Representation by Andrew Nicolson
- Date submitted
- 12 December 2018
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Much of the traffic congestion on the A303 is provably caused by traffic slowing so that vehicle occupants can see the monument, and not by the volume of traffic exceeding the capacity of the road or its junctions. This is visible in online real-time live traffic congestion visualisations. This phenomenon has not been adequately investigated, evaluated or considered in publications by the scheme's promoter. Low-cost and low-impact measures to this address this effect could replace the scheme.
The scheme's very high costs exceed its traffic and economic benefits. For example, 1 or 2 km of new "60mph expressway" on a strategic route hundreds of km long, would not have a major impact on the economy of the South West Peninsula. And in any case, the economic impact of the scheme could equally act against the peninsula as in favour. As another example, the community of Winterbourne Stoke is not heavily affected by the through road, relative to others in the sub-region, and would suffer some economic disbenefit through loss of passing trade. Again, a significant proportion of so-called "rat-running" traffic through Larkhill and Shrewton is simply taking its shortest route and would continue to do so if the scheme were built. To the extent that it delivers the predicted time-savings, the scheme would generate traffic, contrary to UK transport policies and climate commitments and to the detriment of other parts of the sub-region.
Investment on the proposed scale, in a context of finite resources, would deprive the region of other needed investment in transport infrastructure.
The scheme would be excessively damaging, visually, ecologically and archaeologically, to the Stonehenge World Heritage Site.