Off the road
Plans to build a new road between Hastings and Bexhill in the south of England have infuriated a group of activists who are trying everything to stop the project, which they criticise as costly and environmentally damaging. Some 50 dedicated opponents of the road started a tree-dwelling demonstration, camping out both underneath trees and up in their branches in an attempt to stop land being cleared for construction. Protestors had to be forcibly removed and police made 28 arrests.
An activist looks out from a snow-covered tunnel, dug to prevent land clearing for the construction of the bypass.
Activist Natalie Hynde sits on a tree branch during the protest. She explained her opposition to the road link project: “In this decade of austerity, 100 million is an obscene amount to be spending on such a deliberately aimless scheme. We should be looking towards more sustainable forms of transport."
Activist Sophie Stephens warms up in the snow with a cup of tea.
Activists erect shelters in a tree to prevent land clearing for the new road.
A demonstrator brings tree felling work to a halt by sitting on a telegraph pole during a protest against the bypass.
Specially trained bailiffs prepare to secure demonstrators, who have tied themselves to a tree, before removing them from the branches.
One of the specialist bailiffs lowers a restrained demonstrator from a tree.
Police arrest the demonstrator and carry him away.
A bailiff (right) drags a protestor by the leg.
Three policemen lead away an activist who had tied himself to a tree.
Workers continue to clear land for the new road. The local council states that for every tree removed for the project, two will be planted.
A local pub displays a giant banner opposing the construction of the new link road.
