How The Channel Tunnel Works

a shuttle service that allows passengers to take their vehicles with them, effectively connecting the French and UK motorways at the terminals. There is also a passenger train service that runs through the

tunnel

and, with the addition of High Speed ​​1, or HS1, in 2007, it is now possible to take the train from London to Paris and beyond. Ordinary shuttle trains run in a loop, meaning that at each terminal there is a track that runs from the exit of one

tunnel

, turns around, and then enters the other tunnel. To prevent the uneven wear of the wheels from always turning in one direction like in a NASCAR race, the French side has a crossover, which makes the entire tunnel form a huge figure 8.

People are not the only load that goes through the

channel

tunnel, though. Freight transport is also making its way. There are services for heavy trucks that are placed on the trains, and there is even a club car for drivers to hang out during the passage under the canal. Full freight trains also pass through the tunnel, and service continues past the terminals on both sides. Clearly, the Channel Tunnel is a triumph of modern civil engineering, and engineers around the world are studying its design and construction today. However, not everything was something to celebrate. Like so many megaprojects, the construction of the tunnel came at a human cost.

More than ten workers died during the construction of the project. Of course, it is absolutely unacceptable to trade safety for speed of construction, even on the world's largest construction project, and after multiple lawsuits and investigations, things improved and the rest of the project saw far fewer incidents of security. The tunnel has also played a complicated role in illegal immigration and asylum seeking in the UK, including some tragic incidents involving migrants. The project was also significantly over budget, which is saying a lot since it was already scheduled to be the MOST EXPENSIVE construction project in history. I have a whole video that talks about some of the reasons why projects like this end up costing more than expected, so I won't go into all of those details here.

The Channel Tunnel is unique because it was privately financed, unlike most large infrastructure projects of this type. The vast majority of the financial burden and risk was borne by banks and individual investors, and there was even a public offering. There aren't many infrastructure projects you can buy a part of. Over time, the tunnel has slowly turned a profit, but it has been less lucrative than anticipated. While it may be the most epic way to cross the English Channel, it's certainly not the ONLY way. Discount airlines in Europe are much more prevalent than in the 1980s and in many cases it is more desirable and cheaper for travelers to simply fly, especially if their final destination is not the south coast of England or the north coast of England.

France. . Additionally, for thousands of years, people have crossed the

channel

by sea. Ferries remain a completely viable and economically competitive way of crossing. It may seem a little crazy to choose a ferry instead of the sense of wonder and delight that comes with passing through one of the most incredible tunnels in history, but maybe some people just like boat rides. A lot has changed in the 30 years since the Channel Tunnel was completed. Construction technologies, of course, but transportation infrastructure as a whole has also evolved. We would probably change many things about the Channel Tunnel if we could go back to those days when the project was first conceived, but in reality, many would argue that perhaps it should not have been built at all.

Knowing what we know now about the complexity of work in a world of cheap flights, ferries, dynamic international relations and 21st century financial markets, it might be a little more difficult to demonstrate that the costs would be outweighed by the benefits. But that's part of the problem with megaprojects: it's impossible to separate their broad impacts on the world and the benefits they provide compared to an alternative where they don't exist. Just last year, construction of a high-voltage electrical interconnection between the United Kingdom and France through the tunnel was completed, a project that might not even have been considered if the tunnel were not already there.

It is easy to criticize the optimism needed to justify huge, expensive projects in the face of an uncertain future, but projects like the Channel Tunnel create opportunities and benefits that permeate society in unique and often intangible ways. I'm an engineer, so I view achievement through a technical lens. It is, without a doubt, one of the most spectacular engineering feats in history. To me, that's worth celebrating in its own right, from the intense geological research that led to the project, to the enormous tunnel boring machines that devour so many miles of loam, from the creative piston ventilation and relief systems, to the unsung hero of the service . tunnel.

Whether it was a strictly practical idea or not, I'm glad it's there. I haven't had the chance to travel from Folkestone to Calais yet, but if I do, I know how I'll get there and it's not a ferry. One thing that's hard to keep in mind about the Channel Tunnel is that, when it was built, there was almost nothing like it in the world. There simply aren't many tunnels of this length in the world, and most of them were built after the Chunnel. There were no experts in a 30-mile-long underwater tunnel. In many ways, it was an experiment, and to me, that's one of the most interesting parts of engineering: using our knowledge of math and physics to execute an idea that's never been tried before.

Here's another good example of this: launching a satellite by launching it into space. It could work? Today's sponsor, Brilliant, collaborated with   my friend Brian from the Real Engineering channel to create an entire course just to answer that question. From centripetal motion to the heat and strength requirements of materials, he breaks down many of the engineering challenges of an idea like this and shows you how to solve them. I love to learn. I think one of the most important things you can do in life is to always be expanding your horizons. And for me, that's not just learning facts.

It is trying to understand the issues more deeply. To achieve this, you have to really dive in, try things, fail, and try again. It's learning by doing and that's why I love Brilliant. I think it is the best way to start learning mathematics, physics, data science and programming interactively. There are thousands of lessons, from basic topics to advanced topics, and they are always adding new ones every month, so there is always something new to learn. You can try it yourself, completely free for 30 days at Brilliant.org/PracticalEngineering. Try it and see if there isn't something there that makes you think, "I always wanted to understand that." The link is in the description.

Thanks for watching and let me know what you think.