The prospect of tunnels linking the Channel Islands to each other and to mainland France was raised this week, at two roadshows organised by the Connect 3 Million campaign.
Long-term future
Launched by local businessman, Martyn Dorey, the campaign aims to promote “the long-term economic, environmental and social future of the region” through the creation of undersea tunnels that would connect Guernsey and France, via Jersey.
The project takes inspiration from links connecting the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic. Representatives of the Faroe Islands tunnel corporation joined the Channel Islands’ campaign roadshows, meeting delegates including local ministers and the public.
Three underground stations
Estimated at a cost of £25 million per kilometre and an additional £300m for three underground stations at St Peter Port, Jersey Airport and Saint Helier, the project would not come cheap. In addition, it would require France’s approval and cooperation for Phase 2.
Any tunnelling is likely to take at least 10 years to complete. But economic benefits for the islands could include increased employment and access to housing, as well as slashed journey times of around 15 minutes between Jersey and Guerney.
8,000 journeys both ways daily
The Connect 3 Million campaign argues that demand for the tunnels would be high – around 8,000 people would make a tunnel journey in each direction every day, according to their figures, with up to “24,000 movements between Jersey and France on a daily basis.”
But not everyone is convinced facilitating more traffic is a good way forward. According to Mark Baker, a speaker and author, “Jersey is in gridlock three times a day, that’s just going to have us in total gridlock.”
More positively, Economic Development minister Kirsten Morel said: “If we want to tackle the housing crisis, this is really one way we could do that. If we want to make sure food arrives every day, then this is one way to do that. I believe that if you put in the infrastructure, people will come.”
Agreeing with her, Adrian Lewis from Frontier Economics pointed out “the combined value of the Jersey and Guernsey economy and the link to France,” and noted the idea has “a lot going for it” and “could solve some of the issues to do with housing and general workforce.”
Summing up the argument in favour of the infrastructure, Derey said: “Making it easier for everyone to reach the Channel Islands will transform the future for everyone. Our economies are strong but are being held back when we all need them to expand further. This innovation will herald a boom across financial services, tourism and beyond.”
