Cambridge Connect made a submission to the Cambourne to Cambridge Busway Phase 2 Consultation, which ended 31 March 2019.
Our submission included “Greenprint for a sustainable future: Cambridge Light Rail” (PDF, 9.3MB), which summarises the scheme developed by Cambridge Connect and its underlying rationale. Our proposals take an integrated view across the whole region rather than considering only one specific section in isolation. Particular corridors need to be considered in their wider context, including with schemes such as the East-West Rail and the proposed Cambridge to Oxford Expressway.
Focussing on elements of the Cambridge Connect scheme that relate specifically to Cambourne to Cambridge, we made the following points in our submission:
- The Cambridge public transport scheme should be world-class; to achieve this, investment is needed for the long term to:
- encourage modal shift (more people travelling by public transport, cycle and walking rather than taking private cars);
- support the economy and boost productivity;
- protect the environment, including our green spaces and reducing pressures on the urban realm;
- foster social inclusion and reduce discrimination against poorer sectors of society.
- Light rail is proven as one of the best available technologies for a mass transit system, including for a city and surrounding region of the size of Cambridge. To date, insufficient evidence has been presented on light rail, and we believe that more consideration of the option is warranted, including more detailed assessments of the costs and benefits.
- Any new public transport route between Cambourne to Cambridge should follow the general alignment of the A428 and connect with a fully enabled Girton Interchange. This route has many advantages, including:
- linking to all the major highways (M11, A14 & A428);
- integration of Eddington, the major new university development in the NW of Cambridge, directly into the public transport network;
- lower overall environmental impact than alternatives, in particular of the route that would proceed via Coton and Madingley Hill which has exceptionally high landscape value (relatively unspoiled by major infrastructure and some of the best views of Cambridge and the surrounding countryside);
- future proofing the network for potential links to Bar Hill;
- addressing congestion on Huntingdon Road by offering an access point to the public transport network near the Girton Interchange for people travelling from the north of Cambridge.
- The investment in the Girton Interchange should be a major priority for the Greater Cambridge Partnership and Combined Authority, and this investment should be brought forward rather than deferred. This also relates to the excessive pressure on the A1303 extending from the A428 down to the J13 access onto the M11, which has insufficient capacity to cope with commuting needs at peak times. Expenditure on busway alternatives in the interim is an inefficient use of public money, and could be more productively invested elsewhere.
- Any new public transport route should be integrated across the city to enable seamless journeys on a ‘metro’ network that:
- connects the regions to the centre, and vice versa;
- connects residents to major employment centres, including on the periphery of Cambridge;
- enables cross-city journeys;
- maximises accessibility and patronage;
- facilitates multi-objective journeys (e.g. employment, education, shopping, visiting friends, medical appointments etc.) to the maximum extent practicable;
- recognises the importance of maintaining excellent city centre access in the context of emerging challenges to inner-city vibrancy brought about by increases in online services and shopping. Cambridge should not be complacent about this process, which is negatively impacting numerous city centres throughout the UK. Access is a key element in the mix.
- Investment should not be made in a scheme that does not have a clear and confirmed means of sustainably accessing the city centre, as is the case for the current Cambourne to Cambridge busway plan. That is, currently the Cambourne to Cambridge busway scheme proceeds only as far as Grange Road, from where buses will travel on city streets such as Grange Road, West Road, Queens Road and Silver Street to access the central bus station at Drummer Street. Not only will this be slow, it will increase heavy vehicle traffic along these routes, impacting both local residents, university institutes, colleges and the urban realm more generally.
- Moreover, with population growth, this option is increasingly unsustainable. We believe the interlinked problem of accessing the city centre needs to be satisfactorily resolved and funded before deciding on the form and route of the link from Cambourne to the city, in particular by firm commitment to a tunnel for the ‘metro’ under the city core, which would form part of an integrated scheme. Both the technology and segregated routes required may well differ from existing plans when developed as an integrated ‘metro’ across the city. In the interim, although not ideal, it is possible for buses to use existing roads.
- A short section of tunnel in the city core would address the issue itemised in (5) above. There is a need for a fully integrated plan with commitment to delivery before busways are developed that have the potential to become inappropriate within a few years of their completion.
- The network proposed by Cambridge Connect should be considered as a form of ‘distributed park & ride’, where residents may access the backbone of public transport from their nearest point of access along the network. In this model the priorities for Park & Rides, and their locations, need to be reconsidered. In particular, we consider the proposal for a new Park & Ride on Madingley Hill (such as proposed as part of the GCP Cambourne to Cambridge busway scheme) to be deeply flawed. The alternative proposed by the GCP at Scotland Farm is also unlikely to be appropriate in the context of a fully integrated ‘metro’ network. We consider a new Park & Ride at the Girton Interchange to be a superior alternative, and consideration should also be given to locating a Park & Ride at Cambourne itself.
- Cambridge Connect opposes the plans set out for public transport from Cambourne to Cambridge as they are presently framed in the public consultation for the reasons set out in our full report ‘Greenprint for a sustainable future‘.
- Cambridge Connect strongly supports the vision for a world-class, fully integrated, ‘metro’ across the region, although we believe that the evidence presented to date more strongly supports light rail as the best available mode, rather than bus-based solutions.
- Cambridge Connect takes the view that a delay in delivery by a few years is preferable to short-term delivery of a busway scheme that is not integrated, nor fit for purpose for the long-term. In our view, it is critical that the solution selected is absolutely right for Cambridge.
