NEWS: Cambridgeshire Live November 12, 2019
Labour reported as likely to scrap Oxford-Cambridge road link in election manifesto
They will however commit to a direct rail line and an A428 upgrade
Cambridgeshire Live reports that “Labour are expected to scrap plans for the Oxford to Cambridge expressway in their upcoming manifesto, focusing instead on creating a new direct rail line and an A428 upgrade. Labour's prospective parliamentary candidate for Cambridge, former shadow transport minister Daniel Zeichner, told Cambridgeshire Live that he was "nervous" about supporting the plans at the last election.”
Cambridgeshire Live report continues “Now, he is hopeful that the party's upcoming manifesto (expected to be released next week) will commit to scrapping the road link, to prioritise new rail links and infrastructure upgrades closer to home.
Daniel Zeichner said "Over in Oxford, the expressway has been very unpopular, as it would involve building a link over recognised areas of natural beauty. The Chief Exec Of Regional Transport body England’s Economic Heartland has said that the expressway is a 20th century solution to a 21st century challenge, as it would lead to more congested roads and air pollution. So while we will continue to support upgrading the A428 upgrade to Caxton, I don't think Labour will support the Expressway as a mass road-building project."
He told Cambridgeshire Live: "Labour strongly supports East West Rail but are likely to cancel the proposed super-highway Road scheme. The Oxford to Cambridge Expressway plans have been controversial for quite a while; although in Cambridge we agree with upgrading the A428 between the black cat roundabout and Caxton Gibbet to reduce congestion for commuters, we would prefer improvements to the existing network rather than a huge new road.”
Will Labour actually pledge in their manifesto to scrap the Ox-Cam expressway?
Will the other parties commit to cancelling Ox-Cam expressway plans too?
Daniel Zeichman is not convinced that new high-tech businesses would evolve all along the arc and said "When you look at Cambridge, the main businesses are all clustered around the city centre and the train station, with newer towns that were designed to create new jobs like Cambourne being home to empty office spaces. We support a new rail link between Cambridge and Oxford, which we think will be great for building new affordable housing and improving the lives of workers in these cities. But it isn't clear that these high tech jobs will come to the new towns if they're not well thought through, which is why creating a sustainable rail link is important to improve existing problems and avoid further congestion and inflation of house prices".
You can read the full article here.
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