The French government will conduct an investigation to determine the causes of traffic disruption Eurostar trains, announced Monday, December 21, Secretary of State for Transport, Dominique Bussereau. 'The Department of Transportation will initiate an investigation, I come to talk with the Prime Minister to ensure that they know what is happening', "he told reporters on the sidelines of a visit to China with Francis Fillon.
The traffic has been suspended since Saturday due to power outages that have detained five trains in the night from Friday to Saturday, with more than 2 000 passengers aboard, in the Channel Tunnel. Eurostar's management has not been able to ensure that the traffic of its high-speed trains would be restored Tuesday, simply stating that it would provide "within 19 hours" on Monday for information on a possible resumption of service.
"We can not consider that Eurostar can not move for three days on issues of snow, so there is a technical problem," said Dominique Bussereau. "This is something that is not normal. I demand an investigation this morning," he said. "There have been incidents in Eurotunnel, it happens in all technical structure but blocked traffic for several days, is something that is not permissible," he said.
PASSENGERS "extreme anguish"
Already, the French MEP, Dominique Baudis (EPP), which was passed "with 650 other passengers," the night of Friday to Saturday in one of the Eurostar, had found the situation "scandalous." "The sequence of events is absurd, the total inertia of Eurostar is outrageous," commented Mr. Baudis and the "failures" which he witnessed first "fall", he said, "non-assistance a person in danger ".
Mr. Baudis, passengers "were laughed" of the situation but others were "extremely distressed" and "kids do not drink water for eight or nine hours. He announced his intention to request an investigation "to the European Commission" on the "failures" found.
In turn, the board Eurostar has announced the immediate opening of an investigation carried out by a tandem of independent experts: Christopher Garnett, former boss of British regional rail company Great North Eastern Railway and former director Name of Eurotunnel, and Claude Gressier, engineer of bridges and causeways.