Proposed Gloucestershire tunnel a no-go

23 January 2014


Building a tunnel to solve Gloucestershire¹s A417 missing link problem has been deemed a non-starter due to its potentially disastrous impact on the environment, local press reported last week.

While some residents have expressed the hope that an underground tunnel could be built to manage the problem-hit stretch of single carriageway between Cowley roundabout and Brockworth, a report by the Highways Agency stated that the GBP 1bn (USD 1.64bn) tunnel project had been written off due to the impact it would have on underground water flows. The report added that it would cost GBP 6M (USD 9.8M) a year to maintain.

The Echo and the county council have now launched a campaign to get people behind plans for the A417 Loop, to fill the 'missing link'
after the Environment Agency ruled out the alternative plan for a tunnel.