Thursday 21 July 2011

BBC South Today and Meridian TV














Howdy people






Just wanted to let you know that despite the fact i'm not around for the opening Meridian TV and BBC South Today came out to do some filming with me over the last couple days, to hopefully include in their news bulletins on tuesday and wednesday next week.






The top picture is of me and Andrew from BBC South Today and the second photo is me and Andrew from Meridian TV.






Can I say a massive thank you to both of you for taking to time to come and film this stuff. I hope you captured my best side!!!!






Keep on diggin...........

63 comments:

Lord Cholmondly said...

It is a pity that in Guildford we only have a very weak analogue signal from BBC South and no Meridian reception at all so sadly unless London TV can give the tunnel some coverage the great day may go unmarked. I am hoping for a sunny weekend after the opening so I can roar off to Hayling Island for steak and chips and a pint beside the sea. Should do it in a bout 45 minutes. Hang on tight!

gummybear said...

haha you can watch it again on iplayer and itv local player mate

Oh and watch out for the speed cameras in the tunnel and outside the tunnel!

Lord Cholmondly said...

Good point. Not to hot on modern technology.

fucck said...

Outside of the tunnel?

Anonymous said...

there are speedy camers out side the tunnel as well

Anonymous said...

Does anyone knows at what time the opening ceremony will be held?

Goose said...

Sunday evening 6:50 pm, not open, but the northern approach roads looked pretty sharp and clear.

Goose said...

From the HA Website:

On Tuesday 19 July, the Highways Agency announced the A3 Hindhead Tunnel Southbound will open to traffic on Wednesday 27 July 2011. Secretary of State for Transport, Philip Hammond, will open the tunnel. Southbound traffic will be the first to use the tunnel, with northbound traffic being introduced to the new road a few days later. The first traffic will be escorted through the tunnel in convoy, and the old road will remain in use in the meantime.

John Doe. said...

So when they say about a few days apart, how many days???

Will the old road be a one way thing beyond the cafe, when the Southbound tunnel opens?

No one's actually specified what's actually happening in any great detail, which isn't very helpful! :-/

Lord Cholmondly said...

Thinking about cafe's, this should do the Shell garage at Liphook a favour as I cannot think of anywhere else to make a pit stop now between Guildford Cathedral and Portsmouth. Will there be any toilet facilies at the tunnel?

Hindhead Resident said...

It's a good point. Southbound, there's the (currently closed) filling station at Eashing, but nothing else between Wisley and Liphook without leaving the A3. Northbound is even worse - not even an Eashing equivalent. Maybe there should be more signs to "local services" at the new A333Grayshott/Hindhead interchange (Hazel Grove to us locals) and at Milford and Guildford. Or a nice new concrete service area overlooking the Devil's Punchbowl? (only kidding!)

Lord Cholmondly said...

I shall take my comode with me in future.

Vernon said...

Or you could visit one of England's greatest pubs which is just a few yards from the A3 near Petersfield: The Harrow at Steep.
It is not open between 3pm and 6pm and is quite hard to find despite being so close to the road.

Banjax said...

Just wanted to post a link to the theme tune for tomorrow. Best played LOUD
http://youtu.be/Si759fiEx3c

Lord Cholmondly said...

Thank you Vernon. I know the Harrow, indeed it is a fine pub although it is a long time since I last went there. My parents used to go there during the war, and as far as I know the same family runs it to this day.

Hindhead Resident said...

Looking good for tomorrow. Concrete blocks all removed from the southbound carriageway, new cones on the first hundred yards from the wolr compound into the new road (so I guess we'll have single lane working there for a bit, but hopefully not long). A bit of tidying up going on at the off slip road from the new southbound carriageway onto the Hazel Grove interchange. This time tomorrow no southbound queue round the Punchbowl - history is being made!

Hindhead Resident said...

Sorry - that was 'work compound'. Not sure where the wolr came from...

Lord Cholmondly said...

I have spotted highways agency trucks full of cones lurking in Guildford today. I wonder if this is something to do with something??

Don Miguel said...

National radio said the tunnel will be opening at midday today. Time is approaching, only four hours to go.

Anonymous said...

Apologies if anyone else has already posted this, but here is a drive through the tunnel on the BBC website.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-14293147

Anonymous said...

Certainly looks like the A3 will still be down to 1 lane Southbound outside the works compound. Theres a long stretch of new cones there this morning.

Expecting massive queues this evening on way home :-(

Don Miguel said...

National radio advise the northbound tunnel opening is set for Friday.

Markyboy said...

I'm getting excited now...I've got the cameras mounted on my bike and helmet and am standing by...

Don Miguel said...

It's a pity there aren't any webcams covering this stretch of the A3. The nearest is hindhead and that's not in use at the moment.

Ben said...

Is it open yet? Has anyone been through it?

Im not in the office today so am missing the big day.

Would love some updates!!

Anonymous said...

Yep, it's open! The BBC updated at 11:54, so sometime before then.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-14298318

Ben said...

Amazing. Is it reduced to one lane on the approach to the southbound tunnel?

Anonymous said...

