Could we see a Cambridge East station built within the next 10 years?

[whittlesfordok]

Marshall’s are moving to from Cambridge to Cranfield so in about 10 years or less so the airport will be housing. They are already building Marleigh housing development.
And if the runway is build over the Cambridge to Ipswich railway line is just across Coldham Lane making an excellent place for a new railway station. And there is the space for this to happen
By the way if there is a need for airport near Cambridge Duxford could be used.
This also ties in with the east west railway but is more likely to happen first.

 

[Class 170101]

Cambridge area disused lines and stations

 

[jfowkes]

Is this entirely speculative or are there actual plans/desires for this? From like Cambridge council or whoever.

 

[gingerheid]

It's included in a consultation plan issued by the Greater Cambridge Partnership as a preferred option, but it's one of those things they suggest that seems slightly pie in the sky (if less so than their autonomous metro proposal that relies on both billions of pounds worth of spending + technology that doesn't currently exist).

As an example of the sort of level of thinking that we're at the stage of, the same document considered (but excluded) the possibility of turning the Cambridge - Newmarket line into a guided busway! It also recommends some kind of intelligent traffic management system that I'm not certain the technology for currently exists as a way of making everything on Newmarket Rd all ok.

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[Daniel740]

Marshall’s are moving to from Cambridge to Cranfield so in about 10 years or less so the airport will be housing. They are already building Marleigh housing development.
And if the runway is build over the Cambridge to Ipswich railway line is just across Coldham Lane making an excellent place for a new railway station. And there is the space for this to happen
By the way if there is a need for airport near Cambridge Duxford could be used.
This also ties in with the east west railway but is more likely to happen first.

I’m sorry but none of that made any sense!

 

[camflyer]

There's a "Cambridge East" proposed in the CAM public consultation (https://cam.consultationonline.co.u...ites/119/2020/03/CAM-Consultation-Leaflet.pdf) but as a metro stop rather than a heavy rail station.

I have lots of problems with the CAM proposal but for an area such as east Cambridge a high frequency link to Cambridge (Central) would be better than a heavy rail service stopping once an hour.

 

[gingerheid]

There's also a vague aspiration for there to be a Cambridge East railway station where the CAM stop would be, though not as well developed as even choosing an actual location.

 

[Ianno87]

I'm not sure a Cambridge East station serves much purpose.

Presumably the Marshalls/Airport site goes over to presominantly housing, then it's not be going to be generating inward commuting. The demand is going to be people living on the site wanting to reach the Biomedical Campus / Science Park / Station / City Centre, which a station on the edge of the site is not going to serve well.

Far better to invest in a priority bus / tram / CAM solution, plus high quality dutch-style cycle infrastructure. And restrict car ownership on the development.

 

[Class 170101]

A station on the Cambridge to Bury St Edmunds line would need the service increased and do that beyond about an extra train every two hours means more infrastructure although interesting the line in the Cambridgeshire area suggests that at least part of it until 1983 was previously double tracked - however how much of the line was I don't know.

 

[Steve Harris]

IIRC the the double track was from Coldhams Common to at least Fulbourn and probably beyond. That was before Barnwell Road was a through road though.

 

[Ianno87]

IIRC the the double track was from Coldhams Common to at least Fulbourn and probably beyond. That was before Barnwell Road was a through road though.

I think Barnwell Road became a through road at some point in the 1970s. The Newmarket Line bridge certainly looks double track width from underneath.

 

[4-SUB 4732]

Surely the best chance is to just have some form of Parkway at Fulbourn, if EWRL manages at least a half-hourly frequency between Ipswich and Bedford etc? If not, people will just use Cambridge North for parking or get a bus to Cambridge (Main)?

 

[Ianno87]

Surely the best chance is to just have some form of Parkway at Fulbourn, if EWRL manages at least a half-hourly frequency between Ipswich and Bedford etc? If not, people will just use Cambridge North for parking or get a bus to Cambridge (Main)?

That's just duplicating the city's Park & Ride buses, and CAM (if that ever sees the light of days).

Those will actually get people to where they want to go within the city, and not fill up EWR trains for such a short distance.

 

[ac6000cw]

I'm with Ianno87 on this one...

Cambridge North and South make sense as stations for inward commuting as they are close to considerable employment areas, plus North is a perfect 'parkway' location and South has a lot of off-peak potential with all the hospital related visitor and patient traffic.

'East' (as proposed here) has very little to recommend it beyond inflating the price of the new housing due to London commuting potential. Locally you could probably cycle faster to either the Addenbookes/Biomedical Campus site or the Science Park area than get there by train from it, and Cambridge 'middle' station isn't much more than a mile away if you want to catch a train to further afield.

And yes, the Coldhams Lane Junction to Newmarket route was double-track to at least Fulbourn in 1980 when I moved into the area (I used to walk across the level crossing in Cherry Hinton every day), and yes, the two under-bridges mentioned above did carry double track up to the 1983 singling of the route. I'm pretty sure the formation was (and mostly still is) double-track width all the way to Newmarket station (the tunnel beyond has always been single track).

 

[camflyer]

I agree that a Cambridge East station makes little sense. There would be no direct services to London so commuters would have to change after one stop. Far better to have a frequent metro link which goes to the central station and other points around the city.

The priority for the Cambridge-Newmarket-Ipswich line should be to get it to 2 tph, redoubling where necessary, not adding extra stops.

After Cambridge South the next station development in Cambridge should be an expansion of the main station itself with an eastern entrance as part of the redevelopment of the Clifton Rd industrial estate and more passenger facilities.

 

[Ianno87]

.

After Cambridge South the next station development in Cambridge should be an expansion of the main station itself with an eastern entrance as part of the redevelopment of the Clifton Rd industrial estate and more passenger facilities.

The Eastern Entrance of Cambridge Hauptbahnhof would be great for cycle access from Cambridge East - moreso than an actual station at Cambridge East.

 

[camflyer]

The Eastern Entrance of Cambridge Hauptbahnhof would be great for cycle access from Cambridge East - moreso than an actual station at Cambridge East.

Not only cycling but also public transport and taxi access as well as a better walking route to the leisure park.

The Rail Future proposal looks good:

https://www.railfuture.org.uk/east/docs/Railfuture-East-Anglia-2018-08-13-Cambridge-Station-Eastern-Entrance-proposal.pdf

 

[Steve Harris]

Not only cycling but also public transport and taxi access as well as a better walking route to the leisure park.

The Rail Future proposal looks good:

https://www.railfuture.org.uk/east/docs/Railfuture-East-Anglia-2018-08-13-Cambridge-Station-Eastern-Entrance-proposal.pdf

It does make me laugh when one of the arguments used in that document is (and I quote), " It recognises the traffic congestion and air pollution problems arising from the total reliance on the Western entrance, which despite recent steps to improve passenger facilities and flows, is becoming overwhelmed by the continuing growth in passenger numbers."

Considering those changes have happened in the last decade it seems we can now use the city council/network rail/other stakeholders bad planning and execution to argue for a new entrance.

Going by past performance I doubt if the new entrance will be planned any better !! Considering most of that industrial estate/leisure park was a cattle market 40 years ago. It hasn't lasted long...