Construction starts on the Horningsea Greenway

A ground-breaking ceremony to mark the start of a programme of work across Greater Cambridge to improve walking and cycling journeys was held this week.

Cllr Elisa Meschini joined contractors Milestone and GCP Project Manager Ben Hathway on site in Horningsea Road on Monday to mark the start of construction on the Horningsea Greenway.

It kicks off a programme of early works on seven of the 12 greenways – a 150km network of active travel routes to connect Cambridge with surrounding towns and villages to encourage more people to walk and cycle to work, school or to meet their friends.

Cllr Meschini, Chair of the Greater Cambridge Partnership’s Executive Board, said:

"The greenways are a key part of our plan to help people travel more freely and sustainably, improving our health and the environment by cutting congestion and reducing carbon emissions."

“I am pleased to see how in Horningsea we will be widening a popular walking and cycling route from the village to Fen Ditton Primary School, while reducing the road’s speed limit to 40mph, to improve safety for everyone.”

Once complete, the Horningsea Greenway will enable people to walk or cycle from the village to Midsummer Common, with links to the Swaffham and Bottisham Greenways and the GCP’s flagship Chisholm Trail active travel route.

The works on Horningsea Road are expected to take 20 weeks and will be carried out in phases from north to south. It is expected to complete in early 2024.

People travelling in the area are advised that two-way traffic lights will be in operation and journeys could take slightly longer than usual.

Work on the rest of the Horningsea Greenway is still subject to further detailed design work and approval by the GCP’s Executive Board.

Thomas Fitzpatrick, Head of Programme at the GCP, added:

“This is the first in a series of works on the greenways we are bringing forward so people can enjoy the benefits of better walking and cycling journeys sooner.

“In the meantime, we are working to finalise more complicated designs for the rest of this Greenway and the wider proposed network. We recognise this work will cause some disruption over the coming months and would like to apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.”

For more information on greenways, visit: www.greatercambridge.org.uk/greenways