The Government has been given the go ahead for a new railway station to be built in Cambridge. Work has already begun on the 4-platform, fully accessible station based at Cambridge Biomedical Campus in the south of the city. The Government has earmarked £200 million worth of funding for the project which is due to be completed in 2025.
The construction of the station is expected to create 300 new jobs and when completed, will provide links to Stansted Airport and the Eurostar. It’s expected to receive 1.8 million passengers a year.
Unveiling the plans, Rail Minister Huw Merriman said: “This brand-new station will not only benefit local passengers but deliver a major boost to the entire city, improving connectivity to a world-leading academic hub while unlocking local business and growth opportunities across the region.
“This is just another step in our efforts to create a thriving, well-connected, passenger-focused rail network to support communities for generations to come.”
Reacting to the announcement, Katie Frost, Network Rail’s route director for Anglia, said: “It’s an exciting time for the railway in Cambridgeshire with a green light to deliver a new station that will serve the vitally important and growing biomedical campus.
“Rail continues to be an environmentally sustainable form of transport and I know the minister’s announcement will be welcomed by the customers and communities we serve across Cambridgeshire and beyond.”
One of the main beneficiaries of the project, Kristin-Anne Rutter, Executive Director at Cambridge Biomedical Campus Limited, said: “We are delighted that the Cambridge Biomedical Campus is to get its own railway station in less than 2 years’ time. Better public transport links will be critical in fulfilling our vision of a more sustainable campus.
“Currently, there are around 5 times as many visits to the site as there are car parking spaces. We have to find ways of making it easier for the thousands of staff, NHS patients and visitors arriving daily to get here without needing to use a car.
“This is a campus dedicated to improving human health, so anything that has the potential to cut air pollution and take pressure off our local roads is also very welcome. Coupled with the recent approval of the East-West Rail route directly linking Oxford with the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, we believe we can create a successful yet sustainable health and life sciences cluster that can both grow the economy and save lives.”
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