Hi,
I set up the original A3 tunnel blog, and as you noticed due to a change in circumstances I couldn't carry it on - but you have done a superb job in blogging the progress over the years, congratualtions and well done.

Alan

Anonymous said...

Officially open: http://www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/transport/hindhead_tunnel_is_now_officially_open_1_2903888

The video is good as well.

Tom said...

I went through the tunnel about an hour ago. One lane closed on the approach but then opens up fully on the way down the new dual carriageway towards the tunel. It's great! So, so quick to get to the other side of Hindhead. Very impressed.

Markyboy said...

Me too! The traffic was quite bad queuing on the approach (to the point I thought the road might actually be closed!), and curiously there was a police car heading Northbound on the other carriageway that was holding all the Northbound traffic back (perhaps the MP had just left?), but I was amazed to see both lanes then open up on the new section! The tunnel feels really long actually.

hillsey said...

O.K. the penny has just dropped, they have opened the tunnel on the 1 year before the opening of the Olympic games in London, as I have found out it was of some importance to the infrastructure for us to get the games in London...as a resident of Deepdeen I look forward to driving through it...the cars passing my house on the "rat run" stopping or slowing down and our houses going up in value. Great job Gummybear. Look forward to a prosperous and quieter time for all of us in the area.
Hillsey

taxpayer said...

Looking at Google Maps to see the traffic situation, there appears to be a major slow down on the south bound lanes starting at Milford Bypass.

Tomodo said...

My photos of the construction from October 2008 up to now - including a few of the opening this morning.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomodophotography/sets/72157622120716488/

Anonymous said...

Apparently it's gridlocked from Thursley onwards, wondering whether to wait till next week to drive through and go home via haslemere tonight. Probably had no choice but to close 1 lane but it makes a kind of mockery of the launch with queues longer than ever and rush hour not yet in full swing.

Anonymous said...

Better not be gridlocked when I drive down tonight at about 8:30pm in the Royal Mail truck gis a hoot!!.....

Vernon said...

It opened at 10.45am after a lot of hot air from politicians and local bigwigs on a mobile stage. They didn't even have the decency to amplify the speeches so that watching members of the public and BB engineers could hear.
The southbound approach to the tunnel is restricted to one lane so that they can connect the northbound lane to the existing A3 - can't see the cones going until the northbound is open.
Extemsive coverage tonight on Meridian (6pm) and BBC South (6.30pm)

Nutcombe said...

Very bad queues due to continued single lane working past the contractors' work site then free flowing on fully open dual carriageway through the tunnel, much quicker than the crawl round the Punchbowl. Only problem would appear to be the totally inadequate signage for the A333 exit immediately after the southern portal. Hopefully that'll be put right before some clown attempts to swerve from outside to inside lane to make it onto the slip road, taking out some poor unsuspecting driver in the process.

Anonymous said...

As a regular user of the a3 i think BB have done a great job but think HA and their P.R team want shot why have a grand opening if as we all knew it would be 1 lane past work compound until northbound complete causing every man an his dog to use what the news is saying is a fully working bypass when the reality is it isnt and has caused chaos why not of kept quiet until all four lanes could be used properly even at lower speeds then have the grand opening

Potato eater said...

Anyone know when its going to open?

Anonymous said...

The well anticipated opening has happend, followed by complete and utter chaos with everyone wanting to drive through, obviously hoping that 2 lanes would be open straight away. Hindhead was a nightmare from 10.30 onwards and I expect this to be the case for atleast a week until the novelty wears off. I just look foward to peacefully sitting in my garden after Friday without the screaching tyres, absuive rants at other motorists and accidents. Hoorah

Anonymous said...

Indeed anon. I certainly look forward to not having to screach my tyres, and dish out abusive rants to the other "motorists". Woohoo.

Anonymous said...

Just as I feared, more delays, and I don't think it will be just a short-term problem. Contractor vehicles needing to get from the "camp" to the ongoing landscaping works on the old A3 will still want to exit the camp northbound, otherwise they will have to go through the tunnel in both directions just to get to the Thursley exit. That will mean lane restrictions and speed limits for several more months, not just a couple of days.

Anonymous said...

So go thru the tunnel in both direction then. not too much to ask is it.

You know the highways agency really are starting to look like a bunch of incompetent muppets.

Paul M said...

The construction camp borders on to the end of the access road to Bedford Farm - take the new Thursley-Boundless link road as far as the Greensand Way underpass, cross under the dual carriageway and turn right, and you are there. Strikes me this is a much more likely access route than a hike through the tunnel southbound to be able to go round the Hammer Lane junction for a 180.

Anonymous said...

Worse queues than during the roadworks when I was there at about 7.30pm, nearly back to Milford turn-off. I had to use the Witley/Brook turn off instead of the tunnel. So much for the tunnel making the traffic better!

mattsr said...

Well done to BBC South Today for their coverage of the opening, with Sally Taylor live from the tunnel, and most of the programme devoted to what is clearly the major regional story of the day. But Meridian- what were you thinking? Not a mention of the tunnel all through the programme, instead it was an "Olympics Special"- as if we're not going to have more than enough of that over the next year. Perhaps they covered it yesterday, but if so I still don't understand the decision not to run the story today. Very bad call guys!!

