Eurotunnel is installing a telephone system in the Channel Tunnel that means passengers on high speed trains and Le Shuttle will be able to make and receive mobile phone calls under the sea.
Passengers will be able to enjoy a wi-fi service 100 metres below the Channel.
The system will cost €14 million. The additional, mobile telecommunications service has been made possible as Eurotunnel is already in the process of installing the latest version of GSM-R1 railway signalling equipment.
The choice of the same equipment supplier for both GSM-P and GSM-R, Alcatel-Lucent, will ensure the compatibility of the infrastructure and enable costs to be controlled.
The French operators will provide an extension of their 2G/3G coverage through the south running tunnel (running France-UK) via a radiating cable and repeaters positioned every 750 metres.
The North running tunnel (UK-France) will be covered by British operators after the Olympic Games.
I hope this is a separate business venture that pays a fee to Eurotunnel. Otherwise that €14 million should have been used to adjust fares or enhance core services.
I also hope that all those sad or over important people that cannot possibly be out of contact for half an hour will be jammed together in a couple of noisy carriages so the rest of us can relax and enjoy our journeys.