Short tunnel is bad news for Stonehenge

NEWS RELEASE: 10 DEC 2002: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Department for Transport's announcement that it will build a short (2.1 km) tunnel under the Stonehenge UNESCO World Heritage Site [1] is bad news, says campaign group Save Stonehenge[2].

The Government had originally planed to build the tunnel by a method called cut-and-cover (digging a cutting and then adding an artificial roof). It has now changed its mind following pressure from environmental groups, such as the National Trust [3].

UNESCO's adviser, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS-UK), announced that it opposed a short bored tunnel in September 2002: "We do not support any of the 2.1 kilometre options. The cut and cover method would have major and unacceptable archaeological disbenefits and the shorter length fails to deliver what, in our view, are substantial enough cultural and social benefits."[4]

Instead of building the longer (4 km) tunnel that the National Trust and ICOMOS-UK have called for, the government has now opted for a cheaper , shorter tunnel instead. According to Save Stonehenge, the short tunnel proposal means that the Government is effectively building a four-lane motorway through one of the world's most important heritage sites for reasons that have nothing to do with heritage or the environment.

A spokesman for Save Stonehenge, said:

"Whatever Government spin doctors may pretend, bulldozing four lanes of motorway through a World Heritage Site will bring no real benefit to Stonehenge. People shouldn't be fooled. This project is part of a scheme to construct a new motorway to the west country by widening the A303 to four lanes. It's nothing to do with protecting Stonehenge."
Notes to editors:

�5.5 BILLION PACKAGE OF TRANSPORT IMPROVEMENTS, DfT News Release 2002/0354, 10 December 2002. http://www.dft.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2002_0354
Save Stonehenge has over 1000 supporters around the world. Its website http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/, which has been running since 1999, is a definitive source of information about the long-running saga of the Stonehenge plan.
The National Trust owns most of the land around Stonehenge. See NATIONAL TRUST CALLS FOR A LONGER BORED TUNNEL FOR STONEHENGE, National Trust, press release, 3 October 2002.
Stonehenge Road Proposals: ICOMOS-UK Position Statement September 2002. See http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/icomos.html for full text.