Campaigners to challenge A303 Stonehenge tunnel again

Plans to construct a tunnel near Stonehenge have been approved by the Department for Transport

Campaigners are planning another legal challenge over the construction of a road tunnel near Stonehenge.

Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site (SSWHS) has sent the government a letter outlining its concerns about the A303 Stonehenge dual carriageway.

Chris Todd, director of SSWHS, said: "The government has stuck two fingers up at UNESCO and all those who care about our British heritage."

Highways England says the tunnel will reduce traffic and cut journey times.

Planning permission was first given in 2020 but was later quashed by the High Court in 2021 after a campaign.

However, the Department for Transport approved the £1.7bn two-mile (3.2km) tunnel from Amesbury to Berwick Down in Wiltshire on 14 July.

SSWHS said the government's approval "flew in the face" of opposition from UNESCO and the recommendation for refusal of the scheme by independent planning inspectors.

The group has sent the government a pre-application protocol letter outlining its concerns. It says this is the precursor to filing a claim for a judicial review, which would need to be done within six weeks of the decision date.

Mr Todd said: "It has basically approved this highly flawed and damaging proposal for a second time.

"The same scheme that was thrown out in 2021. We believe there are strong grounds why this approval should also be struck down.

"We will do everything within our power to safeguard this most iconic of sites for future generations."

The plans were first approved in 2020 but Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site alliance successfully challenged the decision in the High Court

Suzanne Keene, a member of the Stonehenge Alliance, a separate organisation that has campaigned to safeguard the site, added: "Stonehenge is much more than the stones at its centre.

"It is a complex and hugely rich archaeological landscape without comparison.

"For the government to be so dismissive of the huge damage that National Highways scheme will cause is deeply worrying."

Wiltshire Council backs the scheme and councillor Caroline Thomas, cabinet member for transport, said: "This huge infrastructure project represents a significant investment in Wiltshire that will boost the economy of both our county and the wider region, unlocking jobs and investment."

In granting approval, transport secretary Mark Harper said he was "satisfied there is a clear need" for the new tunnel and the project's "harm on spatial, visual relations and settings is less than substantial and should be weighed against the public benefits".