4 ms·

Fear, Friendship and the Channel Tunnel

21 points by Thevet 2y ago

qingcharles 2y ago
Channel Tunnel ancedotes... I "beta tested" the tunnel a few times before it opened. One bug we discovered was that it was common for us in the South-East of England to travel regularly over to France, fill our cars up to breaking point with duty-free booze and cigarettes and come home. The problem with the Chunnel trains is that the cars enter at one end and drive through the train. On the way back from France none of our cars could get over the "hump" between the coaches. They look flat now, so they must have reengineered them: https://runwaygirlnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Inside-the-train-the-key-difference-is-that-passengers-remain-in-their-vehicles.-Image-John-Walton-scaled.jpg https://runwaygirlnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Ins... Second bug was getting out halfway through and walking through the fire escape tunnels. They have a PA system for the fire crews to issue instructions. But it has a 26 mile long echo. So you can't hear anything. https://www.flickr.com/photos/jaguarcarsmena/43994120214/in/photostream/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/jaguarcarsmena/43994120214/in/... https://www.theheritageportal.co.za/sites/default/files/styles/adaptive/public/articles/Cross%20over%20in%20tunnel%20-%20London%20to%20Paris%20in%20ten%20minutes.JPG?itok=YQF3pBpz https://www.theheritageportal.co.za/sites/default/files/styl... (the crossover cavern halfway through)
- eCa 2y ago
  > none of our cars could get over the "hump" between the coaches. Sounds like feature for the border control to ”randomly” select such cars for a search, to be honest. I don’t think the alcohol-across-borders amounts have changed that much since then.
  - wmanley 2y ago
    Back in the days of peak "booze cruise"[1] the ferry companies used to issue every passenger with a leaflet describing exactly what the duty free limits were. You'd go over, max it out and come back. If border control were to select on this basis they'd spend all day pulling over bearded men in anoraks driving volvo estates, searching their cars and discovering that they have exactly the "right" amount. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booze_cruise https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booze_cruise
    - switch007 2y ago
      £10-20 return ferries. Those were the days (or the newspapers' £1 promotions)
      - qingcharles 2y ago
        £1 promotions practically every week for the locals. I damned near ate French cuisine in Calais on a weekly basis as a kid.
- sedan_baklazhan 2y ago
  Did anybody travel in reverse to buy English drinks, or it didn't make sense at all?
  - qingcharles 2y ago
    Good question! I guess none of the French wanted a nice box of English wine?
    - sedan_baklazhan 2y ago
      Whiskey then?
  - switch007 2y ago
    That's hilarious! I'm imaging droves of French people day-tripping to Folkestone for fish-and-chips, sausage rolls, expensive cigarettes and expensive crap beer. LOL (Apologies if a genuine question - just as a Brit, the thought is actually hilarious) I think it's fair to say the French had way, way more to offer Brits than vice versa. Of course they visited/visit the UK, but to see the country more than to buy any particular goods in bulk The GBP was stronger compared to the Franc/EUR back in the heyday of Eurotunnel too, IIRC
    - sedan_baklazhan 2y ago
      Well I’m not a local. I could guess there are some English whiskeys and beers and anything else? Which should be really good. France doesn’t offer everything..
      - thatfrenchguy 2y ago
        French people, especially back in the day, have a particular distaste of British food though for mostly irrational reasons. It's also more expensive. It's a little bit like how you don't see people in Savoie or Ain going to buy food in Switzerland, but the french supermarkets are packed with Swiss-plate expensive cars looking for a bargain.
- throwup238 2y ago
  Did they end up putting sound baffles to eliminate the echo?
  - qingcharles 2y ago
    From the looks of it, no. I wonder if there was another solution?
- switch007 2y ago
  Some of my happiest memories were day/short trips to France. The Channel Tunnel blew my mind as a kid. Being able to 'drive' to the continent in 30 minutes. Woah! The undeniable 'farm' smell when getting off the train is one that's solidified in my mind. I won't ever forget it, and every time I get off at Coquelle or visit northern France, it takes me right back to the very first time. Same as whenever I visit a Carrefour - it takes me right back to Cité Europe --- Here's a cool animation of the machine that dug the tunnel https://preview.redd.it/mf4yb5unbgz61.gif?width=600&format=mp4&s=90a2ef33d112c16c1ef6e666fcf08637d4f142fe https://preview.redd.it/mf4yb5unbgz61.gif?width=600&format=m... and more generically about the process https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuYdnzcQXhk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuYdnzcQXhk
xfz 2y ago
Sneaky paywall hidden below the fold.

