"Head-bangingly stupid"

For many years, the possibility of a tunnel to create a bypass for Stonehenge has been proposed and then delayed. The A303 passes close to the famous stones. Heading south, a dual carriageway becomes single carriageway and a lack of zip merging results in tailbacks going back miles. 

From the road, there is a view of the stones. From the stones there is a view of the road. 

This is a World Heritage site, but visiting is not a generally pleasant experience. I've been several times over the years - make sure you are an English Heritage member to avoid the queues. Noel Jenkins produced a very useful resource on Stonehenge which I made use of for some time.

In December 2020 it seems that the go ahead has finally been given for what many people consider to the worst possible iteration of the plans, and one that will have a greater impact on the area than the existing road. There have been many stories on the tunnel over the years, and the different plans. It is worth handing this story over to the students perhaps, to use some maps of the site of Stonehenge.

It has been described as a "head-bangingly stupid" idea according to those who opposed the idea. Grant Shapps overruled the planning decision that had previously been made.

Image: Alan Parkinson, shared under CC license.

Also a reminder of this classic comment on Stonehenge from TripAdvisor.