Making Meaningful Connections Consultation Technical Report Chapters 1 – 7 East West Rail Consultation: 31 March – 9 June 2021 This document contains the full Consultation Technical Report, without the Appendices. To access the Appendices, please visit www.eastwestrail.co.uk 01. Introduction 18 - 26 1.1. Chapter Summary 18 1.2. East West Rail 19 1.3. The Project 19 1.4. Consultation 23 1.5. Technical Report 26 02. The Case for East West Rail 27 - 31 2.1. Chapter Summary 27 2.2. The overall case for East West Rail 28 2.3. Benefits of railways over road improvements 31 03. Project Objectives 32 - 42 3.1. Chapter Summary 32 3.2. Introduction 33 3.3. Safety 34 3.4. Environment 34 3.5. EWR Services 34 3.6. Connectivity 36 3.7. Customer Experience and Stations 37 3.8. Powering EWR Services 38 3.9. Freight on EWR 38 3.10. Depots and Stabling 38 3.11. Telecommunications 42 04. Additional Works and Construction 43 - 52 4.1. Chapter Summary 43 4.2. Additional Works 43 4.3. Construction 45 05. Approach to Developing the Designs 53 - 67 5.1. Chapter Summary 53 5.2. Assessment Factors 54 5.3. Developing Designs in Project Sections A and B: 58 Identifying the need for upgrade works (Oxford to Bedford) 5.4. Developing Designs in Project Sections C, D and E: 58 New railway development from Bedford to Cambridge 06. Project Section A: Oxford to Bicester 68 - 99 6.1. Chapter Summary 69 6.2. Oxford Area 70 6.3. Oxford Parkway Station 80 6.4. Bicester Village Station 82 6.5. Level Crossing at London Road, Bicester 84 2 | East West Rail Consultation: March – June 2021 Consultation Technical Report 07. Project Section B: Bletchley and the Marston Vale Line 100 - 229 7.1. Chapter Summary 101 7.2. Introduction 104 7.3. Service Concepts 109 7.4. Bletchley Station 141 7.5. Fenny Stratford Additional Track 144 7.6. Level Crossings on the Marston Vale Line 146 7.7. Marston Vale Line Infrastructure Upgrade 228 08. Project Section C: Bedford 230 - 299 8.1. Chapter Summary 230 8.2. Introduction 234 8.3. Bedford St Johns 238 8.4. Bedford Station 250 8.5. North Bedford 268 8.6. Conclusion 297 09. Project Section D: Clapham Green to The Eversdens 300 - 371 9.1. Chapter Summary 301 9.2. Introduction 303 9.3. Option Development 306 9.4. Options Considered – Station Locations 310 9.5. Options Considered – Nine Alignment Options 314 9.6. Comparison of Nine Route Alignment Options 328 9.7. Conclusions - Alignment Short-list for Consultation 360 9.8. Conclusions - Emerging Preferred Options 369 10. Project Section E: Harlton to Hauxton 372 - 407 10.1. Chapter Summary 372 10.2. Introduction 373 10.3. Option Development 377 10.4. Options Considered 379 10.5. Conclusions (Project Section E) 404 11. Project Section F: The Shelfords to Cambridge Station 408 - 423 11.1. Chapter Summary 408 11.2. Introduction 416 11.3. Proposed work in the Cambridge area 411 11.4. Hauxton Junction to Shepreth Branch Junction 412 11.5. Hauxton Road Level Crossing 413 11.6. New Shepreth Branch Junction 415 11.7. Four Tracking from Shepreth Branch Junction to 417 Addenbrooke’s Road Bridge Consultation Technical Report East West Rail Consultation: March – June 2021 | 3 11.8. Four Tracking from Long Road Sixth Form College Area to 419 Cambridge Station and Cambridge Station Alterations 11.9. Cambridge Station 421 12. Next steps and ongoing work 424 - 426 4 | East West Rail Consultation: March – June 2021 Consultation Technical Report Consultation Technical Report East West Rail Consultation: March – June 2021 | 5 Glossary Term Description A A428 Improvement Scheme The scheme promoted by Highways England to upgrade the A428 between Black Cat roundabout east of Bedford and Caxton Gibbet roundabout west of Cambourne Air Quality Directive European Directive 2008/50/EC on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe Air Quality Management An area designated by a local authority, where it believes Area the Government’s objectives for air quality will not be achieved without additional interventions Alternative In this report, ‘alternative’ is used when referring to a possible solution that has been considered but has been discounted and is not expected to be taken forward Assessment Factors The factors used to assess and compare different options for the Project Oxford-Cambridge Arc The area between Oxford and Cambridge, incorporating (the Arc) the county areas of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire At-grade junction A railway junction where tracks cross at the same level. Also known as a flat junction B Balancing pond A pond into which water drains, with the intention of ensuring that local watercourses are not overloaded during periods of heavy or prolonged rainfall Ballast Stone or gravel used to form the bed of a railway track Biodiversity net gain An approach to development that leaves biodiversity in a better state than