Anyway, onward and upward. My first drive through the tunnel will be next Tuesday morning- can't wait!!

Anonymous said...

Hope meridian did it for the reason tunnel not fully open and not to build tension only for the people that have avoided the area for years to find what all regular hindhead users found but knew was coming chaos once fully open will be worth mentioning and having lived at the lights i no what happiness it will bring to punchbowl etc but after today i no as do many it will take a few more days but will be worth it please be patient to all of us and locals will be great in the long term

Markyboy said...

I came back through Hindhead on the bike tonight at around 5.30pm. Absolutely mad queues either side. No idea why it should be any slower to pass through Hindhead northbound when ther ei sno southbound traffic???? And why was the Southbound so bad (back to Milford)? There was no hold-up any worse than normal at the roadworks. All very strange.

Anyhow, if you didn't make it today, here is what it looked like from my motorbike:

http://youtu.be/kGWLOqjT9ro

Hopefully I'll get a matching Northbound one on Friday.


(Apologies if you find my 'enthusiastic low gear growling exhaust note offensive - I promise I won't make a habit of it)

Mark

Anonymous said...

Only a short queue when I got here tonight in the truck at about 8:30pm but was taken by surprise to find any sort of queue very strange.....

I also found no warning/announcement a bit disturbing as well telling you it was open.... anyway glad to see it's open and looking forward to Fridays ride up through the north bound

Anonymous said...

It took 40 minutes to get from Milford and through the tunnel last night. Complete farce if you ask me, they should not have officially opened it until both tunnels were open.

A much better process would have been to have had a quiet launch of the southbound tunnel or at least made it clear to people that major roadworks were still taking place and carriageway down to one lane. You look at the launch video with all the politicans and it looks like everything is finished, don't wonder there was total chaos yesterday.

A total sham of an opening.

Anonymous said...

Current northbound exit from site offices have gone, route is now southbound through tunnel off at Hazel Grove and upto Hindhead lights back passed the offices again, approx 10 minutes longer. Single lane restriction will be lifted by the weekend, so two lanes running at 70mph.

Anonymous said...

Had my worse/longest trip back from Guildford to Haslemere yesterday evening for a long time.
In-fact I avoided the A3 until I got to Brook when I cut through to the Thursley junction just to say went through the tunnel on the first day. Still took 15mins from there. I guess all the queues show how much traffic will be using the A3 now.
I kind of missed my scenic drive home the previous day! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iB924pa6ayc

Anonymous said...

What the Mirror has to say:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/07/28/transport-secretary-philip-hammond-hits-the-skids-at-gridlocked-jam-busting-tunnel-115875-23301727/

Markyboy said...

So what is going on then? why is there delays southbound. It was 40mph and traffic lights before it opened, now it is just 40mph and no lights. What has changed?

Same question Northbound. Nothing has changed there except for a minor amount of the southbound traffic filtering in at the Hazel Grove junction to go back up to Hindhead.

Is it additional traffic above normal and if so where has all this additional traffic come from? Have all the schools now broke up and there is a mass road-borne holiday exodus? Is it people purposely diverting to the A3 to take in the tunnel?

To blame the tunnel people seems a be unfounded to me.

taxpayer said...

According to Google Maps there is slow moving or congested traffic north of the tunnel.

Any reason seen

Anonymous said...

It was always said that once open traffic would increase by 30%.
That is traffic that would have used the A3 but didn't due to the Hindhead lights problem.
I assume a lot of the extra traffic is those people hearing that the tunnel was open thinking it would be trouble free both ways. Also when I came through about 6pm yesterday a lot cars wasn't your normal commuter traffic. Cars with families, groups of friends who didn't seem bothered by the queues, classic, performace cars etc.

Anonymous said...

If that is correct and 30% more traffic hits northbound a3/a31 junction in morning rush hour, queues will be horrible :-(

taxpayer said...

There will probably be less traffic coming in on the A31 as that road is part of a greater Hindhead bypass for people coming from the south of Selborne.

elusive said...

Thanks for the ride Markyboy

Anonymous said...

Exactly what I'm worried about. The tunnel won't make the problem go away, it'll just move it somewhere else which looks like Guildford!
I expect some of the extra traffic on the A3 would have been coming along and joining from the hogs back anyway but it's still going to be a nightmare at Stag Hill. Guildford centre was really busy yesterday evening rush hour which is usually a sign there is lots of traffic/queues on the A3. Oh joy...

Markyboy said...

Hey elusive - thanks very much, I'll try to post a Northbound escapade tomorrow evening!

And for others, if you haven't read all 50-odd comments above, here's my tunnel movie from yesterday:
http://youtu.be/kGWLOqjT9ro

Markyboy

Anonymous said...

I always assumed that they used phasing of the Hindhead lights to control the traffic going north up to Guildford. Anyone who regularly crosses the junction on the a287 knows that the amount of time on green changes quite dramatically for no apparent reason.