East West Rail update reveals plans for tunnels, Cambourne station details and Cambridge upgrade as consultation begins
Updated plans for East West Rail have been revealed as a fresh consultation gets under way - and they include two tunnels to reduce the line’s environmental impact, details of the new Cambourne station, upgrades in Cambridge and plans for a turnback facility.
The proposals also confirm the East West Railway Company’s preference for green traction power in the form of discontinuous electrification, meaning it would use hybrid battery-electric trains.
And the update comes as the government forecasts that the line, which will connect Oxford to Cambridge, will boost the economy by £6.7billion per year by 2050.
Under the plans, the new station at Cambourne will be located to the north of the town, the A428 and St Neots Road. By improving connectivity to Cambridge, the station is expected to lead to further housing growth in Cambourne.
East West Railway Company (EWR Co) still favours a southern route into Cambridge, linking to the under-construction Cambridge South station at Cambridge Biomedical Campus.
It is now proposed that a ‘cut and cover’ tunnel will be built beneath the A428, Bourn Airfield development and Highfields Road, with a temporary diversion of the A428 and other local roads.
And after an outcry over the impact on villages on the route, a tunnel is also proposed through Chapel Hill, near Haslingfield, to reduce the visual and environmental impact of the line. EWR Co says this will prevent the need to construct a very large cutting, which would have required significant construction works and may have affected the flight paths of Barbastelle bats living in the area
Two new railway tracks will be laid beside the West Anglia Main Line from Shepreth Junction to Cambridge’s main station, where a new platform, platform extensions, footbridges and building upgrades are envisaged to accommodate four new passenger trains per hour.
A turnback facility at Cherry Hinton is proposed to reduce the impact on Cambridge’s main railway station and avoid disruptive works there. This would mean passengers would alight at Cambridge station and trains continue east to Cherry Hinton to turn around, rather than at Cambridge.
And EWR Co has also confirmed the hours of operation for trains.
It anticipates that passenger services will run between 6am and midnight from Monday to Thursday, between 6am to 1am on Friday and Saturday, and between 7am to 11pm on Sunday.
David Hughes, CEO of EWR Co, said: “East West Rail will provide faster, easier and more reliable journeys to Cambridge - particularly from Bedford and Cambourne – which will improve access to jobs, education and days out.
“The railway will support Cambridge’s renowned life sciences and innovation sectors by helping to remove constraints to economic growth in the city, while enabling more affordable places to live.
“This is why I’m excited to present our updated proposals, which include electrification to reflect our commitment to running a net zero carbon railway, upgrades to Cambridge station and new tunnels to reduce the visual impact of the railway.
“Local authorities and businesses have been calling for this railway for three decades. Our revised plans aim to maximise the benefits of the project and have been influenced by the huge number of conversations we’ve had with local people and businesses, and thousands of responses we have had to our last public consultation.
“I encourage people to read our updated proposals in this consultation, attend one of the public events across the route and share your views to help us refine our designs further so East West Rail can best serve its local communities.”
A 10-week non-statutory consultation begins today (Thursday, 14 November) on the plans, with events lined up at Great Shelford, Cambourne, Comberton, Cambridge and Cherry Hinton, among other locations, as well as online webinars. Full details are below.
This is the third non-statutory public consultation, and follows feedback from earlier stages, further technical design work and the government’s confirmation in last month’s Budget that it was supporting the delivery of East West Rail in full.
Transport secretary Louise Haigh, who is visiting the new-look Bletchley station on the route today, said: “East West Rail will boost access to education and business opportunities while unlocking economic growth and productivity right across the region, including Cambridge’s world-leading life science cluster.
“With these proposals, passengers can get ready for more frequent, faster and greener journeys through an electrified line, demonstrating our drive to deliver infrastructure that is truly fit for the future.
“This consultation marks a significant moment for the project, offering the public an exciting opportunity to shape the development of this transformational line. I encourage local residents and businesses to get involved and have their say.”
The line will run from Oxford via Milton Keynes, Bedford and Cambourne to Cambridge, with the passenger services due to start in 2025 along the first stage between Oxford and Bletchley, where all track has been laid and line testing is under way. The first test train successfully completed a run between Oxford and Milton Keynes last month.
