Gasworks Tunnel

The Gasworks Tunnel is a set of three parallel railway tunnels carrying the East Coast Main Line from London King's Cross terminus under Regent's Canal. Each 483 metre bore has two tracks.[1]

Gasworks Tunnel

Gasworks Tunnel southern portals
Overview
Line	East Coast Main Line
Location	Kings Cross, London
Coordinates	51°32′07″N 0°07′24″W
Status	Original bore: operational Second bore: operational Third bore: road access
System	National Rail
Start	Original bore: 1852 Second bore: 1877 Third bore: 1892
Operation
Owner	Network Rail
Operator	Grand Central Great Northern Hull Trains LNER
Technical
Length	483 m (1,585 ft)
No. of tracks	4 (6 until 1977)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Electrified	25 kV 50 Hz AC

The first of the multiple tunnels was built as part of the construction of the Great Northern Railway opening in 1852.[1] The original tunnel is now the middle of three parallel bores. A second tunnel to the west was built in 1878 and a third one to the east in 1892.

The eastern tunnel was taken out of use in 1977 during a significant remodelling of the approach to King's Cross station which included a completely new layout between the tunnels and the platforms, introduction of bi-directional working in the tunnels, works to improve headroom at the southern end of the tunnels and changing the usage of lines between the remaining bores to concentrate suburban services in the western tunnel and long distance services in the central.[2]

In 2018, Network Rail announced it proposed to reinstate the eastern tunnel during another major remodelling of the approaches to King's Cross. It is scheduled to reopen in December 2021.[3][4]