The Severn Tunnel

[N Dentressangle]

Finally an interesting article in my local paper:





http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/news/LONG-STORY-SHO...

Sounds fascinating and terrifying at the same time!

[DieselGriff]

An enjoyable article, but 26 min's to fill with water if the pumps stopped

[Ewan S]

They call the second tunnel the "glory hole" - snigger!

[43034]

Thanks for posting this link. I go through the tunnel far too often (fnarr fnarr) but theres some facts I wasn't aware of!

[Dogwatch]

I think the spring was called The Great Spring and caused absolute chaos when it first burst into the tunnel while it was under construction. Took some time for enough Victorian pumping power to be assembled to match then overcome the spring's flow.

Also there are stories that in the days of steam the air in the tunnel was so foul from smoke and steam that train crews had to lie on the cab floor to be closer to breathable air. Nice!