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Aecom team lands £50m Stonehenge tunnel role

11 Apr 17 Highways England has appointed Aecom, Mouchel and Mace to provide technical support in the detailed design and planning application process for the £1.4bn A303 Stonehenge scheme.

The A303 is subject to congestion when motorists slow to see Stonehenge
The A303 is subject to congestion when motorists slow to see Stonehenge

The Aecom-led team will be Highways England’s technical partner for the Amesbury to Berwick Down project, which includes proposals for a 1.8-mile tunnel near Stonehenge. A joint venture of WS Atkins and Ove Arup was appointed in January 2016 to take the scheme to public consultation.

As technical partner Aecom, Mouchel and Mace will now be required to develop the preliminary design for the scheme, manage and lead on the development consent order application for the scheme, and provide technical assurance of the detailed design and construction.

The eight-year contract, valued between £40m and £50m, has been awarded under an open tender competition.

Subject to the outcome of the development consent order examination by the Planning Inspectorate, the proposed scheme is on target for construction work to start in 2020.

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Highways England project director Derek Parody said: “This award is another step in our commitment to deliver the A303 Stonehenge improvement scheme. We have enjoyed an excellent and productive working partnership with the Arup Atkins Joint Venture during the route options identification phase, and we are now looking forward to forging another successful partnership with Aecom.

“We are still busy developing the design of the scheme, following a successful public consultation, and although we are yet to receive permission to start construction, this appointment will help us to design the best scheme possible to improve this road and enhance the World Heritage Site, and to prepare for works getting under way on time and to budget.”

The single carriageway A303 between Amesbury and Berwick Down currently runs alongside Stonehenge and the proposed option is to dual the seven-mile section, including a 1.8-mile tunnel, to improve journey times, remove the sight and sound of traffic and enhance the World Heritage Site. The proposal also includes options for a bypass of the village of Winterbourne Stoke.

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