For many British children, going through the tunnel for the first time is an unforgettable experience. You have been told you are going under the sea, but you enter a large industrial container with what seems like hundreds of lined-up cars with roof boxes on. You look around and see equally disappointed children who can’t see fish outside of the windows, as they expected. Then the shuttle train reaches the French side, confirmed when you see the huge signs: ‘REMEMBER TO KEEP TO THE RIGHT’. My generation remembers those exciting holiday trips, but many have no idea of the long history of this Channel tunnel, now 30 years old this week.
It is worth looking back at its turbulent history and how it came to be. Despite being a showcase in human engineering while providing massive commercial benefits, this Anglo-French project proved problematic, with some false starts.
The beginnings
The idea of an under-sea tunnel connecting England to mainland Europe was first proposed by French engineer Albert Mathieu-Favier in 1802. He proposed a horse and carriage system, lit with oil lamps and pulley systems. His idea did not garner much interest because the British government feared a French invasion under Napoleon. It wasn’t until 1865 that the idea was given some thought in England. Conservative MP George Ward Hunt proposed to the then chancellor, William Ewart Gladstone, that he should consider an Anglo-French tunnel. It was over the next ten years that this idea began to be taken more seriously, and by 1876, a protocol was established for a cross-Channel railway tunnel.
War paranoia
By 1881, the protocol had progressed, and construction had started. However, this was very short-lived, as the British military still believed that a tunnel would reduce national security. Thus, the idea was parked for four decades until the 1920s, when Winston Churchill proposed the idea multiple times. Progress was yet again slow-moving, and there was a fear that Germany could build two tunnels under the Channel and stage an invasion. However, this fear soon faded as aircraft became a more dominant tool of war during the 1940s.
Constructing, again
With the economic growth of the 1960s, the project was revived. In 1964, a first agreement was signed, and, by 1973, a second agreement followed. The UK joined the EU in 1973 under the Conservative government of Edward Heath, so a joint Anglo-French project made sense. Construction on the tunnel started in 1974. But in a U-turn, the new Labour government quickly cancelled the scheme on the grounds that it was too expensive and ultimately a waste of limited public funds in a country that was facing a dire economic situation and inflation due to rising oil prices internationally.
Thatcherism and the Treaty of Canterbury
In the first year of her premiership (1979–1990), Margaret Thatcher began the ‘Mouse Hole Project’. In line with standard Thatcherism, there was little chance that it would be funded by the government, and private finance would be needed. Over the next seven years, the government was to decide on numerous proposals for the underwater connection between England and France, and the choice came down to four: the Channel Tunnel group, Eurobridge, Euroroute and Channel Expressway. However, in January 1986, the government decided to proceed with the Channel Tunnel group. The main reason was Thatcherism epitomised: it was the most likely option to attract sufficient private finance.
This decision was cemented in law by the Treaty of Canterbury. By June of the following year, all the necessary agreements had passed through the French senate, and the Channel Tunnel got the green light. The Channel Tunnel group was now entrusted with the operation, design, construction and financing of the Channel Tunnel. Finance was raised by issuing shares in both countries, on the Paris and London markets. Those early private investors got lifetime privileges of concessionary tickets through the tunnel.
Construction, difficulties and completion
Construction involved considerable innovation and cooperation between the two nations. Over the course of seven years, more than 10,000 people worked on completing the project. Eleven tunnel boring machines were used, which have since played a huge role in tunnel projects around the world.
Conditions were often dark and sometimes dangerous, and during the construction of the tunnel, ten workers were killed. Eight of these were British and two were French. It was no secret at the time that it was expensive, and the press was not shy to expose this. It has been revealed that costs exceeded the original budget by 80%, reaching more than £9bn.
On 1 December 1990, a choreographed completion was set up. An English and a French worker broke through at the same time with camera crews and journalists present.
On 6 May 1994, the Channel Tunnel was ready for commercial use. It was formally opened in a ceremony involving Queen Elizabeth and French President François Mitterand travelling in opposite directions. Later that year, when the first trains were ready, local councillors from across Kent were invited to take a special trip to Paris.
The tunnel had been completed 192 years after it was first imagined. There was now a 50.46 km railway running under the English Channel that could carry passengers and cargo at speeds of up to 160 km/h.
Passengers and cargo
Success was slow, and only 300,000 passengers crossed the Channel in 1994. However, this figure increased annually, and the latest figures reveal that it has been used by more than 20,000,000 passengers. Cargo also increased at a similar rate, and in 2017 it was revealed that over 22,500,000 tonnes had been carried through.
Migration and Brexit headaches
The Channel Tunnel is stuck in a fiery political world. Many would-be asylum seekers have used the Channel Tunnel as a route into the UK. By 1997, this issue had already begun to garner press attention. Over the next 30 years, many migrants would attempt to reach the UK via the Chunnel. In 2015, this issue reached its peak during the European migrant crisis, and Calais was at the epicentre. A landfill site close to the Channel Tunnel housed more than 8,000 people looking to enter the UK or waiting for their French asylum claims to be processed. Conditions were bleak, and the French and English governments had a huge job at hand.
Many migrants would risk their lives attempting to enter the UK via the Channel Tunnel. The majority of those who reached the UK did so as stowaways via trucks in extremely dangerous conditions. Notably, ten migrants died in France in 2015 while attempting this. It was even reported that one individual gained access to the central tunnel and attempted to walk the distance before being arrested by British police. The Channel Tunnel was a lifeline for many vulnerable migrants who were escaping wars and persecution.
Since Brexit, as of 1 February 2020, the Channel Tunnel is now at the border of the EU, which has resulted in longer checks for those wishing to enter the Schengen area. As a result, commercial drivers have been faced with long traffic jams in southeast Kent, especially in the spring of 2022.
Thirty years on
As I sit here writing about the origins of the Channel Tunnel, it seems that over the last decade political noise has dominated the discussion around the Chunnel. The days of appreciation for this revolutionary engineering seem to have disappeared. The history of the project reveals a game of ping-pong between two countries who ultimately shared a common interest: accessible travel between their territories. The work and ingenuity of this Anglo-French project should not be forgotten. Getlink, which holds the concession to operate the tunnel, is still making new investments in it, for instance the highly profitable interconnection line, which now brings electricity to Kent.
The Chunnel remains the third longest rail tunnel in the world, despite being three decades old. Expansions of routes and destinations are being planned over the next decade. Many children will be taking their first overseas holiday by going through this tunnel. However, like me at a younger age, they will still be disappointed when they find out they can’t see any fish out of the windows.
