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A428 BLACK CAT TO CAXTON GIBBET IMPROVEMENTS

PLANNING ACT 2008 SECTION 56: NOTIFYING PERSONS OF ACCEPTED APPLICATION

 

THE INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING (APPLICATIONS: PRESCRIBED FORMS AND PROCEDURE) REGULATIONS 2009: REGULATION 8

THE INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING (ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT) REGULATIONS 2017: REGULATION 16

Hilton Parish Council has received notice regarding the proposed A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet improvements (the Scheme) which is a new 10 mile (16km) dual 2-lane carriageway from the Black Cat roundabout in Bedfordshire to the Caxton Gibbet roundabout in Cambridgeshire, to be known as the A421 (the new dual carriageway) and in addition approximately 1.8 miles (3km) of tie-in works.

 

The Scheme also includes the following components:

• A new three-level grade separated junction at Black Cat roundabout, with the A1 at the lower level, the new dual carriageway on the upper level and a roundabout between the two at approximately existing ground level. In addition to slip roads, a new free flowing link between the A421 eastbound carriageway and the A1 northbound carriageway will also be provided.
• A new grade separated all movements junction will be constructed to the east of the existing Cambridge Road roundabout to provide access to the new dual carriageway and maintain access to the existing A428.
• At the Caxton Gibbet roundabout, a new grade separated all movements junction will be constructed, incorporating the existing roundabout on the south side of the new dual carriageway and a new roundabout on the north side. The new dual carriageway will then tie-in to the existing A428 dual carriageway to the east of the new Caxton Gibbet junction.
• In the vicinity of the new Black Cat junction, direct access onto the A1 from some local side roads and private premises will be closed for safety reasons. A new local road will provide an alternative route. The existing Roxton Road bridge will be demolished and replaced with a new structure to the west to accommodate the realigned A421.
• New crossings will be constructed to enable the new dual carriageway to cross the River Great Ouse, East Coast Main Line railway, Barford Road, the B1046/Potton Road, Toseland Road and the existing A428 at Eltisley.
• The existing A428 between St Neots and Caxton Gibbet will be de-trunked and retained for local traffic and public transport with maintenance responsibility transferred to the local highway authorities.
• An alternative access will be provided to side roads at Chawston, Wyboston and Eltisley.
• There will be safer routes for walkers, cyclists, and horse riders.

 

The Scheme also involves changes to a number of existing utilities, including the diversion of a high pressure gas pipeline operated by Cadent Gas Limited which runs parallel to the East Coast Main Line east of the River Great Ouse in Tempsford, Central Bedfordshire (the Diversion). To the extent that the Diversion satisfies the criteria to be considered an NSIP under section 20 of the Planning Act 2008, the Diversion will be treated as an NSIP in its own right.

 

Highways England is seeking development consent for the Scheme under the Planning Act 2008 (the 2008 Act). This legislation requires Highways England to make an application to the Planning Inspectorate (the Inspectorate) for a Development Consent Order (DCO) to get the consent they need to build the Scheme.

 

Highways England submitted its application for a DCO on 26 February 2021 (Application). The Application was accepted for examination by the Inspectorate (on behalf of the Secretary of State) on 23 March 2021.

 

In accordance with the 2008 Act and the Infrastructure Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2017, please find below links to the following documents:

• A copy of a section 56 notice, providing formal notification of acceptance of the Application and
• The accepted Application (including a copy of the Environmental Statement and a map showing the location of the Scheme – this is document TR010044/APP/2.1 (Location Plan) in the Application)

 

Further information regarding the availability of the DCO Application documents and where you can view them is included in the section 56 notice. Any person may make representations on the Application to the Secretary of State (that is: giving notice of any interest in or objection to the Application). Details of the way in which representations must be made are included in the section 56 notice. Representations must be received by the Inspectorate no later than 10 June 2021. Please note that any submitted representations to the Inspectorate will be published on the National Infrastructure Planning website for the Application.

 

For further information about the Application, please contact us using the following details:

 

Post: A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet improvements scheme, Highways England, Woodlands, Manton Lane, Bedford, MK41 7LW

Email:

Telephone: 0300 123 5000

 

Hilton Parish Council has made the following representation on the application:

Hilton Parish Council is registering as an interested party on the consultation on the A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet Road Improvement scheme Planning Inspectorate Reference: TR010044 because it wishes to express its desire for Highways England to take steps to prevent any construction traffic from using the B1040 through the village to and from the site when a suitable alternative route is available along the A1307 and along the A1198 for access to and from sites to the north of the new routing.
During the construction of the A14 southern by pass Highways England made promises they were unable to honour concerning construction traffic not coming through the village so we would like this to be written into the DCO from the outset.

 

Parishioners can also register as interested parties using the link above.

Very happily, there are no offences or incidents affecting your community to mention in our Policing Update this week, covering the period 3rd to 8th May.

However, here is a message from the police about accidental 999 calls :

Over the Bank Holiday weekend, Cambridgeshire Police say that they spent in the region of 6 hours dealing with accidental 999 calls where the number was either inadvertently dialled from a mobile phone in a pocket, or was made by children larking around.

All 999 calls need to be investigated to make sure that everyone is safe, and when the number has been dialled in error or as a joke, this takes time and diverts resources that could be used on a genuine emergency.

Police say: “We appreciate that mistakes can happen, so if you do accidentally call us, please explain the situation to us rather than just hanging up the phone”.

Here is our weekly summary of offences and incidents affecting your community, reported to police during the period 18th to 24th April:

A1307 Westbound Slip Road, Galley Hill – Police and an ambulance were called to a collision between two cars on the sliproad onto the westbound A1307 at Galley Hill on Tuesday morning, 20th April. Serious injuries were reported but at the moment there are no further details. (Ref CC-20042021-0097)

Grove End, Hilton – Police were called to Grove End, Hilton, on Wednesday morning, 21st April, where a car had left the road and crashed into the ditch. Fortunately no-one was hurt and the driver was able to arrange recovery of the vehicle themselves. (Ref CC-21042021-0063)

Police Appeal for Witnesses:

At around 1:15 pm on Tuesday 20th April there was a traffic incident on Fen Road, Pidley, in which a car left the road and ran into trees on a steep roadside bank. Very sadly, the driver, Robert Chasse of King Street, Somersham, died in the incident. No other vehicles were involved and there were no passengers in the car.

Police are asking anyone who saw the crash to contact them, using any of the methods listed at the end of this report, quoting Incident Number 195 of 20th April.

And Finally … Action on Hare-Coursing:

The Rural crime Action Team (RCAT) have published the following statistics on hare-coursing incidents over the past year (April 2020 to March 2021):

1,196 incidents reported

93 vehicles seized

138 Community Protection Warnings issued

17 Community Protection Notices issued

165 Dispersal Notices issued

23 people summoned to Court

20 dogs seized and rescued

More information is on the police web-site at:

This consultation will be open until 9th June 2021 and can be found on their website – https://eastwestrail.co.uk/consultation

This consultation covers the overall customer experience and railway operations for East West Rail, as well as a range of infrastructure proposals – such as route alignments, stations and level crossings. The below map shows the shortlisted routes for the section between Bedford and Cambridge which includes the new Cambourne North or Cambourne South station, depending on which route is chosen.

Shortlisted-five-route-alignments-overview