Solstice Rest

As late as last night we were still being told by Highways England that the Press conference releasing the news on what was going to be put forward for the A303 Stonehenge Scheme Public Consultation was not until 10:30 this morning and that any story was embargoed until then.  Despite this, but not too much of a surprise given events over the last few days, in the early hours of this morning, the story that Stonehenge is to get a tunnel and Winterbourne Stoke to get a bypass broke in the national and international Press.

So, we have the big picture which we suspect will come as a surprise to no-one in the village.  The devil, however, is in the detail and none is available as yet.  The websites below are now live and you can see details of both the Stonehenge Scheme and a northern and southern option for bypassing Winterbourne Stoke

https://highwaysengland.citizenspace.com/cip/a303-stonehenge/

or:

http://www.highways.gov.uk/a303stonehenge/consultation

When we do get the detail, it is probably going to take some time to understand exactly what is being proposed and the possible impacts the alternative proposals might have on the village and we will want to hear your views as quickly as possible; there is now a Forum Topic on A303 Public consultation that you can engage with here – once you have registered on the website.  If you want to participate manually, then please send your hardcopy response to the Parish Clerk – details at the foot of the Home page.   Please do NOT try to comment directly on this post – comments have been blocked.  If you wish to engage in the debat on this topic, please use the Forum instead and Register if you haven’t done so already – the Forums are only open to residents of Winterbourne Stoke.

Highways England are hosting a public event at the Manor Barn, Winterbourne Stoke, on Saturday 14th January between 11 and 5pm and we very much hope you will attend. There are also plenty of other events locally (see details below) if you are unable to attend this Saturday, including another event in Winterbourne Stoke on Jan 27th.

Don’t forget we also have a Parish Council Meeting on Monday 16th  January at 7:00pm in the Solstice Rest where you can raise questions and we will be looking at ways in which we can ensure your voice is heard.