Eurotunnel reopens in week of French travel chaos

Updated
Eurotunnel reopened in week of French travel chaos
Eurotunnel reopened in week of French travel chaos



After problems earlier in the week, the Eurotunnel resumed normal service this morning (Wednesday).

The service was temporarily disrupted yesterday when MyFerryLink demonstrators are thought to have set fire to the tracks in Calais.

According to the Telegraph, the issues on the tracks were down to striking ferry workers at Calais who started the fires and blocked the tracks.

Although service has been resumed, Eurostar described yesterday's situation as 'not the easiest of days' and warned passengers to expect trains to be 'exceptionally busy' when they went back into service.


One passenger, Anna-Marie Edwards, who spoke to the BBC described the experience of being trapped in the tunnel as 'absolutely terrifying'. She also said that that train had been halted 10 km outside of Calais and they had been given little information about what was happening.

In a statement on their website, Eurostar said: "We are operating a full service today and would advise you allow 45 minutes before your scheduled departure for check-in."

Those affected by the issues yesterday were advised to request a refund through the company's website.

With the school summer holidays about to begin, July marks one of the busiest months in the year for the Eurotunnel.

Eurotunnel reopened in week of French travel chaos
Eurotunnel reopened in week of French travel chaos



This disruption has added to many other issues including the closure of the port at Calais and a two day air traffic control strike which is expected to start tomorrow, the Telegraph reports.

The closure of the port means that the MyFerryLink, DFDS Seaways and P&O ferries that usually leave Dover are not in operation.

Passengers travelling on DFDS Seaways will be transferred to Dunkirk instead, which is an hour's drive from Calais.

A spokesperson also told the Telegraph that these services would be an hour begin schedule and they wouldn't be able to confirm that customers would be given refunds instead.


Those travelling through Dover and Calais are warned to contact their travel providers before leaving.

The French air traffic control strike is expected to start tomorrow and continue through to Friday as well.

Ryanair's chief marketing officer, Kenny Jacobs, said: "This is the second time in two months that French ATC unions will deliberately close the skies over Europe and disrupt the travel plans of millions of consumers. The timing of these strikes is designed to cause maximum disruption to consumers because there's little or no capacity in the system to allow customers to rebook or reschedule cancelled holidays."

The airline has already asked the French government to allow other EU air traffic controllers to operate in French airspace so that flying over the area will still be possible.


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