At the local Swanley History Group, there was a talk on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link that was planned to be constructed locally in the 1980s. There were several photos, maps, documents and news clips, including a clip about Swanley from “Spitting Image” which was a popular satirical TV show in the 80s.
In the 1980s, Swanley was in the news because British Rail wanted to put a rail link between London and the Channel Tunnel through Swanley. Local action groups raised money to oppose this route as it would blight thousands of homes and rip communities apart. It didn’t help that the route kept changing and it took many years before the protests were successful and the high speed rail link avoided Swanley. Instead, it went from Stratford through Ebbsfleet to Ashford. However, it took several years for some communities to recover as the uncertainty had made their homes difficult to sell.
My Nan and Grandad were affected by the proposal of this Channel Tunnel Rail Link because they were retiring and hoping to move to a different county at this time. It became difficult for them to sell their house with the uncertainty of the proposed route. Fortunately, in time the sale was able to go through, but at a lower price than the house should have been worth.
It’s funny how none of this occurred to me when I used the Channel Tunnel Rail Link to visit Paris on holiday a few years ago.