Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel (colloquially known as the "Chunnel") is a railway tunnel connecting the United Kingdom with France beneath the English Channel. It is 31.35 miles (50.45 km) in length (of which 23 miles or 37 km is under water[1]), and extends from Cheriton, near Folkestone, Kent, UK, to Sangatte, Pas de Calais, France. The tunnel cost £9 billion to build and consists of two parallel single-track railway tunnels with a smaller-diameter service tunnel between.[2] The tunnel is managed by Eurotunnel,[3] which operates a shuttle-service carrying cars and trucks between terminals at each end. In addition, high-speed railway services between London and Paris and between London and Brussels run through the tunnel. These are operated by the railway company Eurostar.
History
Napoleon first suggested the building of a road tunnel between England and France in 1802, in a brief moment of peace between the two countries.[4]
