Channel Tunnel

Geography glossary

Also called: Chunnel, Eurotunnel · Topic: World Transport and Communication · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 7 "Transport and Communication"

Meaning

The Channel Tunnel (also called the Chunnel) is a rail tunnel about 50 km long that runs under the English Channel. It links Folkestone in England with Coquelles near Calais in France [2]. It is run by the Eurotunnel group.

It matters because it gave Britain its first fixed link with mainland Europe. A fixed link is a permanent road or rail connection, unlike a ferry. Trains can now run directly from London to Paris and Brussels.

Explanation

Why it was built

Britain's railways were cut off from mainland Europe.
Britain is an island. The English Channel, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean, separates it from France.
Before 1994, there was no fixed link between Britain's railways and the rest of Europe.
Passengers and goods had to change to ships or planes to cross the Channel.
Europe has one of the densest rail networks in the world.
It is about 4,40,000 km long (NCERT figure), and most lines have two or more tracks.
London, Paris and Brussels are major railheads. A railhead is a city where many lines meet and from which traffic spreads out.
Joining London to this network was the obvious next step.

Parts of the tunnel

It is not one tunnel. It is made of three tunnels [2]:
Two rail tunnels, one for each direction of travel.
One central service tunnel between them, used for maintenance and safety [2].
Ends:
Folkestone, in Kent, England.
Coquelles, near Calais, France.
Opened: 6 May 1994 [2].
Operator: the Eurotunnel group. That is why it is also called "Eurotunnel".

What makes through-trains possible

Same gauge on both sides. A gauge is the distance between the two rails of a track.
The United Kingdom uses standard gauge (1.435 m). So does most of Europe.
So trains can run straight from British tracks onto French and Belgian tracks. Nobody has to unload and reload goods at the border.
Result: the tunnel joined the British network to Europe's dense network. Direct trains now run between London, Paris and Brussels (NCERT exercise 1(v)).
It suits Europe's main traffic. In Europe, passenger traffic matters more than freight. Fast passenger trains between the capital cities are what the tunnel is best known for.

Where it occurs

Water body crossed: the English Channel, between Britain and France. It is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean.
English end: Folkestone, in the county of Kent in south-east England.
French end: Coquelles, near the port of Calais in northern France.
Cities it links by rail: London (UK) with Paris (France) and Brussels (Belgium). All three are major European railheads.
India: there is no such undersea link. But the idea of a fixed cross-border rail link applies to India's rail links with its neighbours, and to corridors like INSTC (International North–South Transport Corridor) and IMEC (India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor).

Don't confuse with

London Underground ("Tube", 1863): the world's oldest underground railway. It runs in tunnels below one city. The Channel Tunnel runs under the sea and joins two countries.
Trans-continental railway (e.g. Trans-Andean Railway): crosses a whole continent from coast to coast, for example Buenos Aires to Valparaiso. The Channel Tunnel is a short sea-crossing fixed link, not a trans-continental line.
Ship canals (Suez 1869, Panama 1914): these cut through land so that ships can pass from one sea to another. The Channel Tunnel goes under the sea so that trains can pass from one landmass to another.
Eurotunnel: this is the name of the operating group, not a separate tunnel. "Chunnel", "Eurotunnel" and "Channel Tunnel" all refer to the same link.

Prelims Hooks

Channel Tunnel ends: Folkestone (Kent, England) and Coquelles near Calais (France). Trap: the French end is Coquelles, not Calais town itself.
Length: about 50 km (31 miles) [2].
Structure: three tunnels, two for trains and one central service tunnel [2].
Opened: 6 May 1994 [2]. Run by the Eurotunnel group.
Cities linked by direct trains: London–Paris and London–Brussels.
Gauge fact: the UK uses standard gauge (1.435 m), like most of Europe. This is why trains can run straight through the tunnel.

Mains Points

Fixed links help regions come together (GS-III infrastructure):
The Channel Tunnel ended Britain's rail isolation and joined it to Europe's dense, passenger-focused network.
It cut travel time between the capitals, London, Paris and Brussels.
This is a lesson for India's cross-border rail links and for corridors such as INSTC and IMEC.
Common standards matter as much as the tunnel itself (GS-III):
Britain and mainland Europe use the same standard gauge, so trains could run straight through.
Where gauges differ, goods must be unloaded and loaded again, which wastes time and money.
India's move to a single broad gauge (uni-gauge) deals with the same problem.
Geography shapes where links are built (GS-I):
A narrow sea channel between two densely peopled, industrial regions made a tunnel worth building.
Railways spread where people, industry and traffic are found. This is the same reason Europe, with railheads like London, Paris and Brussels, has one of the world's densest networks.

Related concepts

Railways of the world: by continent

Sources

1Class 12, Ch 7 "Transport and Communication" (primary)
2Channel Tunnel — Britannicabritannica.com · tier 3