Cross-Channel trade on Eurotunnel continued to grow during 2015, despite disruption from migrants as well as French protestors and striking workers.
Eurotunnel’s Le Shuttle Freight carried nearly 1.5 million lorries between the UK and Europe, making a record for the company.
Le Shuttle Freight moves the vehicles between Folkstone, Kent and Pas-de-Calais. It credited its success to its ability to run “24 hours per day, 365 days per year” which is ahead of what ferries can achieve.
Since the 1994 opening of the tunnel, 23 million trucks have been transported through it.
The company said that new security measures installed this year had played a strong part in reducing disruption.
During the year, freight transport on both sides of the Channel was subjected to delays as migrants tried to stow away on trains and lorries.
Other delays resulted from fires started on the tracks approaching the Tunnel set by protestors in France and also by striking employees of French shipping company My Ferry Link.
By June of this year Eurotunnel said it already had a security bill of €13 million because of damage and it has set about claiming multi-million pound compensation from the Government.
Eurotunnel currently operates 19 cargo trains and is adding three new ones to meet increased demand. Each train is nearly 2,500ft long and can carry 32 trucks.
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And where will Portugal's encampment be ? In the Pyrenees alongside Spain's or, nearer, somewhere along the Spanish border ?