Protester's 'fake burial' over A27 Arundel bypass plans

An anonymous lone protester lay in shallow archaeological trenches to protest the Arundel bypass.

The demonstrater, who has links to Extinction Rebellion, staged fake burials across three beauty spots in Binsted as preliminary work begins.

The protest, on Saturday, was intended to signify the "death of the village", should the plans go ahead next year.

The protester in one of three archaeological trenches

A spokeswoman for the Stop the Arundel Bypass alliance said: “It just feels awful to have diggers, digging enormous holes in the landscape all round a beautiful area.

"It’s a tragedy."

The eight-kilometre "grey route" dual-carriageway aims to ease congestion around Arundel railway station.

It is part of the government’s £90 billion Road Investment Strategy.

But residents fear wildlife habitats and surrounding communities will suffer.

There is particular concern surrounding Arundel’s 12th century church, St Mary’s, as the road is expected to come within just 100 metres of the building.

The spokeswoman added: “It goes so close to the church. The noise will be horrendous, and people won’t come anymore.

“The very tight community will disappear if they build this.”

The Argus understands that the Extinction Rebellion community has shown support of this latest protest via the Telegram instant messaging service. 

It comes ahead of the National Highways consultation meeting on Saturday, 22 January at Walberton Village Hall.

• READ MORE: Furious residents protest as A27 Arundel Bypass starts to 'scar historic landscape'

Meanwhile, frustration grows over concerns the £455 million project exceeds the agreed £350 million construction contract currently issued.

Andrew Jackson, senior project manager of National Highways said: "If people have any concerns I encourage them to feed them back to us through the consultation."