Hindhead Tunnel
Encyclopedia
The Hindhead Tunnel is a road tunnel that opened (southbound and northbound) on 29 July 2011 as part of the new Hindhead
bypass for the A3 road
in Surrey. It forms part of the 4 mile (6.7 km) dual-carriageway being built to replace the last remaining stretch of single-carriageway on the 68 miles (109 km) London to Portsmouth
road. The bypass is intended to improve road safety, reduce congestion and improve air quality. At 1.2 miles (1.83 km) long,These metric and imperial figures do not correspond with each other; the Highway Agency's quote was "The tunnel is 1.2 miles (1.83km) long comprising about 1 mile (1.77km) of bored tunnel and approximately 98 ft (30 metres) of cut and cover at either end." The metric figures appear to be consistent, but the imperial figures appear to have been subject to considerable rounding. the tunnel is the longest non-estuarial
road tunnel in the United Kingdom, and takes the road beneath the Devil's Punch Bowl
, a Site of Special Scientific Interest
.
A public inquiry was held in September 2004 to hear objections and to consider alternatives to the proposal. Among the alternative proposals was one for a surface route following a more westerly line that would avoid building a tunnel (an adaptation of the "Red Route"). Despite being significantly more expensive than building a surface road, a tunnel was preferred after two alternative surface schemes were rejected on environmental grounds. The decision to put part of the road in a tunnel has meant that at a cost of about £142,000 per yard (£155,000 per metre) the underground portion of the new road will be the second most expensive road in the UK per mile, after Limehouse Link tunnel
.
During an open day on 14 May 2011, just under 7,000 pedestrians were able to walk the full length of the tunnel before it opened to traffic in July 2011. At the open day, local music groups performed at the north end of the tunnel. These included the Haslemere Town Band playing The Devil's Punch Bowl March which was composed for the occasion by 16-year-old band member Eric Foster.
On 19 July 2011 the Highways Agency announced that the southbound tunnel was due to open to traffic on 27 July 2011, and that the northbound tunnel would be opened a few days later. The opening ceremony, to which the public was not invited for safety reasons, was performed by the Secretary of State for Transport
Philip Hammond
. The final opening for northbound traffic occurred on 29 July 2011, two days ahead of schedule.
incorporates a 7.3 metres (24 ft) wide carriageway with a 5.03 metres (16.5 ft) high traffic gauge and 1.2 metres (4 ft) wide verges on either side. Emergency interconnecting
cross passages are located at 100 metres (109 yd) intervals to facilitate movement of pedestrians between tunnels in case of emergency.
Ancillary works include a deep cutting to the south of the tunnel with a new junction for Hindhead and Hammer at its southern end. An equestrian and pedestrian bridge, the Miss James Bridge, crosses the cutting between tunnel and junction, and includes heathland planting to link the habitats on either side of the cutting.
A visitor information leaflet distributed at the walkthrough listed the following facts about the tunnel work:
of earth was excavated during the tunnel's construction
Hindhead
Hindhead is a village in Surrey, England, about 11 miles south-west of Guildford. Neighbouring settlements include Haslemere, Grayshott and Beacon Hill. Hindhead is the highest village in Surrey...
bypass for the A3 road
A3 road
The A3, known as the Portsmouth Road for much of its length, is a dual carriageway, or expressway, which follows the historic route between London and Portsmouth passing close to Kingston upon Thames, Guildford, Haslemere and Petersfield. For much of its length, it is classified as a trunk road...
in Surrey. It forms part of the 4 mile (6.7 km) dual-carriageway being built to replace the last remaining stretch of single-carriageway on the 68 miles (109 km) London to Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
road. The bypass is intended to improve road safety, reduce congestion and improve air quality. At 1.2 miles (1.83 km) long,These metric and imperial figures do not correspond with each other; the Highway Agency's quote was "The tunnel is 1.2 miles (1.83km) long comprising about 1 mile (1.77km) of bored tunnel and approximately 98 ft (30 metres) of cut and cover at either end." The metric figures appear to be consistent, but the imperial figures appear to have been subject to considerable rounding. the tunnel is the longest non-estuarial
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
road tunnel in the United Kingdom, and takes the road beneath the Devil's Punch Bowl
Devil's Punch Bowl
The Devil's Punch Bowl is a large natural amphitheatre and beauty spot near Hindhead, Surrey, in England, and is the source of many stories about the area. The London to Portsmouth road used to climb round its side, but this is now closed due to the Hindhead Tunnel opening on the 27th July 2011...
, a Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
.
