Relief For Roads In Godalming Area As Hindhead Tunnel Opens Next Week

After over four and a half years of construction, the long awaited Hindhead Tunnel on the A3 will open next Wednesday, bringing much needed relief to roads in the Godalming area.

The tunnel cost £371 million and is the longest of its type in the UK.

The 1.25 mile (1.8km) structure on the London to Portsmouth A3 will open to southbound traffic on 27 July whilst the northbound carriageway will open a few days later.

Transport Secretary Philip Hammond will officially open the tunnel, with the first traffic escorted in convoy.

The Highways Agency said the opening ceremony would not be open to the public for safety and operational reasons.

Construction on the twin-bored tunnel began in January 2007.

It followed a 30-year campaign for improvements to the Hindhead traffic bottleneck supported by former Conservative MP for South West Surrey, Baroness Bottomley, among others.

The tunnel, which will be used by 30,000 vehicles a day, runs under the Devil's Punch Bowl, a large hollow of dry sandy heath to the east of Hindhead.

The existing A3 between the National Trust cafe and Boundless Road will be closed to through traffic after the tunnel is opened and acres of land returned to heathland.

Emergency teams tested their response to a major incident in the new tunnel last month.