The Stonehenge Alliance has responded to National Highways’ hosting of five local information events with a statement accusing the government agency’s information boards of containing “many errors and omissions”.

The Stonehenge Alliance, which launched a so-far unsuccessful legal challenge against the Stonehenge tunnel project as part of its "Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site" campaign, also said it planned to attend the information event in Salisbury to “ensure that members of the public are not given the wrong impression about this major road scheme that, if it went ahead, would cost at least £3bn, damage our World Heritage Site irrevocably and cause major disruption for many years to come”.

SEE ALSO: Start date of Stonehenge tunnel 'unclear' as National Highways hosts information events

Salisbury Journal: National Highways hosted an information event at the Guildhall on Tuesday, April 30.National Highways hosted an information event at the Guildhall on Tuesday, April 30. (Image: Newsquest)

Andy Rhind-Tutt, former mayor of Amesbury and president of the Salisbury Chamber of Commerce, said: “People in Salisbury need to be made aware that this always has been a vanity project for political gain.  The only people that will benefit are:

“1. English Heritage who will force anyone who wants to see Stonehenge to pay an exorbitant charge,

“2. Consultants,

“3. Sub-contractors. 

“There is no evidence whatsoever that the tunnel will improve the livelihoods of local people, improve local roads from rat running when the tunnel is blocked or maintained.   The traffic issues need a regional solution, not a local one, and the World Heritage Site should not be damaged any further.”

During the Salisbury information event, Andrew Clark, senior project manager at National Highways, told the Journal that the public right-of-way which roughly follows the existing modern surface road would be retained and converted into a bridleway, with only motorised vehicle traffic moved underground. The aboveground route, which has served as a pathway for human travel for thousands of years, would remain accessible.

Andrew said: “The road that has always been there will still be there. What we’re getting rid of is the cars and the buses.”

Kate Freeman, the Stonehenge Alliance’s representative for Friends of the Earth South West, said: “The information event is riddled with errors and omissions. National Highways are clearly hosting a PR exercise for local people who are truly alarmed by the reality of what the future holds: many years of chaos with little to show for a horrendously damaging scheme. There is a lot of exaggeration, for instance the area is already rich with wildlife and the noise reduction from the tunnel very limited. Nor is there a single mention of UNESCO’s threat to the site’s World Heritage status if this project goes ahead as it stands. Do they really care about world heritage?”

In response to the accusations presented by the Stonehenge Alliance, National Highways' project director David Bullock said the agency views the tunnel scheme as the best solution for the area going forward.

David said: “Our planned transformation of the A303 past Stonehenge will improve a road that does not work and we believe the scheme presents the best solution to tackle the current issues, by transforming Stonehenge and the surrounding prehistoric landscape, helping to level up the South West economy, making everyday life easier for local communities, creating more reliable journeys and helping wildlife to flourish. 

“The scheme will deliver significant long-term benefits and the proposed route has been arrived at following thorough assessments, an extensive consultation process and public examination, where we have engaged with and listened to many stakeholders and communities.”

A spokesperson for National Highways also provided the information that the tunnel intends to alleviate noise in the Winterbourne Stoke area and improve the connectivity of the World Heritage Site by enhancing the public rights-of-way network.