before the development took place Blockade The closure of a rail route for an extended period (typically more than two to three days) Bridleway A route over which the public have rights to pass on foot, cycle and on horseback Business case assessment An assessment to determine the justification for undertaking a project by considering benefits, costs and risks 6 | East West Rail Consultation: March – June 2021 Consultation Technical Report Term Description C Cambourne North Station Option for a new station to the north of Cambourne Cambourne South Station Option for a new station to the south of Cambourne Cambridgeshire A proposed transit system connecting Cambridge to Autonomous Metro Alconbury, St Neots, Mildenhall and Haverhill Capital costs Cost incurred during delivery of a project in purchasing buildings, land, construction works, and equipment as opposed to the costs of operating, maintaining or decommissioning the project Clearance Space available around a moving train Clock-face timetable A timetable arranged so that trains arrive or depart at the same times in the hour, every hour (for instance at 10, 30 and 50 minutes past the hour) Code of Construction A public document which will provide contractors and Practice (COCP) suppliers with details of the measures, controls, and standards of work that they must follow Conflicting movements A movement that requires a train to cross another route on the railway, at the same level, or trains to travel in opposite directions on the same route, in order to continue a journey Congested Infrastructure An element of railway infrastructure for which demand for infrastructure capacity cannot be fully satisfied during certain periods, even after coordination of different requests for capacity. Defined by The Railways (Access Management and Licensing of Railway Undertakings) Regulations 2016 Connection stage Work will be divided into three connection stages which relate directly to a full journey and not just a piece of track: Connection Stage 1 (CS1): Oxford - Bletchley and Milton Keynes (services may be first opened to Bletchley in a two- phased approach) Connection Stage 2 (CS2) : Oxford - Bedford Connection Stage 3 (CS3): Oxford - Cambridge Consultation Technical Report East West Rail Consultation: March – June 2021 | 7 Term Description C Conservation Area An area of notable architectural or historic interest or importance in relation to which change is managed by law Core Section The section of the Project between Clapham Green and The Eversdens, also referred to as Project Section D in this report Critical path The longest sequence of activities in a plan or programme which must be completed on time in order to achieve completion of a project on a due date Crossovers A connection between two tracks where points/switches on each track allow trains to pass from one track to the other Culvert A tunnel carrying a stream or open drain Cut and cover Earth and similar material that needs to be excavated as part of construction works (for example to form a cutting) Cut Earth and similar material that needs to be excavated as part of construction works (for example to form a cutting) D Development Consent Order Order made by the relevant Secretary of State to (DCO) authorise the construction, operation and maintenance of a nationally significant infrastructure project (NSIP). In relation to East West Rail, this would be the Secretary of State for Transport Department for Transport Government department responsible for the English (DfT) transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have not been devolved E Earthworks General term for the excavation and placement of soil, rock and other material; or for existing cuttings and embankments East Coast Main Line (ECML) Railway line running from London King’s Cross to Edinburgh through Sandy and St Neots East Midlands Railway Train operator running services between London, the East (EMR) Midlands and Yorkshire East West Rail EWR A proposed new rail link, which would connect communities between Oxford, Milton Keynes, Bedford and Cambridge 8 | East West Rail Consultation: March – June 2021 Consultation Technical Report Term Description E East West Rail Company Ltd Company set up by the Secretary of State for Transport to (EWR Co) develop East West Rail Embankment An earthwork construction that allows railway lines to pass at an acceptable level and gradient above the surrounding ground that is generally composed of soil and rock F Fare revenue Income generated from passenger fares Fill Earth and similar material that needs to be placed as part of construction works (for example in new embankments) First-mile journey The first part of a journey between the starting point and a railway station, regardless of its actual length Flat junction A railway junction where tracks cross at the same level.