British Railways (Channel Tunnel freight)

British Railways Channel Tunnel freight refers to the through-freight operations run by British Railways from the opening of the Channel Tunnel on 6 May 1994 until BR's privatisation in April 1997. The Channel Tunnel's opening created a physical rail connection between Britain and continental Europe for the first time, enabling through-freight working between the British network and the French and Belgian rail systems — an operation requiring specialist dual-voltage locomotives capable of running under both Britain's 25 kV AC overhead and France's 25 kV AC system while also able to use the 750 V DC third rail in the south-east of England.

The motive power for these through-freight workings was the Class 92 dual-voltage electric locomotive, procured jointly by BR, SNCF, and CFL and built by Brush Traction and ABB. The Class 92 was a technically complex machine designed for sustained operation at 140 km/h through the Tunnel while meeting the strict safety requirements of the undersea environment, and it gave the Channel Tunnel freight operation a capable and purpose-built fleet from the outset. At privatisation the Channel Tunnel freight business passed to English Welsh and Scottish Railway.