Many's the time I've been heading to or from the West Country and I've pulled onto the A344 for a 'comfort/heritage' break.
Half an hour has been enough to give the kids a flavour of the stones. Usually when they realise they can't climb on them they don't want to stay much longer. You could even get a reasonable view for free, from the public road, not that different to the view from the rope circle.
Now though, that road is being closed http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/stonehenge/our-plans/stonehenge-visitor-centre-faqs/and visiting the stones becomes a question of advance planning. Timed tickets will be needed for the shuttle buses from the new visitor centre some way off. Yes, there will be less traffic around the stones, so visiting will be a lovelier and quieter experience for those with the time. But for the rest of us, with precious weekends into which we have to cram travelling and friends and family and maybe a bit of heritage, visiting will be much less easy.
It will be interesting to see how visitor numbers hold up in the face of a dirigiste and un English policy that makes the 'best the enemy of the good.' Meanwhile local people are coping with predicted traffic chaos. http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/68337000/jpg/_68337800_stonehenge_andy_rhind_tutt.jpg. The A303 narrows as it passes the stones anyway and the A344 was useful extra capacity. I think this local mayor who presided over some kind of reverse ribbon cutting ceremony to close the road may have cause to regret his complacency:
Yes, it would be beautiful if it was all back in its bronze age glory, so silent and stately, but then we wouldn't be visiting at all, would we?
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