Would class 395 be able to operate to France?

[NotATrainspott]

Was just going to bring up a similar point to that, although my question was going to be about whether a minimum length was only applied to passenger trains.

In this video we clearly see at 6:45 a single Class 92, definitely not 400m long.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKh_n0b-JDk

Minimum length and the arduous fire safety regulations only apply to passenger and vehicle revenue-earning services through the tunnel. Presumably only 'safe' kinds of freight are allowed through, including rolling stock transfers of otherwise restricted units (i.e. almost, if not every, train that has been built in Europe in a factory connected to the standard gauge network).

 

[DownSouth]

This might be a little off topic, but did you know Kent and Calais is the same 'economic zone' under the EU? I think it's a shame that more hasn't been done to allow better transport for Britain over the channel. The Eurostar is similar to a plane service, I've always thought a proper train service without the fuss is needed.

I agree, the "security" pantomime and the passport controls are ridiculous. But until the UK government recognises that the UK is in Europe they can't go away.

 

[jopsuk]

An easier solution would be to have a lifting bridge, or a relatively short 'dive-under' in a courseway that carried it below the shipping channel.

But I imagine the environmentalists would do their nut about such a megastructure.

A lifting structure? Problem is the amount of traffic. At all times of day and night there is an almost continuous stream of marine traffic in either direction.

Dive unders? Perhaps. They have to go down quite a way, you'd need to basically use tunnels that were sunk into position, into a trench- the biggest ships ever had too deep a draught to get through the channel, so depth is already a limiting factor.

The "islands" you'd need for the dive under approaches would be significant, which would drastically change the tidal flow of water in and out of the channel. Yes, that would be environmentally damaging, in very big ways.

 

[HSTEd]

Well 'environmentally damaging' is a largely subjective term.

Take for instance, the La Rance tidal power project in France, many would say that the environment has been 'damaged' by the barrage.
While I would say that the ecosystem is different to its previous form it is hard to say whether it is actually better or worse.

Whilst the Severn Tidal barrage would damage the 'natural' ecosystem an entirely different ecosystem with far greater biodiversity and net biomass productivity would replace it, and the argument could be made that it would actually improve the environment of the Estuary.

The same thing [Different but not necessarily better or worse] is likely true of a Channel Causeway that would effectively close the Straits of Dover to tidal flows.

And you would only need to raise a lifting bridge for the largest vessels, many of the smaller coasters could cross underneath a traditional bridge span.

 

[B&W]

Having been up and down through the Dover Straits on 270,000t vessels down to 10,000t vessels when in the Merchant Navy and now regularly going across on my yacht I can assure you there is far too much big commercial traffic to risk squeeze through a bridge or lifting bridge. International shipping does not operate to uniform schedules, sometimes traffic is light other times I am dodging up to 5 large eastbound vessels (ignoring smaller coastal shipping) abreast in the narrowest part all going at different speeds and getting themselves set for the right separation zones for the onwards English, French, Belgium, Europort and Elbe deepwater channels. Westbound is also made restricted by vessels aiming to go either side of the Varne Bank off Dungeness if their draught allows.

Even though the really big ULCC tankers that used to offload part of their cargos in Lyme Bay etc to reduce their draught to safely pass the Strait are now scrapped the current large VLCCs and largest container ships will still have very limited water under their keels in some places, so do not steer well at all if they have to reduce speed. Imagine the difficultly in maneuvering a VLCC with its windage in 60/70knots of wind like today because of a lifting span got stuck in the winds.
Hope this explains why a bridge would not get IMO maritime international approval the Straits of Dover operate under.

Brian