By Luke Cross
TESCO has finally confirmed that it intends to carry on building a tunnel and new superstore in Gerrards Cross.
The long-awaited decision by the supermarket giant comes two years after part of the tunnel over the Chiltern Railway line near Packhorse Road, which was being constructed to hold a new store in the centre of the village, came crashing down onto the track, nearly hitting two passenger trains on June 30, 2005.
Tesco is satisfied that it has come to a "safe and workable solution" and has revealed a conceptual design of how it intends to rebuild the tunnel, leaving the existing arches as they stand but building a new reinforced concrete arch over the top.
While the company still needs "various technical approvals" from Network Rail, it anticipates work to start on the tunnel in eight months time and the store to be open for business by March 2010.
There will be a public meeting next Wednesday (July 4) at the Gerrards Cross Memorial Centre, East Common, with a short presentation and a question and answer session.
A new website with plans, timings and background details was launched on Tuesday, which Tesco says it will update as more detailed information on the design and construction becomes available.
Lucy Neville-Rolfe, executive director for corporate and legal affairs, again apologised for the inconvenience and frustration caused.
She said: "It cannot have been easy living near the building site, especially with the uncertainty over our future intentions.
"Today I can confirm that we intend to complete the construction of our supermarket.
"We have worked closely with our expert contractors and Network Rail whilst developing our latest plans. Tesco now wants to see progress on the
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