Petition calls for review of East West Rail plans
A petition calling for plans for the Cambridge section of East West Rail to be paused so an independent review can be carried out has gathered almost 2,000 signatures.
It has been launched by grassroots campaign groups Cambridge Approaches, BFARe and Protect Poets, after their previous petition, which gathered more than 5,000 signatures in eight days, was scrapped due to the general election.
Cambridge Approaches says the enormous environmental and financial costs of the EWR scheme are alarming.
William Harrold, of Cambridge Approaches, said: “If you think that spending £4million per Cambridge commuter is daft, or that adding another 100,000 houses over and above already aggressive local plans is crazy, or one of the many reasons why the proposals from EWR are flawed… now is a chance to actually express your opposition by signing this petition.”
A total of 1,942 signatures had been added to the petition, which asks for the Bedford to Cambridge stretch of the route to be reviewed.
In a statement, the campaigners said: “We call for plans to be paused for a full transparent and independent review. Please join us and protect our town, villages and countryside.”
An East West Railway Company (EWR Co) spokesperson said: “There is a compelling strategic case for East West Rail, not least the significant boost in economic growth to the region and the UK it will bring, which is why the government backed delivery of the project in full in the Autumn Budget.
“We announced our preferred alignment for Bedford to Cambridge in May 2023 and are encouraging people to share feedback on our updated proposals by taking part in our current consultation. This is the best way to influence our formative design work so that we can ensure the new railway best serves the needs of all communities along the entire route.”
Updated plans for East West Rail were revealed last month as a fresh consultation got under way.
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 latest proposals also confirmed EWR Co’s preference for green traction power in the form of discontinuous electrification, meaning it would use hybrid battery-electric trains.
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. A 10-week non-statutory consultation in the latest proposals began on 14 November and runs until 24 January, 2025.
To view the petition, visit tinyurl.com/5cy28e22.
