No further damage should be done to the archaeological landscape of Stonehenge.
Future generations would be appalled at those who decided that road widening should be at the expense of England’s most iconic World Heritage Site.
If A303 widening at Stonehenge is felt to be essential it should be done by means of a deep bored tunnel at least 4.5km long. Anything shorter would cause irreparable damage to this landscape, in breach of the World Heritage Convention.
The Government proposes to widen the A303 trunk road to the south west. This road crosses the iconic Stonehenge World Heritage Site (WHS), which has been called “the most archaeologically significant land surface in Europe”. The whole site, extending to beyond the horizons around the famous stones themselves, is c. 5.4 km across. All of it makes up a “huge ancient complex” that holds many secrets yet to be discovered.
The proposal is to put the road into a tunnel where it passes the stones, but the tunnel would be at most only 2.9 km long. This would result in at least 1.6 km of above-ground 21st-century road engineering within the WHS, consisting of new dual carriageway descending in massive trenches to the tunnel portals and possibly a new underpass with slip roads on the western WHS boundary.
All archaeology in the construction zones would be destroyed and the A303 would become the largest ever human intervention in an area fashioned and revered by over a hundred generations of our ancestors.
The whole Stonehenge landscape has an outstanding universal value that is of immense significance for all people for all time, and this transcends any consideration of sorting out a 21st century part-time traffic jam.
Prompted by your signatures and campaign letters, UNESCO publicly stated that it is monitoring the road scheme very closely. http://stonehengealliance.org.uk/information/unesco-world-heritage-sites/.
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International visitors who want to support the campaign, please visit the campaign website here: http://stonehengealliance.org.uk/our-campaign/petition/
| adam c. |
2016-09-25 08:08:41 -0400
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| Maya W. |
2016-09-25 04:53:33 -0400
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| phil a. |
2016-09-25 03:52:44 -0400
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| Imogen M. |
2016-09-25 03:40:43 -0400
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| Sandra C. |
2016-09-24 22:06:43 -0400
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CAMPAIGN UPDATE
We are building a small team of International Representatives to help The Stonehenge Alliance engage world-wide with objectors to the road-widening proposals that would severely damage Stonehenge World Heritage Site. We have also recently added two more translations of our petition: in Italian and in Portuguese to share. You can find out more on this link. http://stonehengealliance.org.uk/international-reps/
Countdown to A303 Engineering Works has started. There are three distinct stages:
NOW: Pre-application Period: a number of options are designed and consulted on
SOON: Pre-examination: Highways England's preferred option is consulted on
LATER: Examination and Decision Making Period: Application will be submitted to an examining panel.
Scheme starts on site in 2020 if we don't stop further damage to our ancient landscape.
Further details in our blog: http://stonehengealliance.org.uk/countdown-to-a303-stonehenge-engineering-works/
NEW hashtag: #SaveStonehengeWHS is our new campaign hashtag for comments, posts and tweets about widening of A303/tunnel by Stonehenge that is in design. Please use when sharing petition www.stonehengealliance.org.uk/our-campaign/petition or tweeting @SaveStonehenge
Thank you!
20,000 signatures reached
HAVE MINISTERS MADE THEIR MINDS UP BEFORE CONSULTATION?
Highways England are at the "optioneering phase" to identify solutions that "satisfy the scheme requirements; take account of environmental, physical and finanacial constraints; and are worthy of consideration as part of a public consultation" for early 2017. Nevertheless the Roads Minister stated that he is committed to a "1.8 mile tunnel".
Have ministers made their minds up before consultation? Key quotes from last week's Westminster debate on roads to the South West in our latest blog: http://stonehengealliance.org.uk/stonehenge-and-the-a303-westminster-speaks/
Carry on signing and sharing our petition!
A drop-in 'information event' in Amesbury was organised by Highways England last Thursday to seek your views. No plans were available at this stage. It was confirmed that all options for upgrading the A303 are being considered. One display panel showed a "Key Benefit" of any scheme being "Conserve and enhance the Stonehenge World Heritage Site". A 2.9km tunnel would fall short of this. It would be very helpful if you could let Highways England know your views in their short survey here especially Question 10. https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/MF9LSFZ
To view photographs of the eight panels please link here https://www.facebook.com/stonehengealliance/posts/1736942806540418
Thank you!
Government are proceeding with scheme design for a twin bore short tunnel for consultation this year. Extract from Highways England's update:
"Subject to the outcome of a consultation on options, the announced scheme includes the construction of a twin-bored tunnel of at least 1.8 miles in length on the A303 as it passes Stonehenge, a bypass for Winterbourne Stoke and junctions with the A358 and the A360. Provided that the necessary statutory approvals are secured and the scheme continues to demonstrate value for public money, we expect to start construction by April 2020."
It will irreparably damage our premier prehistoric landscape. Please share our petition widely whilst there is still a chance of saving our World Heritage Site from the bulldozer. http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/road-projects/a303-amesbury-to-berwick-down/#formBuilderCSSIDRoad_Project_Feedback
STONEHENGE LANDSCAPE STILL AT RISK FROM ROAD SCHEME
The new Government's resolve to proceed with the A303 Expressway with a 2.9km tunnel and portals inserted in the Stonehenge World Heritage Site remains undimmed, despite massive cuts to other public services.
Although the Secretary of State, John Whittingdale, states that 2.9km is to be considered as the tunnel's minimum length, there is no increased budget to pay for a longer tunnel.
Please can you recruit friends, family and colleagues to sign our petition? https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/save-stonehenge-world-heritage-site
You can follow our blog http://stonehengealliance.org.uk/
Our Campaign Twitter is here: https://twitter.com/savestonehenge
If you have time please write to UNESCO and the National Trust. Sample letters here: http://stonehengealliance.org.uk/act-now/
Thanks again for getting behind our campaign.
Best wishes,
Mike Birkin on behalf of Stonehenge Alliance
If your address is not in the UK you can sign the identical petition here http://goo.gl/zBGOF7
Dear Supporter
PLEASE HELP CARRY US TO 20,000
Hello and a big thank you to Debbie W, who has just become the 10,000th person to sign our Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site petition!
Progress has been amazing since the government’s roads announcement on Monday. But clearly we have a fight on our hands and every extra voice counts. If every one of you can get one friend to sign we’ll hit 20,000 overnight!
You can follow us on twitter https://twitter.com/SaveStonehenge
and on facebook https://www.facebook.com/stonehengealliance
And we have some high level support too… the UK branch of ICOMOS, one of the bodies that looks after World Heritage Sites, has written to the UK government to express its concern over the short tunnel. http://bbc.in/1ykSAdN
Thanks again for your support, please help spread the word about Stonehenge World Heritage Site under threat
Best wishes
Mike Birkin on behalf of Stonehenge Alliance
10,000 signatures reached
5,000 signatures reached
1,000 signatures reached
500 signatures reached
100 signatures reached
50 signatures reached
25 signatures reached
10 signatures reached
TM 38 Degrees | 2014
Registered Company No. 6642193
TM 38 Degrees | 2014
Registered Company No. 6642193
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