EURO TUNNEL "fencing"

[fulton]

Traveled on EURO TUNNEL today, question what is the purpose of the heavy duty, looking, tall "fencing" around 5m tall at each terminal by the loading/unloading platforms, wind break maybe? Curious every time I travel through the tunnel. Noted very quiet today, French terminal buildings closed , was sent directly to the loading area, so caught the earlier shuttle which was handy.

[Fat Controller]

11 hours ago, fulton said:

Traveled on EURO TUNNEL today, question what is the purpose of the heavy duty, looking, tall "fencing" around 5m tall at each terminal by the loading/unloading platforms, wind break maybe? Curious every time I travel through the tunnel. Noted very quiet today, French terminal buildings closed , was sent directly to the loading area, so caught the earlier shuttle which was handy.

If you mean the black 'rubber' strips, they serve as a windbreak. Depending on wind speed and direction, they can produce some interesting noises; It can be quite spooky on a quiet night shift. Given the Tourist Shuttles are effectively a 750m wall, on narrow foundations, strong wind, from particular directions was considered a risk. The 'rubber fences' are one way of mitigating the problem; if wind speed and direction are deemed to constitute a problem, 'en-tiroir' operation is instituted, with trains running 'end-to-end' via the departure tracks, thus avoiding the French Loop. This is very disruptive of the timetable, as platform dwell times are extended, and conflicts occur at the portals. It's fairly rare for this to happen, fortunately; in the 23 years I worked in the Control Centre, I would say I remember only half-a-dozen instances where this sort of operation was applied because of the weather.

There is a secondary function, in that dividing the platform down the centre-line means it's easier to load two trains simultaneously.

 

[fulton]

Yes that was the fence in question, thank you for your informative reply.