On May 6, 1994 , one of the great constructions of the 20th century was opened, a work of civil engineering that united, nothing more and nothing less, than two countries: the United Kingdom and France.
26 years ago the Eurotunnel or English Channel tunnel was put into operation, both for traveling by private car and by train. In just 35 minutes you can travel from the cities of Calais in France and Folkestone in the United Kingdom. During this time, the 50.5 kilometers of the Eurotunnel are covered.
The English Channel Tunnel gets its name from joining the Strait between these two countries where the smallest surface sea in Europe is located.
The train, in addition to connecting France and the United Kingdom, also allows transportation to other countries such as Belgium, so you can travel from London to Paris in about 2 hours and 20 minutes on theEurostar high-speed passenger train.
The 50.5 kilometers of the Eurotunnel position it as the third longest underground tunnel in the world , behind the Gotthard Base Tunnel in Switzerland and the Seikan in Japan.
Napoleon’s dream The
English Channel tunnel is a huge project that was already approved by Napoleon in 1882, but it was not until 1987, thanks to an agreement between the French president Francois Mitterrandand British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher , when construction began. The total cost of the tunnel was 13,500 million dollars and in 2013, it had already reached a turnover of 1,090 million euros. Large 200-meter-long tunnel boring machines capable of penetrating different types of terrain without stopping up to 20 kilometers
were needed for its construction . A process was followed by which the excavation began from both countries at the same time in order to culminate in the middle. Traffic
The Eurotunnel only has two lanes
for road traffic, one outbound and one back, however, the volume of traffic is enormous. The year of its inauguration (1994) was crossed by some 7,000 travelers and the last year for which data is available, 2015, by more than 19,000.
Buses and trucks also use this tunnel to travel from France to the UK without having to be transported on a ferry. Hence, the traffic data of these vehicles increase every year.
