Fast trains on High Speed One (HS1) at the North Downs Tunnel, Kent

Date filmed: 02/09/2023
Videos filmed between 14:33 and 16:13

Route: Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL) - Also Known as High Speed One (HS1)
Closest timing point: Nashenden Crossover (On Realtime Trains)

Here's a compilation of an hour and a half's worth of very fast trains passing by this location right next to the southern 'portal' of the North Downs Tunnel near Boxley and Blue Bell Hill on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), also known as High Speed One (HS1). This line connects London's St. Pancras International with the Channel Tunnel to France and Europe, and sees the fastest domestic (national) high speed trains in the country: Southeastern High-speed Class 395 'Javelins' running at an operating speed of 225km/h or 140mph on the first/last leg of their journeys around Kent, as well as Eurostar services running to and from Europe which operate at anything up to 300km/h or 186mph! They run at nearly full line speed at this location, creating quite a spectacle as they emerge from the tunnel.

This was all filmed mid-late afternoon on a Saturday, and along side the usual Southeastern Highspeed Class 395's and Eurostar Class 374 (Siemens Velaro e320's), as many as three retro Eurostar Class 373's (TGV TMST e300's) can be seen, all sounding absolutely phenomenal at speed! Three separate diagram workings for this older class of train are (at the time of filming) booked to pass through the area between 3 and 4pm each Saturday afternoon, and this was the main reason I decided to head to HS1 at this time, to take advantage of this and see them at speed.

This is a very scenic spot with a fair bit less traffic noise compared to what I expected, and the very streamlined-shaped tunnel entrance adds a fair bit of interest to the location. A few clips were also filmed on Lower Warren Road footpath closer to the entrance to the tunnel, albeit higher up and at the side. The clip featuring my phone's screen featured the Traksy website, and this has live map coverage of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link. '1L42' is a head code used by signallers as a train description so they know what train service it is, and it is seen representing the train's approximate location on the website. 37 seconds have been cut from this clip between zooming in on the tunnel's entrance and the train arriving.

Location: North Downs Way, Boxley
Video guide:
Intro - 0:00
-
2 Class 395 'Javelins' (Southeastern) - 0:40
1L38 St. Pancras International ➡ Ashford International | On-time
-
Class 374 'e320' (Eurostar) - 1:10
9O31 Paris Gare du Nord ➡ St. Pancras International | 27 minutes late
-
Class 374 'e320' (Eurostar) - 1:35
9O32 St. Pancras International ➡ Paris Gare du Nord | On-time
-
2 Class 395 'Javelins' (Southeastern) - 1:58
1J41 Ramsgate ➡ St. Pancras International | 2 minutes late
-
2 Class 395 'Javelins' (Southeastern) - 2:24
1J40 St. Pancras International ➡ Ramsgate | 2 minutes late
-
Class 373 'e300' (Eurostar) (1/3) - 2:46
9O35 Paris Gare du Nord ➡ St. Pancras International | 1 minute late
-
Class 374 'e320' (Eurostar) - 3:17
9I42 St. Pancras International ➡ Bruxelles Midi (Brussels South) | On-time
-
2 Class 395 'Javelins' (Southeastern) - 3:34
1L43 Ashford International ➡ St. Pancras International | On-time
-
2 Class 395 'Javelins' (Southeastern) - 4:16
1L42 St. Pancras International ➡ Ashford International | 1 minute late
-
Class 373 'e300' (Eurostar (2/3) - 4:34
9I41 Bruxelles Midi (Brussels South) ➡ St. Pancras International | On-time
-
Class 373 'e300' (Eurostar (3/3) - 5:03
9O36 St. Pancras International ➡ Paris Gare du Nord | 2 minutes late
-
2 Class 395 'Javelins' (Southeastern) - 5:26
1J45 Ramsgate ➡ St. Pancras International | On-time
-
2 Class 395 'Javelins' (Southeastern) - 5:51
1J44 St. Pancras International ➡ Ramsgate | On-time
-
Class 374 'e320' (Eurostar) - 6:11
9O39 Paris Gare du Nord ➡ St. Pancras International | 1 minute late

Train details sourced from:
Real Time Trains: https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/sear...
Traksy: https://traksy.uk/live

Thanks for watching!