A303 Stonehenge tunnel: A360 to close for three months

Work to supply electricity for National Highways’ A303 Amesbury to Berwick Down tunnel past Stonehenge is scheduled to start in April.

To facilitate the power supply for future construction and the tunnel in the long term, a section of the A360, between the junction of The Avenue and Longbarrow junction on the A303, will be closed for three months from early April, just after the Easter Bank Holiday weekend.

READ MORE: A360 closure hampered by tunnel legal challenge and 'problems' with landowners

Following the High Court ruling in favour of the scheme, National Highways is finalising plans for the essential utilities work, which will start in parallel with the conclusion of the legal process.

On behalf of National Highways, SSEN (Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks) will install high voltage and fibre optic cabling along the route, south of the A303, which requires a full closure for safety reasons due to the narrow width of the road and minimal space along verges.

The work will be carried out seven days a week, with some overnight working, in order to have it complete before the summer holidays.

Traffic will be diverted via the A345 and sections of the A303 and A36, and a comprehensive signage system will inform road users to point traffic to alternate routes.

The diversion route (Image: National Highways)

Traffic monitoring will be carried out on various locations along the diversion routes in the week commencing March 18, and again in mid-April to measure traffic flows.

David Bullock, National Highways’ project director for the A303 Stonehenge scheme, said: “The road scheme will ultimately tackle the longstanding issue of rat running and provide a real benefit to local communities, and for this essential preliminary work, we’ll be doing all we can to put in measures to lessen the impact of this work.

SEE ALSO: Area board to discuss four-month-long road closure to power Stonehenge tunnel project

“We need to carry out the work now to ensure our programme timescales and we want to give local communities as much notice as possible.

“We appreciate that roadworks and road closures can be frustrating and we’d like to thank motorists, local residents and businesses in advance for their patience.

“We have deliberately avoided the summer holiday season, but we appreciate the work will impact the Whitsun Week traffic and the Summer Solstice, and we’ll be working hard to minimise disruption during those times and where we can.

“Without the full closure, the work would take a lot longer to complete, and we’re making every effort to ensure that the impact on drivers and local communities is kept to an absolute minimum.”

All businesses and organisations affected by the diversion are being notified, and will be kept up to date by SSEN throughout the work.

Mr Bullock added: “Given the delays of the recent legal process, we are having to move quickly but we have been working closely with our local authority partners, and we want to give as much notice as possible to residents, businesses and other interested parties.

“We will also ensure, along with our Wiltshire Council partners, that all traffic management measures and any changes are communicated well in advance.”

In addition to the power cabling programme, National Highways is currently planning to start archaeological fieldwork and preliminary works in the spring and early summer.

At the conclusion of the legal process, details of the public engagement events will be communicated to local communities and businesses.