Go ahead for the A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet improvement to the south of St Neots was announced yesterday to replace the only remaining section of single carriageway between Milton Keynes and Cambridge.

Last Thursday the Transport Secretary cancelled the Oxford to Cambridge scheme, saying it was not cost effective and pledged more “targeted, localised road improvements” in the region. He added: “Our analysis shows the expressway cannot deliver in a way that provides value for money for the taxpayer. But we remain committed to boosting transport links in the area.” This includes the planned East West Rail link, into which Government invested £760M in January.

The A428 scheme announced yesterday will be designed and built by Skanska to link the Black Cat roundabout on the A1 in Bedfordshire to the Caxton Gibbet roundabout on the A428 in Cambridgeshire. Both roundabouts  will become free flowing junctions, with a triple decker junction proposed at Black Cat. The new road could become an important link between the M1 and the M11.

Highways England interim project director Lee Galloway said the scheme will “transform one of the busiest road links in the east of England” and save regular motorists “an hour and a half on their journeys every week”. It is hoped that the new road will accommodate an expected growth in vehicles using the route from the current 25,000 a day to 33,000 by 2040.

Cancellation of the wider Oxford to Cambridge expressway was welcomed by England’s Economic Heartland’s Strategic Transport Forum chair Dave Hodgson. “As our transport strategy sets out, delivery of strategic schemes including East West Rail and mass transit systems such as those being developed in Cambridgeshire and Milton Keynes, alongside harnessing smart technologies and targeted investment in the road network, are all essential if we are to ensure economic growth while achieving net zero emissions,” he said.

Countryside charity CPRE's head of land use and planning Paul Miner was also pleased with the decision to cancel the expressway. “It was in complete contradiction to the Government's commitment to protect our rural heritage and tackle the climate and ecological emergencies,” he remarked.

(Photograph: Highways England)