how old is the euro tunnel?

Answer 1

12 years - Officially opened in 1994

Answer 2

Eurotunnel plc (in the UK) and Eurotunnel SA (in France) make up the Eurotunnel Group, founded in August 1986, which manages and operates the Channel Tunnel between the UK and France.

It operates the car shuttle and earns revenue on other trains (freight by EWS and SNCF and passenger service by Eurostar) passing through the tunnel. Unfortunately, passenger numbers are around one-third of the original projections.

Heavily indebted, the company has been struggling with the interest on the £10bn it has taken to construct the tunnel. The tunnel cost nearly 6 times more than expected to build and Eurotunnel's debts are around $11 billion. Its profits can not even match its interest payments. In order to deal with this, many cuts in services have been introduced with varying success and a third of the staff has been laid off.

The Eurotunnel was once expected to take nearly all business away from cross-channel ferry companies, however the increase in passengers has meant there has been enough customers for both.

As part of the original deal, Eurotunnel has had to invest in research of another two-storey road tunnel, but for cars only, as the fumes of lorries would be too much.

Answer 3

1998

Answer 4

1986 - 20th January
Margaret Thatcher and François Mitterrand announced that the Eurotunnel bid had been selected.

1986-12th February
Foreign Affairs Ministers of both countries signed the Franco-British Treaty in Canterbury.

1986 - 14th March
The Concession Agreement was awarded to the two concessionnaires «The Channel Tunnel Group Ltd / France-Manche SA» for a period of 55 years.

1986 - 13th August
Formation of the Eurotunnel Group.
Signature of the construction contract between Eurotunnel and TransManche Link (TML)

987 - 29th July
Margaret Thatcher and François Mitterrand ratified the Treaty of Canterbury, paving the way for the Channel Tunnel to become a reality.


Construction Period

1987 - 15th December
Boring of the service tunnel starts on the UK side.

1988 - 28th February
Start of service tunnel boring on the French side.

1990 - 1st December
British and French teams achieved the first historic breakthrough under the Channel, in the service tunnel, 22.3 km from the UK and 15.6 km from France.

1991 - 22nd May
Breakthrough in the North rail tunnel.

1991 - 28th June
Breakthrough in the South rail tunnel.

1993 - 10th December
Handover from TML to Eurotunnel.

1993 - 1994
Equipment installation and testing.

Operations:

1994 - 6th May
Official opening by Queen Elizabeth II and French President François Mitterand.

First freight service
1994 - 1st June
First international freight train in commercial service through the Channel Tunnel.

Commercial Truck shuttle
1994 - 25th July
Start of commercial truck shuttle service.

Eurostar
1994 - 14th November
Start of the commercial Eurostar service through the Channel Tunnel.

Passenger shuttle service
1994 - 22nd December
Start of the commercial passenger shuttle service for cars.

1995 - 21st March
Opening ceremony of the commercial centre Cité-Europe, next to the Coquelles terminal.

Commercial shuttle for coaches
1995 - 26th June
Start of the commercial shuttle services for coaches.

1995 - 29th September
Start of the commercial passenger service for camper vans and caravans.

1996 - 18th November
Fire in the South tunnel, caused by a truck on a truck shuttle.

Financial Restructuring

1997 - 10th July
Approval of the financial restructuring plan by shareholders at an Extraordinary General Meeting.

1997 - 19th December
Official agreement from governments to extend the Concession to 2086.

1998 - 29th January
Official signing of the financial restructuring agreement.

1998 - 7th April
Completion of financial restructuring.

operations (Next)
1998 - 15th June
Opening ceremony of the F46 building, the longest railway workshop in the world, on the Coquelles terminal (828 m).

Arbel Truck shuttle
1999 - 11th January
Commercial launch of the first new Arbel truck shuttle.

1999 - 23rd March
Eurotunnel is named Top Construction Achievement of the 20th century for the Channel Tunnel.

1999 - 1st July
End of Duty Free within the European Union.

1999 - 30th December
Eurotunnel presents a road tunnel project to the two governments, as required by the Concession Agreement

Pet Travel scheme
2000 - 28th February
Start of the Pet Travel Scheme for cats and dogs.

2003 - 15th March
Eurotunnel becomes the first railway operator to apply for a licence under new EU rules liberalising the rail freight market.

2003 - 28th September
Opening of the first section of the high speed rail link in the UK.

2004 - 13th February
Eurotunnel is the first company ever to be granted a rail operator’s licence in France.

2004 - 7th April
Shareholder vote a new Board at the AGM.

2005 - 1st January
Launch of the new truck shuttle strategy which guarantee priority access to truck shuttles for hauliers under contract with Eurotunnel.

The Fixed Link between the United Kingdom and France is made up of twin railway tunnels and a service beneath the sea bed in the English Channel and two terminals, at Folkestone, in Kent and Coquelles, in the Nord Pas-de-Calais for passenger and freight access.

It operates a fleet of 25 shuttle trains to transport cars, coaches and trucks and grants access to passenger and freight trains from railway companies.


Eurotunnel plc (in the UK) and Eurotunnel SA (in France) make up the Eurotunnel Group, founded in August 1986, which manages and operates the Channel Tunnel between the UK and France.

It operates the car shuttle and earns revenue on other trains (freight by EWS and SNCF and passenger service by Eurostar) passing through the tunnel. Unfortunately, passenger numbers are around one-third of the original projections.

Heavily indebted, the company has been struggling with the interest on the £10bn it has taken to construct the tunnel. The tunnel cost nearly 6 times more than expected to build and Eurotunnel's debts are around $11 billion. Its profits can not even match its interest payments. In order to deal with this, many cuts in services have been introduced with varying success and a third of the staff has been laid off.

The Eurotunnel was once expected to take nearly all business away from cross-channel ferry companies, however the increase in passengers has meant there has been enough customers for both.

As part of the original deal, Eurotunnel has had to invest in research of another two-storey road tunnel, but for cars only, as the fumes of lorries would be too much.

Answer 5

Which one?

Ha....that's got you thinking, hasn't it?

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http://www.theotherside.co.uk/tm-heritage/background/tunnel.htm#1880