Protest tunnelling in the United Kingdom is a form of protest involving the construction of subterranean tunnels. It is typically used against the development of new road and transport infrastructure projects. [1]
Protest tunnelling has been utilised by protestors since the 1990s in the United Kingdom. Protests against the construction of the Newbury bypass and the extension of the A30 road in Fairmile, Devon used tunnels. The activist Swampy was the last to emerge from the tunnel built to protest the A30, having been underground for seven days. [1] [2]
Tunnelling is an effective tactic against developments as the time and cost of removing protestors from them can be prohibitive; it is comparatively easy for bailiffs to remove ground encampments and tree houses built by protestors. [1] Construction machinery cannot drive on ground that has been tunnelled without a risk to the protestors within. [3]
The construction of tunnels to protest was inspired by the Củ Chi tunnels built by the Viet Cong's for the Tết Offensive of the Vietnam War in 1968. [1]
The A30 is a major road in England, running 284 miles (457 km) WSW from London to Land's End.
Euston railway station is a central London railway terminus managed by Network Rail in the London Borough of Camden. It is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line, the UK's busiest inter-city railway. Euston is the tenth-busiest station in Britain and the country's busiest inter-city passenger terminal, being the gateway from London to the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland.
Daniel Marc Hooper, known by the nickname Swampy, is a British environmental activist. He was involved in a number of environmental protests in the 1990s, becoming nationally famous after spending a week in a tunnel aiming to stop the expansion of the A30 in Fairmile, Devon, in 1996. In 2020, he was arrested attempting to stop the destruction of Jones Hill Wood for High Speed 2 (HS2) and then joined a Stop HS2 protest at Euston Square Gardens in London.
The A35 is a major road in southern England, connecting Honiton in Devon and Southampton in Hampshire. It is a trunk road for some of its length. Most of its route passes through Dorset and the New Forest. It originally connected Exeter and Southampton, the original A35 ran along what is now the A3052 joining the present road at Charmouth.
The Newbury bypass, officially known as The Winchester-Preston Trunk Road (A34) , is a 9-mile (14 km) stretch of dual carriageway road which bypasses the town of Newbury in Berkshire, England. It is located to the west of the town and forms part of the A34 road. It opened in 1998.
The modern environmental direct action movement in the United Kingdom started in 1991 with the formation of the first UK "Earth First!" group for a protest at Dungeness nuclear power station. Within two years, there were fifty Earth First groups and activists linked with other parties in the road protest movement. There were large camps at Twyford Down and the M11 link road protest. By 1997, the Government had decided to reduce its road-building plans by two thirds.
Regional Eurostar was a planned Eurostar train service from Paris and Brussels to locations in the United Kingdom to the north and west of London.
BAM Nuttall Limited is a construction and civil engineering company headquartered in Camberley, United Kingdom. It has been involved in a portfolio of road, rail, nuclear, and other major projects worldwide. It is a subsidiary of the Dutch Royal BAM Group.
Swynnerton is a village and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. It lies in the Borough of Stafford, and at the 2001 census had a population of 4,233, increasing to 4,453 at the 2011 Census.
Old Oak Common (OOC) is a railway station under construction on the site of the Old Oak Common traction maintenance depot to the west of London in Old Oak Common, approximately 500 m (1,600 ft) south of Willesden Junction station. When built, it is expected to be one of the largest rail hubs in London, at about 800 m (2,600 ft) in length and 20 m (66 ft) below surface level.
Fairmile is a hamlet in the English county of Devon. In the late 1990s, Fairmile became a focus of direct action protest activities, as squatters attempted to stop the construction of the A30 link road between Honiton and Exeter.
High Speed 2 (HS2) is a planned high-speed railway line and network of passenger train services in Great Britain. The new railway line, which is currently under construction in England, is to run between the West Midlands and London, with a spur to Birmingham. A network of train services will use the new line and existing conventional track to reach their destinations in the Midlands, North West England, and Scotland. HS2 is to be Britain's second purpose-built high-speed line after High Speed 1, which connects London to the Channel Tunnel. The majority of the project is planned to be completed between 2029 and 2033.
Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), sometimes referred to unofficially as High Speed 3, is a proposed major rail programme designed to substantially enhance the economic potential of the North of England. The phrase was adopted in 2014 for a project featuring new and significantly upgraded railway lines in the region. The aim is to transform rail services between the major towns and cities, requiring the region's single biggest transport investment since the Industrial Revolution. The original scheme would have seen a new high-speed rail line from Liverpool to Warrington continuing to join the HS2 tunnel which it would share into Manchester Piccadilly station. From there, the line would have continued to Leeds with a stop at Bradford. The line was intended to improve journey times and frequency between major Northern cities as well as creating more capacity for local service on lines that express services would have been moved out from.
The history of High Speed 2 is the background to the planned construction of High Speed 2 (HS2), a new high-speed railway in Great Britain that would connect London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds and other cities in the UK.
The Colne Valley Viaduct is a bridge, under construction as of 2023, which will carry the High Speed 2 railway over the Colne Valley Regional Park and the Grand Union Canal, in Hillingdon, west London. When completed, its length of 3.4 kilometres (2.1 mi) and a weight of 116,000 tonnes will make it the largest railway bridge in the UK. It is one of the largest single civil engineering works of HS2 Phase 1.
Jones' Hill Wood is a 1.8-hectare (4.4-acre) piece of ancient woodland near Wendover in Buckinghamshire, south England. Formed mainly of beech trees, the wood is part of the Chiltern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Almost half of the wood is planned to be chopped down to make way for the route of High Speed 2 (HS2) and the topsoil will be translocated. In October 2020, a protest camp was evicted.
Euston Square Gardens is a public garden on Euston Road in the London Borough of Camden.
The Chiltern Tunnel is a high-speed railway tunnel currently under construction in Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire, England, and will upon completion carry the High Speed 2 (HS2) railway line under the Chiltern Hills. The twin-bore tunnels, which are 16.04 km long, will be the longest on the HS2 line. Each tunnel will also have additional 220 m (720 ft) entry and 135 m (443 ft) exit perforated concrete portals to reduce sudden changes in air pressure and subsequent noise.
The Northolt Tunnel is a high-speed railway tunnel currently under construction in Greater London, England, and will upon completion carry the High Speed 2 (HS2) railway line under the West London suburbs. The twin-bore tunnels will run for 8.4 miles (13.5 km) between Old Oak Common and Ruislip. As of August 2023, the first tunnel boring machine has completed 35% of its bore length.
Euston tunnel is a tunnel currently planned in London that will carry the High Speed 2 (HS2) railway between Euston railway station and Old Oak Common railway station.