The proposed quarry site has for years been part of an almost disused railway sidings, but it lies near a footbridge and close to fields and pathways made famous in Matthew Arnold's poem 'The Scholar Gypsy' written in about 1854.

'And once, in winter, on the causeway chill
Where home through flooded fields foot travellers go,
Have I not passed thee on the wooden bridge
Wrapt in thy cloak and battling with the snow,
Thy face towards Hinksey and its wintry ridge?
And thou hast climbed the hill
And gained the white brow of the Cumnor range,
Turned once to watch, while thick the snowflakes fall,
The line of festal light in Christ Church hall -
Then sought thy home in some sequestered grange.'

Matthew Arnold, the Scholar Gypsy.

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The Matthew Arnold path, a popular walking route for thousands of Oxford residents and tourists every year, passes across Hinksey Lake and over the footbridge situated directly above the area on which the quarry has been built. Railtrack's work has already destroyed the peace and tranquility of the lake, the surrounding pathways, South Hinksey village, and a large part of South Oxford. People who live nearby already claim that the noise is intolerable, especially on days when the wind blows from the South West. It is probable that the open air swimming pool and Hinksey Park will be almost unusable in the summer months.