An Isle of Wight group called Pro-Link have produced new plans for their proposed ‘Solent Freedom Tunnel’.
The red lines depict tunnel and the green liness depict surface roads.
The scheme involves digging a tunnel under the Solent from Whippingham on the Isle of Wight emerging in farmland at a place they wrongly call Catsfield just 400 m to the east of the historic Titchfield Abbey, with an above ground link running north to join up with the M27 motorway.
The group say that a tunnel boring machine would start from somewhere on the Daedalus Enterprise Zone site and burrow north towards Catisfield. Once there it would be turned around to dig a second 10 metre wide tunnel back towards Daedalus and on under the Solent to the Island.
At the same time another boring machine will dig from the Daedalus site towards Whippingham.
An extra motorway junction will be required somewhere between the present junctions 9 and 10
Pro-Link explained, “Both private and public funding is envisaged as the most likely way to pay for the project — two thirds and one third respectively.
“It is estimated that the Solent crossing element of the project will generate an annual revenue of circa £200 million, with a further smaller amount of toll revenue (to be assessed) from the mainland element. “
The leader of the Isle of Wight council, Jonathan Bacon, has lent his personal support for a feasibility study into the proposed scheme.
LINK Click here for The Solent Freedom Tunnel website