Powering the tunnel

The aim of the Channel Tunnel project is to establish a fixed-link transportation system between England and France; the authors look at the progress of the electrical power supplies that are the backbone of that system. Electrical power is required for two quite different purposes within the tunnel: as the energy source for the railway locomotives, and for all the auxiliary systems required to operate the tunnels. This blend of traction load and auxiliary load, together with the fact that power is supplied from two different countries-by two systems that must not be paralleled makes the power supply system for this project unique