Reigate Tunnel is a former road tunnel in Reigate, Surrey, England.[1][2][3] It runs under the hill that was once the site of Reigate Castle and was built during 1823, although some sources report that it only opened in 1824.[4] The narrow and short tunnel formerly carried the A217 road,[5][6] and is now pedestrianised.[2] It is grade II listed.[7]

Reigate Tunnel
Reigate Tunnel from the north
Overview
LocationReigate, Surrey, England
Coordinates51°14′17″N 0°12′22″W / 51.238°N 0.206°W / 51.238; -0.206
Statusopen
Operation
Constructed1823
Opened1824
TrafficPedestrian
Technical
Design engineerWilliam Constable
Length51 m (56 yd)

History

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The tunnel was designed by William Constable, the surveyor for the Reigate Turnpike Trust.[7][8] It is 51 m (56 yd) long[9][10] and runs through the Folkestone Beds beneath Reigate Castle. It provides a direct link between the High Street (to the south) and London Road (to the north), reducing the distance between the two by 0.25 mi (0.4 km).[8]

Construction began in 1823 and required the demolition of two shops on the north side of the High Street.[8] The two portals were built with bricks made from the local Gault clay and the tunnel is lined with red brick in a stretcher bond.[7] The work was funded by John Cocks, 1st Earl Somers, through whose land it ran, and was completed in the summer of 1824. A toll post was erected at the southern entrance and tolls were levied for horses and horse-drawn vehicles. Pedestrians were not charged for using the tunnel.[8]

Tolls in 1824[8]
Vehicle type Toll
Coach with four horses 6d
Coach with two horses 3d
Chaise with one horse 1+12d
One horse 12d
Pedestrian no charge

The tolls were removed in 1858.[8] In 1954, the tunnel was closed to southbound motor traffic[11] and was fully pedestrianised in April 1970.[2] It was Grade II listed on 27 January 1989.[7] A plaque above the southern entrance gives the year of construction as 1823.[12]

References

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  1. ^ O'Brien, Charles; Nairn, Ian; Cherry, Bridget; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2022). Surrey. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 612. ISBN 978-0-300-23478-7.
  2. ^ a b c "The Background Story of Reigate Tunnel". Reigate and Redhill Society. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  3. ^ Cole-Lomas, Lauren (8 July 2023). "The incredible tunnel that cuts through a Surrey town hall". SurreyLive. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  4. ^ "Reigate Tunnel 200 Celebration". Reigate Business Guild. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
  5. ^ Otter, R. A. (1994). Southern England. Thomas Telford. p. 180. ISBN 978-0-7277-1971-3. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  6. ^ Marshall, Chris (6 February 2010). "Reigate Tunnel". Roads.org.uk. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d Historic England. "The Tunnel (Grade II) (1241366)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Hooper, Wilfrid (1979) [1945]. Reigate: Its story through the ages. Guildford: Surrey Archaeological Society. pp. 88–89, 94. ISBN 978-0-90-396712-9.
  9. ^ "Reigate Corporation v Surrey County Council". Justice of the Peace and Local Government Review. Vol. XCII, no. 7. 18 February 1928. p. 119.
  10. ^ "Reigate Corporation v Surrey County Council". The Solicitor's Journal. Vol. LXXII, no. 9. 3 March 1928. pp. 154–155.
  11. ^ "David against the Philistines". Surrey Mirror and County Post. No. 4090. 17 December 1954. p. 9.
  12. ^ Douglas, Roy (2006). Redhill & Reigate through time. Stroud: Amberley Publishing. p. 18. ISBN 978-1-44-563323-7.