Local line update: 30 January 2019

Today I am announcing the preferred route for the Bedford to Cambridge section of the East West Rail line between Oxford and Cambridge. This follows a public consultation last year on 5 route options.

The preferred route, route E from the consultation would link Bedford Midland, a new station between Sandy and St Neots, a new station at Cambourne and Cambridge station. The route would provide improved connectivity between towns and cities across the Oxford-Cambridge Arc, improving passenger journey times and supporting the Oxford-Cambridge Arc to fulfil its economic potential as a world-class strategic innovation Arc.

The Bedford to Cambridge section of East West Rail has been designated a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project.

The preferred route will now be the focus for further development. This further development work will include environmental and engineering studies to identify potential route alignments on which the railway could run, within the preferred route option and will lead to the government making a final decision on whether to take this project forward, and to make an application for a developed consent order. In advance of submitting the application for development consent order, we will confirm that there are no material changes that might have affected our preferred route choice.