Preferred route for Waterbeach to Cambridge busway put forward

The preferred route for a new busway and park and ride site to provide more reliable public transport journeys between Waterbeach and Cambridge is to be put forward.

The revised central route for a new off-road busway between Waterbeach New Town and Cambridge was the most popular among the 388 responses to a survey as part of a Greater Cambridge Partnership public consultation held earlier this year.

A new park and ride site (option C) located to the west of the A10 and Waterbeach New Town - which could include cycle parking, electric charging points and click and collect services - would also be created as part of the Waterbeach to Cambridge project to help encourage more motorists to switch to public transport.

The preferred route and P&R site are to be recommended to the GCP’s Joint Assembly and Executive Board, which meets in September, alongside a proposal to hold a further public consultation on a revised route for the Waterbeach Greenway

The project would give greater access to people travelling to work, education and meeting friends and family. It would also help to cut congestion on the A10 and supports the planned Waterbeach New Town development, where up to 11,000 new homes are expected to be built.

Peter Blake, GCP Transport Director, said:

“The A10 is a key and heavily congested route in and out of Cambridge, which is likely to get even busier with the creation of thousands of new homes at Waterbeach New Town. The challenge we have is to make sure we deliver a package of interconnecting infrastructure improvements to manage the growth which is coming to the area.

“It was great to see the responses which we had to our consultation earlier this year with the feedback helping to develop our plans further. Our proposals for a new busway and active travel route with links to the park and ride will complement the railway to give people travelling in and out of the north of the city more reliable options, with faster and frequent services to the places they need to go."

Subject to the approval of the Executive Board in September, GCP officers will carry out further work to refine the busway route and develop preliminary designs for the preferred route and P&R site, in addition to holding a consultation on the revised Waterbeach Greenway alignment later in the year.

For more information about the Waterbeach to Cambridge project and the Waterbeach Greenway visit www.greatercambridge.org.uk/waterbeach-to-cambridge. The Waterbeach to Cambridge paper to the Joint Assembly can be found on Cambridgeshire County Council's website.