History
The tunnel is part of a bypass scheme that replaces the original A3 which followed a route that dates from 1826 through Hindhead, the Devil's Punchbowl and adjacent areas. The original route was single carriageway through the Devil's Punchbowl area, which is of outstanding natural beauty. The route itself was at or above capacity for much of the day and had an accident rate that was 40% higher than the national average for that class of road.Assessment of proposals
The need for improvements to the A3 through Hindhead had been recognised for many years with a route study being undertaken between 1970 and 1976. In 1983 some nine alternatives for the A3 were investigated by the Department for Transport, but assessment showed that only one which went around the north and west side of the Punch Bowl (the "Red Route"), crossing the Smallbrook Valley was viable. A public consultation on the route met with opposition and two alternatives were suggested both of which drew less support than the proposed route which in 1988 became the preferred route. Subsequent environmental surveys showed that this route would have substantial adverse impacts resulting in the proposal to adapt an earlier scheme by including a tunnel to avoid the most sensitive parts of the route. The scheme entered the Government’s targetted programme of improvements in 2001.A public inquiry was held in September 2004 to hear objections and to consider alternatives to the proposal. Among the alternative proposals was one for a surface route following a more westerly line that would avoid building a tunnel (an adaptation of the "Red Route"). Despite being significantly more expensive than building a surface road, a tunnel was preferred after two alternative surface schemes were rejected on environmental grounds. The decision to put part of the road in a tunnel has meant that at a cost of about £142,000 per yard (£155,000 per metre) the underground portion of the new road will be the second most expensive road in the UK per mile, after Limehouse Link tunnel
Limehouse Link tunnel
The Limehouse Link tunnel is a 1.1 mile long tunnel in the Limehouse area of east London on the A1203 road which runs from the northern approach to Tower Bridge eastwards to a point just north of Canary Wharf in London Docklands...
.
Construction and opening
Advance works started in January 2007, and main construction works, including the tunnelling, started in 2008.During an open day on 14 May 2011, just under 7,000 pedestrians were able to walk the full length of the tunnel before it opened to traffic in July 2011. At the open day, local music groups performed at the north end of the tunnel. These included the Haslemere Town Band playing The Devil's Punch Bowl March which was composed for the occasion by 16-year-old band member Eric Foster.
On 19 July 2011 the Highways Agency announced that the southbound tunnel was due to open to traffic on 27 July 2011, and that the northbound tunnel would be opened a few days later. The opening ceremony, to which the public was not invited for safety reasons, was performed by the Secretary of State for Transport
Secretary of State for Transport
The Secretary of State for Transport is the member of the cabinet responsible for the British Department for Transport. The role has had a high turnover as new appointments are blamed for the failures of decades of their predecessors...
Philip Hammond
Philip Hammond
Philip Hammond MP is a British Conservative Party politician. He is the current Defence Secretary in the Coalition government led by David Cameron, having succeeded Liam Fox on 14 October 2011...
. The final opening for northbound traffic occurred on 29 July 2011, two days ahead of schedule.
Description
Twin tunnels were bored from each end by excavating about a yard (1 m) per day using diggers, then spraying the walls with concrete. On 26 February 2009, engineers met at the breakthrough point. Each tunnel, which has an approximate excavated diameter of 11.6 metres (38 ft) and an 200 millimetres (8 in) primary shotcrete liningincorporates a 7.3 metres (24 ft) wide carriageway with a 5.03 metres (16.5 ft) high traffic gauge and 1.2 metres (4 ft) wide verges on either side. Emergency interconnecting
cross passages are located at 100 metres (109 yd) intervals to facilitate movement of pedestrians between tunnels in case of emergency.
Ancillary works include a deep cutting to the south of the tunnel with a new junction for Hindhead and Hammer at its southern end. An equestrian and pedestrian bridge, the Miss James Bridge, crosses the cutting between tunnel and junction, and includes heathland planting to link the habitats on either side of the cutting.
A visitor information leaflet distributed at the walkthrough listed the following facts about the tunnel work:
of earth was excavated during the tunnel's construction
- The fuel consumption rate of the excavators was 528 gallons (2,400.3 l) of low-sulphur diesel per day
- Digging the tunnel took 290,875 person-hours of concrete were made
- 1,399,034 person-hours were worked without an accident
- The tunnel contains 156 miles (251.1 km) of cable
- The tunnel lights are twice as bright as the ones at the Old TraffordOld TraffordOld Trafford commonly refers to two sporting arenas:* Old Trafford, home of Manchester United F.C.* Old Trafford Cricket Ground, home of Lancashire County Cricket ClubOld Trafford can also refer to:...
stadium - The tunnel has 104 CCTV cameras
- The fire main tank can hold 38000 litres (8,358.8 imp gal) of water
- 4,322 people worked on the project
Time trials
According to reports in September 2011, the tunnel is being used by "wealthy young drivers" in powerful sportscars to perform time trials. They state that cars such as Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Aston Martins are regularly seen using the tunnel as a racetrack at night.External links
- Highways Agency project information
- The News (Portsmouth) – virtual experience of driving through the Hindhead Tunnel