Paper short abstract:

This paper will analyse the process of the planning enquiry into the A303 Stonehenge (Amesbury to Berwick Down) scheme and the way in which information, different narratives and knowledge practices are included or otherwise by the examining authority.

Paper long abstract:

This ethnographic research focuses upon the planning enquiry into the upgrading of Amesbury to Berwick Down section of the A303 in Wiltshire. The scheme proposes to construct a 3.2km (2 mile) tunnel - a new section of dual two-lane carriageway to address traffic problems associated with the current single carriageway that passes to the South of Stonehenge. The scheme cuts through the UNESCO World Heritage Site surrounding the monument itself. Consequently, the enquiry process attracts multiple voices, reflecting the local, archaeological, environmental and spiritual meanings with which the monument and its landscape are imbued. This paper will explore the ways in which information, different narratives, and the diverse and sometimes conflicting knowledges inform the process, but also the ways in which those are squeezed into concepts such as 'rational evidence' and are required 'to make a case' in order to have a chance of being considered. Furthermore, the paper will critically engage with this planning enquiry, in particular with the performative elements of the process in which some forms of narrative or knowledge come to dominate others.