Hindhead Tunnel

The Hindhead Tunnel in Surrey is just under two kilometres long and is one of the longest road tunnels in the UK. It takes the A3 beneath the Devil's Punch Bowl, a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Start date Ongoing

End date Ongoing

Cost

Latest updates

11 March 2024

March maintenance – full closures

We’re carrying out activities such as essential maintenance and testing some of the technology we use to keep drivers safe when travelling through the Hindhead tunnel.

We’ll need close the road in both directions to do this work. To minimise disruption, we’ll work on weeknights only when there are fewer vehicles on the road. During the day we will keep the tunnel open as usual. We apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused during this essential work.

Closure information
The Hindhead tunnel will be fully closed for 3 weeknights (9pm to 6am) from Monday 18 to morning of Thursday 21 March 2024.

Diversion information
A fully signed diversion will be in place in both directions via A325 and A31.

Thank you for your patience while we carry out this important work.
15 January 2024

Weeknight closures for lighting upgrades - November 2023 - March 2024

We’re working to replace some of the lighting in both bores of the Hindhead Tunnel to improve safety and visibility. Work is due to start on weeknights from Wednesday 15 November till March 2024. We’ll only need to close one entrance to the tunnel at a time and use a contraflow system, so you’ll still be able to travel through. We apologise for any inconvenience caused during our safety upgrades.

Closure information

The southbound side of Hindhead tunnel will be closed overnight between 9pm and 6am:

- Tuesday 23 to Friday 26 January 2024 - 4 weeknights
- Tuesday 30 January to Friday 9 February - 9 weeknights

All dates are inclusive. A contraflow using the northbound side of the tunnel and a 40mph speed limit will be in place.

The northbound side of Hindhead tunnel will be closed overnight between 9pm and 6am:
- Monday 12 February to Friday 1 March - 15 weeknights

All dates are inclusive. A contraflow using the southbound side of the tunnel and a 40mph speed limit will be in place.
24 October 2023

Speed restrictions and weeknight tunnel closures

We’re continuing to carry out repairs to our advance fixed-text message signs system on the approaches to the London-bound carriageway.

There will be a 40mph speed restriction on the approach to the tunnel to keep traffic at a safe speed should we need to close the road. These signs and restrictions will be removed as soon as these works have been completed.

Tunnel closures

We’re also about to replace some of the lighting in both bores of the Hindhead Tunnel to improve safety and visibility. Work is due to start on weeknights from Monday 30 October and is expected to last nine weeks.

Please note: our planned shift on Tuesday 31 October has been cancelled.

We’ll only need to close one entrance to the tunnel at a time and use a contraflow system, so you’ll still be able to travel through.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused during our safety upgrades.

See more updates

Project information

We carry out regular maintenance of the tunnel to keep it safe and working properly. When we do maintenance we try to avoid fully closing the tunnel and use a contraflow system instead.

The Hindhead Tunnel contains a range of technology. One of the latest additions are the ‘Swift Gates’ which were added in 2022.