Eurostar — a railway system connecting London and a county Kent in the Great Britain with the cities of Paris and Lille in France and Bruxelles in Belgium. Trains Eurostar cross La Manche through the Eurotunnel. Train Eurostar goes from station Voksholl.
Electric trains of a series are specially developed for operation on railway system Eurostar 373 (on the British classification). Train Eurostar, in essence, is extended TGV, adapted for operation in the Great Britain and the Eurotunnel.
The number of distinctions includes smaller volume of the car, satisfying to the British standard on dimensions of a rolling stock of the railways, the asynchronous traction engines created in the Great Britain and the improved system of fire-prevention safety on an ignition case in a tunnel.
On British classification TOPS the train has name Class 373 EMU. During the designing the train was called TransManche Super Train. The train has been designed by firm GEC-Alsthom (nowadays Alstom), operation has begun in 1993.
National Express Group + SNCF + SNCB + Ashford International = Eurostar
38 full trains have been ordered by following railway companies: 16 structures have got SNCF, 4 — NMBS/SNCB (the Belgian railway operator) and 18 — British Rail from which 7 were type North of London. Before privatisation British Rail structures have been bought London and Continental Railways which has organised affiliated company Eurostar (UK) Ltd., which now copes a consortium of companies National Express Group (41%), SNCF (34%), SNCB (14%) and Ashford International (9%).
All trains Eurostar are adapted for work on lines LGV with an alternating current (including a line in the Eurotunnel and standard lines in the Great Britain), the Belgian lines with a direct current and the British systems with the third rail, extended in the south of the country. The third type of a food remains superfluous when in 2007 line building between London and the Eurotunnel will come to the end.
Three trains SNCF it is used only in France and now are painted usual silver-blue scheme TGV. Structures Eurostar North of London were never used for the international transportations: on them carry passengers from London to cities to the north of the capital, however the given transportations do not bring now profit as the British air carriers have agreed about reduction of the prices for tickets. Part of trains have been rented Ashford International Station (for tourist trips from Ashford to London).
Chief executive Eurostar Richard Brown has expressed opinion, that after the expiry of the term of operation of train Eurostar will be replaced with two-storeyed trains TGV Duplex.
Ashford Railway Station already uses this kind of trains. Two-storeyed trains can transport 40 million passengers a year between England and Continental Europe that is equivalent to building of a new runway at the London airport.