Oxford to Cambridge Expressway

The Oxford to Cambridge Expressway is a proposed grade-separated dual carriageway between the A34 near Oxford and the A14 near Cambridge, via (or near) Milton Keynes. The proposal aims to establish this route by linking existing roads and building new ones. The case for its creation is examined in a Strategic Study for the Cambridge – Milton Keynes – Oxford corridor, published by National Infrastructure Commission in November 2016.^[1] The NIC sees the road as being of national strategic importance by providing an outer orbital route around London, linking Southampton, the M3, M4, M40, M1, A1, A14/M11 and Felixstowe. Alongside its report, the Commission sponsored a contest to encourage suggestions for how urban spaces may be developed along the proposed route.

Background

The government states that the Cambridge – Milton Keynes – Oxford corridor is one of the most significant growth areas in the country. Local authorities within the corridor are planning for substantial job and housing growth to support the continued economic development of the region. However, there is currently poor east-west connectivity, resulting in Oxford and Cambridge having better connections to London than each other or to major settlements between.^[1] In his Budget speech Autumn 2017, Philip Hammond referred to the plan and declared it was the Government's intention "To create a dynamic new growth corridor for the 21st Century".^[2]

Route and costs

As of September 2018, most of the eastern half (A14 to M1) of the route already exists.^{[lower-alpha 1]} However, the route for the western half from the A34 near Oxford to the A421 east of Milton Keynes has yet to be decided. The National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) was instructed by Government to evaluate options.

The three route options that were considered by the NIC are shown in outline form on page 39 of the Oxford to Cambridge Expressway Strategic Study: Stage 3 Report.^[1] These were a northerly route (the existing A421 corridor to the A43 then M40 and A34), a (new) central route parallel with East West Rail, and a new southern route along the A418 corridor, bypassing Aylesbury to the north, meeting the M40 at or near Junction 7 or 8.^[1] In August 2017 the engineering consultancy Jacobs was awarded a £15m contract to examine these options.^[3] All three routes begin at M1 J13, where the expressway currently (2018) ends.

In addition, two alternative routes are shown around Oxford, one to the north (which may or may not be the current A34 route through Botley, though the report notes the current air-quality issue there) and another to the south between the M40 at J7 or J8 and the A34 just north of Abingdon.^[1]

In September 2018, the Government announced selection of Option B (near East West Rail), though the options for connection to the A34 north or south of Oxford remain unclear.^[4] Although the corridor has been selected, the actual route is still uncertain due to the width of the corridor.

Early estimates of the cost of completing the expressway are in the region of £3 billion.^[5]

Consultation

In April 2018, Oxfordshire County Council submitted its preliminary response to Highways England. ^[6]

New Towns along the route

In an interview in The Sunday Times in March 2018, Sajid Javid, the housing secretary, said that he would give the go-ahead to at least two new towns along the corridor "in the next few weeks" and could push for up to three more.^[7] As of 1 September 2018, these announcements had not materialised.

Development of land adjacent to Expressway

The National Infrastructure Commission launched a two-stage ideas contest in June 2017 in support of the project with the objective of encouraging a wide range of bodies to put forward suggestions about how the urban space alongside the route could be used. ^[8] In December 2017, the Commission announced that the winning submission was that proposed by Tibbalds Planning and Urban Design,^[9] The proposal is based on cycle and pedestrian transport and the worked example suggests a cluster of villages around Winslow, Buckinghamshire,^[10] which is on the East West Rail Link rather than the Expressway (though probably easily accessible from it).

Criticism

On Tuesday 12 December 2017, Councillors at Oxfordshire County Council debated a Motion criticising the process by which Highways England will select a route with no opportunity for members of the public or their representatives to comment on the need for the road or the local impact of any particular proposed route. The Motion called for a Public Enquiry into the proposal, so that everyone involved has the opportunity to have their views properly taken into account.^[11] The Motion was carried by 49 votes to 5, with 1 abstention.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England has said that the favoured route that passes through the greenbelt is unnecessary and would encourage expansion of Oxford.^[12]

The Campaign for Better Transport (United Kingdom) has reservations about Expressways in general.^[13]

The Oxford Times reported an action group had been formed to demand a public consultation.^[14] This was followed by a poster campaign in April 2018. ^[15]

Keith Taylor, a Green MEP for the South East, said the lack of a potential public consultation of the proposed road breaches international environmental law.^[16] He made further criticisms after visiting Oxford.^[17]

George Monbiot, writing in The Guardian, claims the Expressway and associated conurbation would irrevocably change Oxfordshire and that there has been no public debate. ^[18]

The September 2018 announcement was described as 'a monumental disaster and a dagger stabbing at the heart of Oxfordshire' in an Oxford Mail article. ^[19]

The Oxfordshire Growth Board announced in September 2018 that it intended to write to Government demanding clarity with regard to the choice of route and funding. ^[20]

References