Fresh consultation to be launched on vehicle restrictions on Mill Road bridge in Cambridge after High Court quashes order

A fresh consultation on closing Mill Road bridge to most private motor vehicles will be launched on Friday (9 August) after the existing traffic order was quashed by the High Court.

The community group Friends of Mill Road Bridge challenged the original Cambridgeshire County Council order on technical grounds.

And it was confirmed on Tuesday that the group had succeeded, as the council accepted one of the grounds on which it was challenged, namely that it had “failed to provide adequate reasons for making the order” when asked for them, sending only links to a council officers’ report and a summary of the decision by councillors.

The council was ordered to pay the campaign group’s £26,799 court costs.

Councillors voted in March 2023 to install a bus gate, or ‘modal filter’, in Mill Road that would allow only buses, bicycles, taxis, Blue Badge holders and pedestrians to cross the bridge. Motorists would have faced a £70 fine for driving through the gate.

After the High Court quashed the existing Traffic Regulation Order, the council confirmed it will consult on a new TRO between 9 August and midnight on Friday, 13 September.

The results will be presented to a special meeting of the highways and transport committee in October, and councillors will decide whether to proceed again with the modal filter on Mill Road.

The council said in a statement that it had “decided to undertake the statutory consultation and decision-making process on the Traffic Regulation Order again”.

The statement went on: “This is to stop the council spending money and time associated with defending this case.

“We’d like to apologise for the time this has taken thus far and recognise the frustration people have expressed locally.”

The decision to install the bus gate followed a council consultation that found a majority of respondents were in favour of the move to improve the environment for walking and cycling, but it has remained highly controversial, with traders concerned about the impact on their businesses.

The Friends of Mill Road Bridge said: “Our position has always been that all people should be free to cross the bridge as they can currently, without detours and fines, and that the county council must follow the proper legal process in making decisions about closing public highways."

The group Mill Road 4 People (MR4P) was among those backing the modal filter.

Paul Lythgoe, chair of MR4P, said: “We know how long legal cases can take and we recognise that re-doing the TRO is the most cost and time effective route for the county council to solve Mill Road's traffic problem. We fully support them in their decision.”

Meanwhile, the council confirmed it was “planning to improve the public realm, walking and cycling provision along Mill Road”, adding: “This will include general improvements not included in the consultation such as, additional cycle parking, signage and decluttering the highway.”

Read a special report on the case in this week’s Cambridge Independent, out now.