figure of eight, reduces the risk of collision. Between the two rail tunnels is a service tunnel, which provides a continuous safe haven throughout the length of the tunnel. The service tunnel has a higher air pressure than the rail tunnels, thus ensuring that smoke or fumes cannot enter this area. The service tunnel is directly accessible from the rail tunnels through a series of special doors every 375m, as well as being accessible from both terminals for emergency and maintenance access.

The rail control centre is located on the UK terminal, with a duplicate on "hot standby" on the French terminal. From this centre, all the systems relating to the tunnel and the surrounding terminals are monitired on a continuous basis. The power supply for the system is designed with a feed from both countries to ensure that a failure on one side does not stop operations, this measure is in addition to the emergency generating capability, which is also located on both sides of the Channel.

All trains using the Channel Tunnel must have two locomotives, or two power cars, and which individually must meet certain power characteristics. Thus in the event of a problem with one, the other locomotive has the capability of pulling the train out of the tunnel.

Staff Training and Certification

All Eurotunnel staff have to meet stringent security and health requirements. All those in safety critical posts have to pass an initial job training and certification tests, and are subject to re-certification at least every three years. Training programmes include practical tests and extensive use is made of training simulators. These simulators are also used for emergency exercises which are conducted regularly to ensure that all staff are properly prepared in the unlikely event of an emergency.

Regular drills are conducted with all key operational staff. For example the train crew regularly practise the evacuation of either an individual wagon, or a complete train. This is often done without prior warning, and involving real passengers to ensure that the drill is as realistic as possible.

Eurotunnel also conducts major incident exercises on a regular basis. At times, these require the closure of the tunnel to all commercial traffic in order that a full and complex scenario can be properly tested. The tests are conducted jointly with the emergency services from both France and the UK, and are witnessed by members of the Safety Authority, who subsequently review any recommendations which may come from Eurotunnel following the exercise.

Continuous Learning

Despite the considerable safeguards that come from the initial design, Eurotunnel continues to develop and improve its safety performance. Procedures and practices are re-evaluated in the light of experience, both at Eurotunnel and in other transport operations, as well as taking into account new technological advances.

The freight shuttle service was temporarily suspended for six months following a fire in November 1996. No-one was seriously injured in the fire, but Eurotunnel conducted a full review of the incident and implemented a number of recommendations before seeking the authority to restart the service. The Safety Authority report recommended 36 actions to improve the service, but in all Eurotunnel has now implemented over 100 separate actions to improve the service further.

The company has an accident reporting system which allows "near misses" as well as accidents to be reported and then investigated. As well as allowing the company to benchmark against other transport operators, the analyses also help prioritise future actions and investments.
 

Fuente: Eurotunnel - Eurostar
http://www.eurotunnel.co.uk
http://www.eurostar.com