Major construction will start in July but the ventilation shaft is concrete evidence that the Government has remained committed to the venture, compared to the years of prevarication by the previous Tory governments which allowed France, Germany, Spain and Italy to get far ahead of Britain in creating a European high-speed rail network.

At an official ceremony in April 2001, deputy prime minister John Prescott said: ‘We are half way through building the first section which is on time and on budget.

‘Now we have made sure that the section to complete the line to London will start on time as well.

‘Britain’s first high-speed railway, and the first new main line in the country for over a century, will soon become a reality.

‘This is a great project. It’s not just about delivering 21st century transport for Britain. This project is going to bring real regeneration benefits to the Thames Gateway, to east London and to Kent.

‘We have already witnessed the booming Ashford economy following the construction of an international station in the town.’

The Government has signed an agreement in principle with London & Continental Railways (LCR) Ltd which is building the link and Railtrack which will operate the link once it is built in 2007.

LCR expects to fund construction of Section 2 through a combination of government guaranteed bonds, commercial debt and government capital grants, coupled with an ‘innovative risk-sharing programme’ also involving the project management company Bechtel.

Although Railtrack will be responsible for operating the line once it is built, it will not be taking up its option to purchase phase 2. Ownership will remain with LCR which also owns Eurostar UK.

The CTRL forms part of the European Union’s Trans European Network of transport corridors and will carry both Eurostar, domestic passenger services, and some freight traffic.

As a TENs project, the CTRL has received an EU grant towards its design and development.

The £1.9billion phase 1 is 60% complete and runs from the Channel Tunnel to Fawkham Junction, via Southfleet Junction, in north west Kent, and will open in 2003.

At Fawkham Junction, phase 1 will connect with the existing railway to Waterloo International station.

Phase 2 will complete the CTRL between Southfleet Junction and London St Pancras via new stations at Ebbsfleet and Stratford.

Over £800m worth of construction contracts for phase 2, including contracts for the Thames and London tunnels, have already been let.

Eurostar will utilise approximately 40% of the capacity of the CTRL once phase 2 is completed.

More info: http://www.ctrl.co.uk.

DETR website - http://www.detr.gov.uk