Train
journeys are enjoyable – far relaxed from those of air – one can enjoy the
nature, the places seeing trees traveling against you – stretching oneself to
see the rustic scene of a bowler running in – not knowing what happened to that
delivery ! – in advanced countries it could be different, for the sheer speed
at which trains travel !! Eurostar is the service that allows you to catch a
train from London to Paris and beyond. There's a sea in the way, of course, but
Eurostar dives under it, using the 31-mile Channel Tunnel. ~ and can you
imagine that this is a seat of the train that we are reading about !
The Channel Tunnel is a
50.5-kilometre (31.4 mi) rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent, in the United
Kingdom, with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais, near Calais in northern France, beneath
the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. The tunnel has the longest undersea
portion of any tunnel in the world, although the Seikan Tunnel in Japan is both
longer overall at 53.85 kilometres (33.46 mi) and deeper at 240 metres (790 ft)
below sea level.
Eurostar is a high-speed
railway service connecting London with Paris and Brussels. All its trains
traverse the Channel Tunnel between the United Kingdom and France, owned and
operated separately by Eurotunnel. The London terminus is St Pancras
International, with the other British calling points being Stratford
International, Ebbsfleet International and Ashford International in Kent.
Calling points in France are Calais-Fréthun and Lille-Europe, with trains to
Paris terminating at Gare du Nord. Trains to Belgium terminate at Midi/Zuid
station in Brussels. The service is operated by eighteen-coach Class 373/1
trains which run at up to 300 kilometres per hour (186 mph) on a network of
high-speed lines.
With the new
trains unveiled by Eurostar – London to Paris will be in just two hours. Eurostar passengers traveling between London
and Paris will soon have their journey time cut by 15 minutes, after the
company unveiled a fleet of new high-speed trains.
By the end of next year, travellers will be able to make the 306-mile trip to
Paris through the Channel Tunnel in just two hours, thanks to a 200mph
state-of-the-art train. In a £550 million deal, Eurostar originally ordered 10
of the e320s - so called as they can travel at 320kph (200mph). The trains will
go into service at the end of 2015. There were just two trains a day when the
service started, while there are now between 15-17 daily services to Paris.
Eurostar is
celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, and what better way to celebrate
than with a fleet of shiny new trains? Eurostar has unveiled the
first of its state-of-the-art new fleet of 200mph trains that will speed up
journey times for thousands of passengers from London to Paris. Revealing for
the first time that the train will go into service at the end of 2015, the e320
is capable of carrying 900 passengers and will have free wifi throughout.
The company also revealed that it was
ordering a further seven new trains, beyond the 10 originally requested in a
£550 million deal with German firm Siemens.
The launch event also comes on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the
first Eurostar train services in November 1994. The new trains represent an
increase in capacity for Eurostar’s fleet of 20 per cent, while it will is
reportedly estimated to cut journey times from London to Paris by 15 minutes.
The trains are described
as being "inter-operable", meaning they can run across diverse
European signalling systems, opening up the potential for a whole range of new
direct services between the UK and European city center destinations. Eurostar
claims that until new e320 train comes into service, passengers will soon see a
complete transformation of their service. The combination of bold design, chic
interiors and wifi connectivity will raise the bar, providing an unprecedented
level of style and comfort for the customers. At its core, the e320 is Siemens
Velaro train -- a model that is used on high-speed train routes in Germany,
Spain, China and Russia. Overall the e320 is 400m
long and it has earned its name due to the fact it can travel at 320km per
hour. A look at the train and its
interiors makes us envy the amazing technology.
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar
14th Nov. 2014
