THE MARSEILLE CANAL TO THE ROVE TUNNEL

Between Cape Janet and l'Estaque, several kilometers long, a small dike was built along the coast to the Rove tunnel. at depths of 3 to 4 meters.
This dike is intended to shelter the future and famous canal from Marseille to Caronte and, consequently, the passage of the numerous barges that our Chamber of Commerce sees, in imagination, circulating between the two ports.

This dike has been built for more than 10 years and the Rove tunnel will not be finished for another 4 or 5 years. We have therefore thrown away one or two million which will only become useful, if they ever become so, in a few years.

This is a striking example of the negligence of the Chamber and the Maritime Bridges and Roads administration. Could they not wait to build this dike until the Rove tunnel was completed? We would have gained the interest on the money advanced for nothing. Counting this interest at only 5%, and without compounding it, the total rises in 15 years, for a capital of one million, to 750,000 francs, stupidly wasted. This is indeed waste and squandering of public funds!

Our Chamber of Commerce has spoken out violently, on several occasions, against the poor administration of state services and it must recognize with us that its own is even worse. She should be made financially responsible for this waste.

Even if it had deepened the space between the dike and the land, barges would have been able to circulate there and shipments of bricks and tiles by sea would have been facilitated; just as a boatage service could have been organized between Marseille and l'Estaque. This service, faster than that of the trams, would have presented serious advantages for the population, especially the workers who work in the port. But no, we left the depths as nature made them, so that they are very uneven and do not exceed 0 m. 50 to 0 m. 70.

The dike will isolate the future northern basins from the earth and make them practically unusable due to bridge crossings. Perhaps this provision was premeditated by the Chamber of Commerce to obstruct the construction of these basins and will favor the construction of the port of Caronte to the detriment of ours.

When a ship catches fire in the basins and the fire cannot be extinguished, the Port Department has it taken to Mourepiane where it is grounded and scuttled. This heroic process was good, but the sunken ship blocked the Saumaty pass and blocked the future canal. When the barges circulate in the canal, if they ever circulate there, the grounding maneuver will become impossible. Then, we will sink the ship off the dike in depths of around 10 meters where we cannot think of saving the wreck and the cargo.

The wonderful idea that the Chamber had in building this dike will therefore cause enormous harm to shipowners, as well as shippers and insurers. For people who only have common sense, but who are not members of the Chamber of Commerce, it is obvious that from the point of Mourepiane to Cape Janet where the shelter jetty perfectly protects the In the outer port, a canal along the land is completely useless for sheltering barges. Let us therefore hasten to demolish this dike throughout this region and fill in the space between it and the earth. This money will not be wasted or at least will only be because the Chamber made stupid mistakes in building its dike. You have to know how to make the necessary sacrifices. Thus the future parking basin planned under Cape Janet will disappear and where barges will never stay, because they will have nothing to do there!

To summarize, in this affair as in all others of a maritime nature, the Chamber of Commerce demonstrated utter nullity in maritime, administrative and financial matters. Are we going to let it continue for long its harmful work for the vital interests of our port and our city?

L. Sosten, Captain, Municipal Councilor.