Essential improvement works are also planned to the existing railway between Oxford and Bedford.
The new proposals include environmental improvements designed to help EWR Co meet its commitment to deliver a biodiversity net gain of 10 per cent across the route.
In the western sections already completed, there has been some progress towards this already, with 20 ecological compensation sites created between Bicester in Oxfordshire and Bletchley in Buckinghamshire, where 45 ponds, artificial badger setts, an artificial otter holt, a bat house, more than 70 bat boxes and planting of more than 150,000 plants and trees have bolstered biodiversity.
Why has discontinuous electrification been chosen?
There was widespread dismay when it was initially suggested that diesel trains might be needed on East West Rail, with politicians - including Cambridge’s Labour MP Daniel Zeichner and South Cambridgeshire’s former Conservative MP Anthony Browne - arguing that was unacceptable. Diesel trains are due to be phased out across the country by 2040.
Now EWR Co says it plans a form of green traction power that uses hybrid battery-electric trains. These will bring environmental benefits by reducing carbon emissions, but mean overhead lines would only need to be installed along some sections of the route, with the trains switching to battery power outside these areas.
This move will cut disruption during construction, reduce the visual impact in more sensitive locations, cost less than full electrification and reduce the need to alter current structures.
Why the southern route into Cambridge?
EWR Co has always favoured a southern approach into Cambridge, despite opposition from some communities along the route, including the Cambridge Approaches group, and arguments that Northstowe could be served if a northern route was taken.
The key reason for this is economical: EWR Co points to there being three times as many jobs within walking distance of the under-construction Cambridge South station, at Cambridge Biomedical Campus, compared to Cambridge North station.
The biomedical campus - the leading biomedical site in Europe - is now the city’s largest employment site, with the likes of AstraZeneca, Abcam and others alongside Addenbrooke’s, the Rosie and Royal Papworth hospitals and multiple research facilities.
Expansion is also planned at the campus, with new cancer research and children’s hospitals planned, and southern extension on the cards to accommodate the growing demand from the life science sector for space.
How can I take part in the consultation?
The consultation documents can be viewed online at https://eastwestrail.co.uk/consultation2024.
A consultation feedback form can also be found on this site for people to share their views.
Supporting documents on the website include:
- a technical report, with further information about how EWR Co has developed the designs; - an environmental update report;
- a transport update report, with preliminary information about the likely effects of the proposals.
- maps, plans and visualisations, which show the proposed route alignment and features, the land that would be required for the project, and illustrations of what some of the main features of the railway could look like.
The non-statutory consultation will gather feedback on the early designs, including areas where EWR Co is still considering its options. This will inform the next design stages.
The consultation will run for 10 weeks from 14 November 2024 to 24 January 2025. A series of public drop-in and online events are being held, offering a chance to meet the EWR Co team and ask questions.
In the Cambridge region, these events include:
- 2-7pm, Friday, 22 November, 2024 - Shelford Rugby Club, The Davey Field, Cambridge Road, Great Shelford CB22 5JU
- 2-7pm, Tuesday, 3 December, 2024 - Cambridge Belfry, Back Lane, Great Cambourne CB23 6BW
- 2-7pm, Friday, 10 January, 2025 - Comberton Village Hall, Green End, Comberton CB23 7DY
- 12-5pm, Saturday, 18 January, 2025 - The Clayton Hotel, 27-29 Station Road, Cambridge, CB1 2FB
- 2-7pm, Tuesday, 21 January, 2025 - St Andrew’s Church, Coldhams Lane, Cherry Hinton Cambridge, CB1 3JS
Online webinars will be held from
- 2.30-4.30pm, Wednesday, 20 November, 2024 - https://tinyurl.com/2y34z2n3
- 6-8pm, Tuesday, 10 December, 2024 - https://shorturl.at/436Ib
- 10am-12pm, Thursday, 9 January, 2025 - https://shorturl.at/Q0Ezd
Email contact@eastwestrail.co.uk to reach EWR Co’s helpdesk.
