Communications In The English Channel Tunnel

Abstract

This paper represents the design of a 2-way radio network which is currently being used to support the construction phase of the railway tunnels under the English Channel, between France and Southern England. The design has been presented previously, in quite some detail in a IEEE VTS paper, referenced at the end of this paper. The system design is based on VHF signal distribution via a medium of 'leaky feeder' coaxial cable and cascasded bidirectional repeater amplifiers. This new paper will describe an overview of the two systems, illustrating the differences between the system provided to France and the British system.