Surrey’s Hindhead Tunnel celebrates 10th Birthday

Today marks ten years since the opening of the Hindhead Tunnel on the A3 in Surrey.

The 1.2-mile route moved the A3 under the Devil's Punch Bowl, helping to restore part of the Surrey Hills to nature, while also easing traffic problems.

Highways England have said the project has led to Hindhead becoming one of the "top wildlife sites in the south east of England."

Highways England Tunnel Manager, John Nicholas said: “The Hindhead Tunnel was the final piece in the jigsaw which made the whole of the A3 between London and Portsmouth dual carriageway, removing the last, heavily-congested pinch point at Hindhead and through the Devil’s Punchbowl.

“This has resulted in dramatically improved journeys for millions of local and long-distance drivers over the past ten years, and improved safety and air quality in the area.”

Director of Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Rob Fairbanks added: “The Hindhead Tunnel Scheme is by far the largest capital investment in restoring nature, connectivity and tranquillity in the Surrey Hills since it was designated in 1958.

“It is also perhaps the largest single civil engineering investment in all of the country’s 44 National Parks and AONBs. The Hindhead Tunnel has been fantastic in terms of nature and people, and it’s wonderful to see how ten years after the tunnel was built, that nature has been fully restored to the area for the first time in nearly 200 years.”