TRAVELUNITED KINGDOM
Eurotunnel strike halting traffic between France, UK ends
4 hours ago4 hours ago
Workers at the Eurotunnel connecting the EU and UK went on an unannounced strike Thursday, paralyzing travel. Staff at the tunnel initiated the blockade over a pay dispute.
https://p.dw.com/p/4aS3v
Passengers and their belongings on a platform next to a Eurostar train at Paris’ Gare du Nord station
Stranded passengers were at a loss to find travel alternatives with the Eurotunnel blockedImage: SARAH MEYSSONNIER/REUTERS
Workers at Getlink, the company that operates the Eurotunnel connecting the UK and France, initiated a wildcat strike on Thursday shortly after midday.
The work stoppage paralyzed train travel, affecting the high-speed Eurostar passenger line as well as others transporting cars and trucks.
The blockade also affected trains between London, Amsterdam and Brussels.
Getlink said workers cited a “terrible deterioration of social climate,” and were angered by a €1,000 (roughly $1,100) year-end bonus offer from company management, demanding triple that amount.
The sudden strike left travelers on both sides of the Channel scrambling to find alternative means to get to their destinations just days before the Christmas holiday.
The strike was ended Thursday evening after negotiations between workers and management, “bore results that satisfy us,” according to a union statement.
Getlink announced that rail shuttle services would resume on Thursday evening and passenger rail travel on Friday.
The strike caused chaos at train stations in London and across the EU.
At nearby Calais, France, a line of cars and trucks waiting to board UK-bound trains stretched for over a kilometer.
Transport minister calls for ‘immediate’ halt to unannounced strike
The 50-kilometer (31-mile) Eurotunnel is one of the longest train tunnels in the world, stretching along the Strait of Dover; between Coquelles, France, and Folkstone, England. It carries nearly 10 million passegers a year, according to Getlink, which would equate to just over 27,000 a day if constant.
Getlink told Reuters news agency, “today’s call for strike action by representatives of Eurotunnel’s French site staff unions has resulted in the complete interruption of service and the closure of our terminals in the UK and France.”
Eurostar has released a series of tweets urging customers to postpone Christmas travel plans.
French Transport Minister Clement Beaune released a tweet in which he labeled the blockade “unacceptable” and called for an “immediate” solution to the situation.
The 50-kilometer (31-mile) Eurotunnel is one of the longest train tunnels in the world, stretching along the Strait of Dover; between Coquelles, France, and Folkstone, England.
Prior to the COVID pandemic, Eurotunnel transported more than 10 million passengers per year, or around 27,000 a day if constant. Those figures collapsed in 2020 and 2021, but recovered to more than 8 million last year, and operators had hoped for more gains in 2023.
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js/msh (AFP, Reuters)
