Milton Road - Bus, Cycling and Walking Improvements Project

The Milton Road project aims to improve public transport, cycle and walking infrastructure to make these sustainable travel options a more attractive alternative to the car. 

Current works 

Mitcham’s Corner 

We have started excavation and drainage works on the west side of Milton Road. Pedestrians and cyclists please be aware of the new road layout, diversion and need to cross to the east side unless you are accessing the temporary bus stop, Westbrook Drive or homes within the closure. Please note the new cycle path on the east is currently closed to cyclists, who should dismount for the safety of all users in the area.

Map showing the closed section of footway on the western side of Mitcham’s Corner with the diversion route on the eastern side of the road.

Highworth Avenue / Elizabeth Way roundabout

We are now focusing on the south-west quadrant of the Highworth Avenue and Elizabeth Way roundabout as works on the north-west quadrant are now complete. Highworth Avenue will be closed to vehicles for approximately six weeks, with a diversion via Leys Road for Highworth residents. Pedestrians and cyclists will be able to access Highworth Avenue from the roundabout.

A pedestrian diversion is in place to take people across Milton Road and Elizabeth Way back onto Milton Road. Traffic calming will remain in place for safety reasons.

Cadent Gas

While we had initially programmed for the gas works to be completed by the end of August, a delay in material availability means works are scheduled to be completed in the middle to the end of September.

The gas works on Milton Road itself are making progress, with the removal of both the four-way lights at the Arbury Road / Union Lane crossroads and the subsequent three-way lights at Birch Close. Work is continuing in both these sections, but the remainder of the work can all be carried out while maintaining two-way traffic along these sections. In the coming weeks, three-way lights will be required at Downham’s Lane.  Any lights used in September will be used to make it easier getting in and out of Downham’s Lane, but Milton Road will be kept at two lanes to mitigate any disruption.

Due to the high volume of vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists using this route, and considering the proximity of existing signalised junctions and crossing points, we have allocated two traffic management operatives to be on site during the day to assist.  These two people will manually control the lights in peak traffic flow periods and provide assistance as required to pedestrians and cyclists.

Tree maintenance

For those of you interested in how the newly planted trees are being cared for on Milton Road, you can watch this video where our tree maintenance contractors, Willerby Landscapes, explain the watering, fertilisation, core sampling and health inspection measures carried out on trees planted on Milton Road.

GCP Milton Road tree maintenance video

Trees being watered using an irrigation bag.

King's Hedges

The photograph shows construction of the north-east quadrant of King’s Hedges junction.

We are currently working on the north-east quadrant of the King’s Hedges crossroads, installing a new kerb line and constructing pavements. Once complete, we will start on the south-east quadrant outside the Co-op. This is scheduled to begin in mid-September. 

As mentioned in last month’s update, a large amount of concrete was used in the past to protect underground utilities at the King’s Hedges junction.  Ground probing radar and trial holes were carried out to identify the location of utilities, but such tests cannot locate concrete.

When we uncovered the concrete, we unfortunately discovered  the quantity and location, made it extremely challenging to install new kerbs, new drainage and traffic signal ducting.  To avoid any risk to residents or work teams from severed utility cabling, and to ensure traffic signal ducting could be installed in the correct place, we needed to redesign the area.

As a result of the redesign, works were temporarily suspended. This decision allowed us to deploy the team who had been working in this area to other sections of the scheme. This ensured the team were working as efficiently as possible, subsequently returning to work on the junction following the completion of the redesign. We continued our work on 17 July.

These delays to works on the junction mean we will now not be able to finish them in ten months as originally planned. Following a review of the programme, we anticipate works will now be complete by early 2024. We would like to apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

We would like to reassure residents and other users of Milton Road that the delay to the works at the junction will not have an impact on the time taken to complete the overall project.

Bus stop update

Any stops not listed in the table above continue to operate as normal.

The following bus services are currently stopping on Milton Road:

• Milton P&R (PR5) stopping at P&R, Science Park, Kendal Way (southbound stop moved to 398 Milton Rd), Fraser Rd (northbound stop closed with temporary stop north of Ramsden Square), Downham’s Lane (southbound stop moved to 280 Milton Rd), Ascham Rd, Westbrook Centre (northbound stop moved to outside Restaurant Twenty Two on Chesterton Road).
• Number 9 stopping at Science Park, Kendal Way (southbound stop moved to 398 Milton Rd), Fraser Rd (northbound stop closed with temporary stop north of Ramsden Square), Downham’s Lane (southbound stop moved to 280 Milton Rd), Ascham Rd, Westbrook Centre (northbound stop moved to outside Restaurant Twenty Two on Chesterton Road).
• B the busway stopping at Westbrook Centre (northbound stop moved to outside Restaurant Twenty Two on Chesterton Road).
• 4A only stopping at Kendal Way (southbound stop moved to 398 Milton Rd), service once a day.
• Number 2 stopping at P&R, driving test centre, Cambs North, driving test centre, Chesterton - Milton Rd.
• Number 1 - please note Westbrook Centre southbound is currently suspended but opening shortly.

Please note that bus stops are subject to change as construction progresses. Bus stop suspended signage will always be displayed with a notice of the new temporary location. Information boards and service provider websites will also display information.

Drop-in Session 

The next monthly drop-in session will be on Monday 4 September 11am – 12pm at Milton Road library.

If you have any concerns during the construction, please do get in touch with Milestone’s project team on MiltonRoad@milestoneinfra.co.uk or telephone the 24 hour contact centre on 0800 023 4762