RESIDENTS in Chedworth will be able to enjoy uninterrupted views of their idyllic Cotswold countryside following the removal of more than 1.5km of overhead power lines.

Visitors travelling to the famous Roman Villa between Yanworth and Chedworth will now have a clearer view after Southern Electric spent £120,000 dismantling the power lines.

Twenty four sections of overhead cable and 22 wooden poles have since been removed from the site near the famous Roman tourist attraction.

Martin Lane, director of the Cotswolds Conservation Board, said: “The Conservation Board is very pleased to have worked with Southern Electric to improve the appearance of this beautiful part of the Cotswold landscape.

“We are involved with a number of similar schemes in the Cotswolds, all of which will make a significant contribution to enhancing the natural beauty of the area.”

While engineers buried replacement cables underground, workers had to be careful not to interrupt the habitat of the Roman snails that are indigenous to that area.

Greg Moore, project manager at Southern Electric, said: “Our team was definitely on the snail trail while we worked but our buffer zone seemed to work well as we saw no evidence of the mighty molluscs.”

The whole project was made possible through a special grant from Ofgem to invest in projects to underground power lines in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in southern England.