Text 7313, 59 rader
Skriven 2007-10-20 09:18:07 av Ward Dossche (2:292/854)
     Kommentar till en text av Dale Shipp
Ärende: Re: St. Bernardus Abt 12
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DS>WD> In Europe there are 2 countries only with left-side driving
DS>WD> ... Ireland and Great Britain. Nowhere do they connect via
DS>WD> highways to other lands ... usually islands do not do that.
 
DS> Can you drive through the Chunnel?  Or is it only train transport?
 
It is train-transport only.
 
You need to book accomodation very much the same as you book an airplane-ticket
and depending on the day of the week and the time of day there is more or less
accomodation and different rates.
 
Check-in is drive-thru style based on your credit-card or confirmation-number
or passenger-name.
 
If you show-up too early, you have the option of being accomodated on an
earlier train without surcharge.
 
If you show-up late you have the option of being accomodated on any of the
three next available trains on which there is accomodation.
 
Typically during peak-hours there is a train every 30 minutes. While this may
be little, it needs to be pointed out that there are separate trains for
passengercars and busses as well as for trucks. Plus there are the hourly
high-speed trains from Paris and Brussels to London also moving through the
Chunnel. In free slots there are freighttrains moving through the tunnel and
there are technical runs at times as well so during rush-hours there is a
high-volume of traffic moving through it.
 
At both ends there is a waiting-area for passengers with food-courts and
entertainment-options as you would expect in a mall. No McDonnalds... ;-) ...
though there is Burger King on the British side. ;-)
 
All through the terminal there are screens announcing trains much the same as
at an airport.
 
I've taken it already a couple of times though I previously vowed never to.
Never paid more than 30 Euro for a single ride for a passenger car, that is
today the equivalent of US$ 42-43.
 
As Great Britain is not a Schengen-country there are border-crossings with
customs and immigration. The are performed prior to boarding the train in the
country of departure.
 
One glitch ... cars with LPG-tanks (liquefied petroleum gas) are not allowed.
Natural gas propelled cars are OK.
 
Just to get a feel of the service, which is excellent I must say, here's their
web-site: http://www.eurotunnel.com.
 
I thought I had some photos of the interior of such a train available but can't
seem to find them at the moment.
 
Take care,
 
 \%/@rd

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