Posted 22nd December 2009 | 2 Comments
Eurostar running two-thirds of service today
Eurostar is running a reduced service today, after the three-day shutdown triggered by multiple train failures in freezing conditions on Friday night. If all goes well, two-thirds of the normal service is expected to be operated. Passengers who had bookings for Friday and Saturday are being given priority today, and the operator says later bookings will only be honoured tomorrow and Thursday.
Eurostar engineers say they have discovered that the main problem was snow penetrating the engine compartments. A membrane behind the ventilation grilles, which is designed to stop snow getting into the engines, is now being upgraded after a series of tests.
But the operator is still reeling under a barrage of criticism. As many as 75,000 passengers have been denied travel since Friday, and ferries have been refusing foot passengers in some cases, because they are no longer equipped to deal with passengers without vehicles. To add to the problems, Eurotunnel shuttles were overwhelmed on Monday, and many would-be travellers were turned away from the terminal at Folkestone. The airlines have reacted by providing extra flights and larger aircraft on routes to the Continent.
Eurostar is offering full refunds to all passengers who choose not to travel as a result of the problems. The 2500 who were actually stranded on Friday, when five trains stalled inside the Channel Tunnel, are receiving a full refund, another free return journey and £150, plus out-of-pocket expenses.
But the delays in helping stranded passengers, some of whom were left on trains in the Tunnel without power for several hours, have prompted calls for the resignation of Eurostar CEO Richard Brown. Mr Brown is in any case due to take the post of non-executive Eurostar Chairman in the New Year.
He has already announced that Eurostar will now carry out an independent review into the crisis, but Transport Minister Sadiq Khan has ordered that the results be given to him and Eurostar shareholders, rather than just the Eurostar Board.
Meanwhile, the French government is calling for a separate inquiry. French Transport Minister Dominique Bussereau described the long shutdown as "not acceptable". He said there would be an investigation into "what happened, how it happened and how to avoid such events in the future".
Reader Comments:
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Ralph Cugley, Birmingham, England
My Thoughts and comments.
Well you couldn't run steam trains through the Tunnel beacuse of venitlation & fire issuses. Like wise with Diesel power and of course no steam of Diesel train has been developed that can run at the speeds requierd. As for the comment about Electric trains and not having an engine, of course they they do. As an engine is any machine that converts energy into mechanical work. Energy form OHLE to traction at axel / rail
I have worked for the railways for 25yrs and what always amazes me or dissappoints me in these situations is the fact that out of the 3 main transport systems ( Air, Road, Rail) the railways should be the one that keeps rolling, as traction to rail is not really afected by snow or ice. In fact the only fact that should really affect trains runing is the train crews, signalers getting to work, becuase unlike years ago they in most case live far from the depots Also they spend hundreds of millions pounds developing these trians with all the technial issues that go into the development, and over look such a small one as ingress of snow or rain. It realy is pathetic for someone trying to explain why the trains break down to say "Well this is the worst weather we have had for XX amount of years. After all it is a fact that we had worse in the winters of 47, 63, 81 and some in between, thses trains are developed to run for decades. It was like some years ago when someone came out with it's the wrong type snow. They spend millions of pounds to develope and build fleets of trains to come out with that as excuse as to why millions of poeple get stranded and the economy loses billions of pounds. Anyway I can't help hanging my head in, if not shame then dissapointment when this sort situation happens.
David Jones, Birmingham, England
"Eurostar engineers say they have discovered that the main problem was snow penetrating the engine compartments. A membrane behind the ventilation grilles, which is designed to stop snow getting into the engines, is now being upgraded after a series of tests."
I thought Eurostar trains were electric and therefore don't have an 'engine' ?? Surely if these trains were diesel powered the heat generated by the 'engine' would have eliminated the problem??
Likewise this problem would not have affected steam locomotives and yet we call it progress!!