21 points by Thevet 2y ago

Channel Tunnel ancedotes... I "beta tested" the tunnel a few times before it opened. One bug we discovered was that it was common for us in the South-East of England to travel regularly over to France, fill our cars up to breaking point with duty-free booze and cigarettes and come home. The problem with the Chunnel trains is that the cars enter at one end and drive through the train. On the way back from France none of our cars could get over the "hump" between the coaches. They look flat now, so they must have reengineered them: https://runwaygirlnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Inside-the-train-the-key-difference-is-that-passengers-remain-in-their-vehicles.-Image-John-Walton-scaled.jpg https://runwaygirlnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Ins... Second bug was getting out halfway through and walking through the fire escape tunnels. They have a PA system for the fire crews to issue instructions. But it has a 26 mile long echo. So you can't hear anything. https://www.flickr.com/photos/jaguarcarsmena/43994120214/in/photostream/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/jaguarcarsmena/43994120214/in/... https://www.theheritageportal.co.za/sites/default/files/styles/adaptive/public/articles/Cross%20over%20in%20tunnel%20-%20London%20to%20Paris%20in%20ten%20minutes.JPG?itok=YQF3pBpz https://www.theheritageportal.co.za/sites/default/files/styl... (the crossover cavern halfway through)

eCa 2y ago
> none of our cars could get over the "hump" between the coaches. Sounds like feature for the border control to ”randomly” select such cars for a search, to be honest. I don’t think the alcohol-across-borders amounts have changed that much since then.
- wmanley 2y ago
  Back in the days of peak "booze cruise"[1] the ferry companies used to issue every passenger with a leaflet describing exactly what the duty free limits were. You'd go over, max it out and come back. If border control were to select on this basis they'd spend all day pulling over bearded men in anoraks driving volvo estates, searching their cars and discovering that they have exactly the "right" amount. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booze_cruise https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booze_cruise
  - switch007 2y ago
    £10-20 return ferries. Those were the days (or the newspapers' £1 promotions)
    - qingcharles 2y ago
      £1 promotions practically every week for the locals. I damned near ate French cuisine in Calais on a weekly basis as a kid.
sedan_baklazhan 2y ago
Did anybody travel in reverse to buy English drinks, or it didn't make sense at all?
- qingcharles 2y ago
  Good question! I guess none of the French wanted a nice box of English wine?
  - sedan_baklazhan 2y ago
    Whiskey then?
- switch007 2y ago
  That's hilarious! I'm imaging droves of French people day-tripping to Folkestone for fish-and-chips, sausage rolls, expensive cigarettes and expensive crap beer. LOL (Apologies if a genuine question - just as a Brit, the thought is actually hilarious) I think it's fair to say the French had way, way more to offer Brits than vice versa. Of course they visited/visit the UK, but to see the country more than to buy any particular goods in bulk The GBP was stronger compared to the Franc/EUR back in the heyday of Eurotunnel too, IIRC
  - sedan_baklazhan 2y ago
    Well I’m not a local. I could guess there are some English whiskeys and beers and anything else? Which should be really good. France doesn’t offer everything..
    - thatfrenchguy 2y ago
      French people, especially back in the day, have a particular distaste of British food though for mostly irrational reasons. It's also more expensive. It's a little bit like how you don't see people in Savoie or Ain going to buy food in Switzerland, but the french supermarkets are packed with Swiss-plate expensive cars looking for a bargain.
throwup238 2y ago
Did they end up putting sound baffles to eliminate the echo?
- qingcharles 2y ago
  From the looks of it, no. I wonder if there was another solution?
switch007 2y ago
Some of my happiest memories were day/short trips to France. The Channel Tunnel blew my mind as a kid. Being able to 'drive' to the continent in 30 minutes. Woah! The undeniable 'farm' smell when getting off the train is one that's solidified in my mind. I won't ever forget it, and every time I get off at Coquelle or visit northern France, it takes me right back to the very first time. Same as whenever I visit a Carrefour - it takes me right back to Cité Europe --- Here's a cool animation of the machine that dug the tunnel https://preview.redd.it/mf4yb5unbgz61.gif?width=600&format=mp4&s=90a2ef33d112c16c1ef6e666fcf08637d4f142fe https://preview.redd.it/mf4yb5unbgz61.gif?width=600&format=m... and more generically about the process https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuYdnzcQXhk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuYdnzcQXhk

xfz 2y ago

Sneaky paywall hidden below the fold.