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In order to complete the tunnel, there were 12,000 engineers,
technicians and workers involved to create the world’s longest
underwater tunnel which was 24 miles from the north of France to
the south of England, earning it the prestigious “Global
Engineering of the Century Award” by the International Federation
of Consulting Engineers.
The idea to end Britain’s isolation as an island and dig a tunnel
to France emerged as early as the 18th century. A project was first
launched in the 1970’s, but was soon abandoned.
But in January 1986, President Mitterrand and Prime Minister
Margaret Thatcher officially signed an agreement to start the
construction of the tunnel.
Lady Thatcher faced enormous opposition to the project within her
own party, the Conservatives, but she managed to push it through
and famously insisted that “not a public penny” would be used.
Construction lasted for six years and cost approximately 15 billion
euros.
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The tunnel finally opened twenty years ago in 1994 and, six months
later, the first Eurostar passenger train travelled through. After
initial disappointing traffic, the number of people using the
tunnel increasingly grew and around 330 million passengers have
made the trip since the inauguration in 1994.
The tunnel, which carries passengers and freight traffic has now
become a formidable competitor to maritime ferry services and
airlines for people traveling on the Paris to London route.
photo credit: Tinker Sailor Soldier Spy via photopin
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