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The Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL) is a project to construct a 108 km (67 mile) high-speed railway line from London through Kent to the British end of the Channel Tunnel. The second section of the CTRL, travelling across the River Thames and into London St. Pancras is scheduled to open on the 14th November 2007. Once open, it will be possible to travel from London St Pancras to Paris Gare du Nord in 2 hours 15 minutes and to Brussels in 1 hour 51 minutes. From 14 November 2006, London and Continental Railways adopted the branding High Speed 1 (HS1) for the completed Channel Tunnel Rail Link.

London and Continental Railways (LCR) was selected by the UK government in 1996 to undertake construction of the line as well as to take over the British share of the Eurostar operation, Eurostar (UK). The original LCR consortium members were National Express Group, Virgin Group, SBC Warburg, Bechtel and London Electric. Whilst the project was under development by British Rail, ‘‘Union Railways’’ which became a wholly owned subsidiary of LCR managed it.