The new Cambridge South station officially opened on Sunday (June 28)
A new train station in Cambridge has been dubbed a “game changer” for the city. The multi-million pound Cambridge South station officially opened on Sunday (June 28), after being delayed twice.
Managing director for GBR Anglia, Jamie Burles, has dubbed the new station as a “game changer” for Cambridge. He added: “It’s tremendously exciting and that’s not just me speaking, that’s all of the passengers. There seems to be a real sense of joy.”
Following Sunday’s official opening, Jamie added that it looked “brilliant”. He said: “The station was looking fabulous.
“There were so many people walking to the station at 6.30am in the morning. But then, the first train rolled out of the sidings on time, called at the station on time, departed on time and there was a big cheer from everyone. So yeah, it was a bit of a party atmosphere yesterday. Everything worked, which was brilliant.”
There is no parking at Cambridge South, but it features up to 1,000 cycle spaces, as well as a pick-up and drop-off area on the hospital side of the station.
On the lack of parking, Jamie added: “We’re on greenbelt land, so we had to adhere to the Cambridge local plan. Therefore, we had to make this station super well-connected.
“So, we’ve got space for up to 1,000 bicycles. We’ve got access to walking routes, cycle routes, the Cambridge guided busway just over the road and other bus services.”
Trains travelling through the station will be Thameslink, Great Northern, Greater Anglia, and Cross Country. Adrian Gogay, infrastructure director for Thameslink and Great Northern said it was “brilliant” to see the new station open.
He added: “At Thameslink and Great Northern, we’re going to be offering multiple services from the station, with connectivity up to Cambridge and down to London. We have two Great Northern services of transport down to Kings Cross in 45 minutes and beyond. This is a brilliant investment in not just the rail network, but the entirety of the economy.”
The station is next to the Cambridge Biomedical Campus and Royal Papworth Hospital, benefitting hospital staff, students, and patients. Roland Sinker, on behalf of Cambridge University, said the station opening is an “enormously exciting and important moment”.
Roland added: “The opening of the station is incredible in its own right. What it really means is access to jobs for our population and new treatments. It means the catalytic effect for industry, the university, the National Health Service (NHS), which is working on treatments for the future and world.
“I think it’s a really good sign of what a good built environment can look like, which we’ve got to take forward sensitively as we move into the next phase of the development of Cambridge.”
The station has been funded with £250 million from the Government, as well as £5 million from the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority, Astrazeneca, and the Greater Cambridge Partnership.
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