Sujet

Heads of State Queen Elizabeth II and President Francoise Mitterrand officially open the Channel Tunnel on 6 May 1994

Légende

On May 6, 1994, the UK and French Heads of State - Queen Elizabeth II and President Françoise Mitterrand - officially opened the Channel Tunnel to the public, only seven years after ratification of the Treaty of Canterbury. In that short time, the Channel Tunnel – the greatest construction project of the 20th century - was completed and ready for business. Work on the project had totalled more than 170 million man hours but, finally, all of the obstacles and difficulties that seemed to stand in the way of this immense and historic project were in the past. The Channel Tunnel is no ordinary project. The four types of cross-channel service that the Tunnel offers - conventional freight and passenger trains, plus two types of road vehicle shuttle have made it into the busiest railway in the world. The fast and efficient movement of road and rail traffic into, through and out of the Eurotunnel system is integral to that success. The Channel Tunnel is one of the wonders of the modern world. It is thirty-two miles long at an average depth of 45 metres below the sea-bed, the longest undersea tunnel and the second longest rail tunnel in the world (only the Seikan Tunnel in Japan is longer). It was built between 1987 and 1994 by Anglo-French consortium TransManche Link and is owned and operated by Anglo-French Eurotunnel plc. It opened for business in late 1994, offering services including a shuttle train for car, coach and freight vehicles, a Eurostar high-speed passenger service linking London with Paris and Brussels and a rail freight service. . The Channel Tunnel consists of three parallel tunnels. There are two rail tunnels carrying trains to and from the UK to France and a smaller access tunnel served by narrow rubber-tyred vehicles and connected by transverse passages to the main tunnels at regular intervals.

Info+

Photographe : qaphotos.com

Date

06 mai 1994

Crédit

Photo12/Alamy/qaphotos.com

Notre référence

LMY24T02_B8J2JD

Utilisation

uniquement en France

Model release

Non

Property release

Non

Licence

Droits gérés

Format disponible

42,0Mo (2,5Mo) / 39,7cm x 26,5cm / 4693 x 3130 (300dpi)

Mots clés

accomplishment breakthrough conquest delight elation euphoria excitement exultation jubilation joy overcome prevail pride rejoice succeed success triumph victory passage route conduit shuttle hgv high speed tgv london paris brussels weatherproof accomplishment breakthrough conquest delight elation euphoria excitement exultation jubilation joy overcome prevail pride rejoice succeed success triumph victory passage route conduit shuttle hgv high speed tgv london paris brussels weatherproof passengers commuters tourists business uk france anglo-french technology platform loading ticket arrival departure in out system flow efficient efficiency movement transit travel passage motion treaty of canterbury channel tunnel eurotunnel queen president opening head of state elizabeth ii francoise mitterand prince phillip duke of edinburgh prime minister john major government england france uk europe gift present celebration completion achievement historic amazing earth shattering extraordinary famous important masterpiece momentous remarkable significant