How could Eurotunnel have responded better to train stuck under the Channel?

Simon Calder answers your questions on ferry passengers’ rights, airport strikes in Spain, flight compensation, and being stranded below the sea

Passengers in the ‘service tunnel’ after a Calais-to-Folkestone shuttle came to a halt (PA)

Q Do you have any thoughts on how badly Eurotunnel handled the stuck train earlier this week, both for the passengers on the shuttle and those waiting at the terminals? How can they be encouraged to improve communications and handling in the future?

Rich72

A On Tuesday afternoon a Calais-to-Folkestone car-carrying shuttle with around 100 vehicles on board came to a halt in the Channel Tunnel due to an alarm on the train. Eurotunnel tells me: “As a precautionary measure, for their safety and comfort, we transferred the passengers on board to another shuttle, via the service tunnel (which is there for exactly that purpose) whilst we investigated the cause of the alarm. The service tunnel is a functional environment built as a 50km-long ‘lifeboat’ to provide a safe haven and enable an easy transfer to another train. The transfer train was another passenger shuttle – again a functional solution.