Anger as wildflowers mowed down on A1 at Peterborough by National Highways

There has been anger after a stretch of wildflowers, home to a range of wildlife by the side of the A1 at Peterborough, was mown down by National Highways.

A spokesperson for Highways saying it was done for safety reasons.

But Joel Ashton, who works creating wildlife gardens and wildflower meadows, said he could not believe what had happened.

In a tweet, he said: “this is beyond a joke now!! @NationalHways, PLEASE tell me why your contractors are out mowing down approx. 20 MILES (no joke!) of #wildflowers in the form of Oxeye Daisies, Sainfoin, Red Clover and MANY more, on the side of a straight section of the A1M??

"Let’s say this was 5m wide (much wider in places), that’s approx. 160,000sqm (16 hectares or 39.5 acres!) of #wildflowermeadow you’ve single-handedly wiped out overnight!

“No sight restrictions, no safety concerns.”

A National Highways spokesperson said: “National Highways is committed to environmental sustainability and biodiversity. We are investing heavily in programmes to protect and enhance our green spaces and wildlife habitats, and are committed to ensuring that overall there is no net loss of biodiversity across our network due to our activities.

“Along this section of the A1 alone there are 27 protected wildflower and grassland plots, but the verges on some other stretches need to be cut back for safety reasons.

“We published our Environmental Sustainability Strategy in May and, in light of this, we continue to review our activities and practices to ensure that we look after our network in a way that protects our natural environment.”