Eurostar
The Eurostar.
When the channel tunnel opened and
allowed rail travel from the UK to France and beyond the concept of the Eurostar
was born.
The Eurostar is an international high
speed service between London-Paris-Brussels using the channel tunnel. It is
jointly operated by British rail, SNCF ,SNCB .The Eurostar operates at speeds of
300 kph on the Nord-Europe line in northern France
The specifications of the new train were
drastic, since they had to conform not only to the requirements of three
different rail networks, but also to special issues of tunnel safety. Final
specifications were settled upon in November 1988. A firm order to build 30
train sets was placed with GEC-Alsthorn in December 1989; a further 8 were later
added to this order.
Eurostar's debut was delayed by the controversy surrounding the time and budget
overruns encountered during construction of the tunnel. Perhaps this was
providential, since technical problems were encountered while the new train sets
were being tested on British rails. The archaic 750V third rail power supply
that Eurasian uses in Britain caused electrical interference problems with the
sensitive signalling system, causing the train shut itself down unexpectedly.
In the summer of 1993 the first train
set arrived on British soil via the tunnel
The Eurostar service was inaugurated on
November5 1994 and the service was expanded slowly to many destinations
The train sets
The Eurostar TGV was arguably the most
complicated and sophisticated train ever to ride the rails when it was
introduced. From the outside, the train set looks distinctly different from
other TGVs, but retains a subtle air of familiarity. Quoted from the TGV
Spotter's Guide, some basic specifications:
Build Dates: 1993-1995
Territory: LGV Nord-Europe and points
north
Top Speed: 300 km/h (186 mph)
Number in Service: 31
Supply Voltages: 25kV 50Hz AC, AV
DC, 750V DC third rail (1.5kV DC for some)
Traction: 12 3 -phase AC asynchronous
motors, total power 12200 kW (16300 hp) under 25kV supply
Configuration: 1 power car + 18 trailers + 1 power car, 794 seats (see formation
)
Length and Weight: 394 m / 752 tonnes
Special Notes: International
(40/40/20) cooperation between France, Britain and Belgium.
Eurostar train sets come in two kinds:
long and short. 31 train sets are long, with 18 trailers between two power
units. The remaining 7 are short, with only 14 trailers.
