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]
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]
| Vehicle type | Toll |
|---|---|
| Coach with four horses | 6d |
| Coach with two horses | 3d |
| Chaise with one horse | 1+1⁄2d |
| One horse | 1⁄2d |
| 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]
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