Eurotunnel has brought another part of the Channel Tunnel badly damaged by fire back into service.

Five out of the six sections which make up the tunnel are now operational, meaning an increase in both capacity and departure frequency.

Traffic will now leave every 90 minutes instead of every two hours, and there will be at least 210 trains per 24-hour period from Wednesday, up from 170.

Passenger shuttles will increase to 30 per day during the week and 52 per day at weekends, which means around 41,000 cars can travel per week.

Eurostar is running to almost 100 per cent of normal capacity - but with a modified timetable.

Truck shuttles will increase to 98 per day during the week and 34 per day at weekends - that is around 17,000 lorries per week.

Rail freight trains will use the tunnel at night.

Work continues in the last section of the north tunnel which was badly damaged following a major fire on a freight train on September 11.

A Eurotunnel spokesman said: "Staff have worked hard and have brought a maximum of available infrastructure into service for customers, bringing rail capacity as close as possible to normal."