Controversial £2 billion Stonehenge bypass project halted

The UK’s new Labour Government is halting the controversial £2 billion project to build a bypass road and tunnel link around Stonehenge. The 3.2km dual carriageway bypass has been the subject of numerous legal challenges on both archaeological and environmental grounds but the plans had been approved by the previous Conservative Government.

The busy A303 features just a single lane in either direction as it passes the famous ancient Stonehenge monument, suffering heavy congestion as the route is a dual carriageway for the rest of its length. There have been plans to build a dual tube tunnel at a distance from the monument for more than two decades. These have been cancelled on previous occasions also, largely due to concerns over cost rather than environmental or archaeological concerns.

National Highways says that building a tunnel to carry the A303 would cut congestion and also boost safety but environmentalists and archaeologists have united to oppose the plan, launching a series of legal challenges to the project. They claim the bypass would cause environmental harm and also risk damaging important historical areas.

Building the tunnel would have been complex, boosting the cost of the work. The geology of the area features poor quality rock that is heavily fragmented as well as a high water table. The tunnel would have needed extensive support measures as well as waterproofing to keep it strong and dry. Meanwhile, complex water control and separation methods would have been required to ensure that the water table would have been undisturbed and that no contaminants would reach the local water courses.

This time it seems as if the project has been cancelled largely on economic grounds (once again). The new Labour Government has said that there are insufficient funds for the project to go ahead, with other national priorities such as health and education to be addressed first given the disastrous financial mismanagement of the previous administration.

With concerns growing over stability in Europe, the need for the bypass may become more pressing however, given the importance of the route for the UK military for transporting heavy equipment from the many bases along the route.