In a recently announced $2.1 billion plan, the authorities are planning to build a road tunnel beneath Britain’s famous Stonehenge landmark as a major tourist route. The government officials said that the Stonehenge tunnel will remove the traffic blight on the local communities. Also, it will help to reconnect two halves of the 2,630 hectare World Heritage site which is currently split by the road.
The 2.9km tunnel, which is under the plan as of now will help to reduce the sight and sound of traffic from the Stonehenge landscape which is currently an UNESCO World Heritage Site and enjoys the footfall of more than a million people per year. With the said tunnel in place, it will ensure that traffic headlights do not interfere with annual Solstice gatherings at the landmark site.
In a joint statement, Historic England, the National Trust and English Heritage, said the route will ensure the winter solstice alignment will be unspoiled by lights and traffic from the road.
However, the campaigners think that the road scheme might be a threat to the Stonehenge’s place on the list of World Heritage Sites. Calling it the ‘most brutal intrusion ever into the Stone Age landscape’, celebrity historian Tony Robinson opposed the idea.
A spokesperson for the Department for Transport said that linking the M3 in the southeast and the M5 in the southwest, the expressway will upgrade this key route and improve journey times for millions of people.
