Another British Transport film, this time the appropriately (for this blog) named "Modelling for the Future". 8 minutes showing a model of the proposed channel tunnel rail terminal being built.In 1961.
This means we have electric locomotives in bright blue and lots of stock that looks suspiciously Triang. Even a working "RoadRailer" system appears which Traing offered for a short period. When built, the commentary tells us the terminal will be fed from the A23, not a motorway as the first section of the M1 was only a couple of years old at this point. Everyone working on the model is wearing a tie and something tweedy - not a pair of jeans to be seen anywhere.
This is yet another fantastic model and yet I've never seen it. Presumably the work was carried out as part of the publicity process that lead to the work and cancellation of the project in the mid 70's. 15 years from model to short-sighted political cowardice is pretty good going.
What I want to know is, what happened to the model ? It was obviously quite large and probably not cheap to build. If intended for publicity purposes I assume the thing could be dismantled and moved around. Did it ever attend IMREX in London ? Is it still stuck in the back of a warehouse - or more likely, did it gradually fall apart until abandoned in a skip somewhere ?
More on the film here.
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