Latest updates

Drivers on the A421 will have noticed the new Roxton Road bridge is beginning to take shape after our successful beam lift.

In bridge building, beams are the strong, horizontal parts that connect both sides of the structure. They are back bone of a new bridge providing the strength and stability to safely support vehicles and pedestrians for years to come.

Over the first two weekends of November, our specialist engineers used two 750-tonne crane to lift six massive steel beams into place over the A421 - a key milestone in the bridge’s construction.

Each of these beams weighs approximately 130 tonnes and spans 37 meters, making them as heavy as a fully grown blue whale and as long as a Boeing 737.

Gareth Moores, National Highways Programme Manager, said:

“The scale and complexity of this engineering feat cannot be overstated and marks a significant moment for our scheme. Each beam was carefully lifted into place – inch-by-inch – using a 750-tonne crane, forming the backbone of the new Roxton Road bridge.”

The new Roxton Road bridge is designed to support critical upgrades at the Black Cat roundabout, including a new westbound slip road and an eastbound free-flow link connecting the A421 to the A1.

The dimensions of the existing bridge cannot support these much-needed upgrades.

Next, our team will focus on constructing the bridge deck, which will support the road surface, and integrate the new bridge with Roxton Road.

The new bridge is expected to open to traffic in spring 2025.

We’d like to give you more information about the condition of the cottages and the possibility of relocating them.

Our Development Consent Order requirement

Our Development Consent Order (DCO), details how we should assess whether we can relocate Brook Cottages.

Options include:

• dismantling the cottages
• if relevant, storing, transporting, and reconstructing parts that could be relocated to conserve their heritage.

Both Historic England and Bedfordshire Borough Council have agreed with our approach.

Assessing the building

We took possession of Brook Cottages in August 2023.

Within four weeks an independent heritage engineer began a detailed assessment of the buildings condition.

We made sure no heavy construction work took place until all surveys had completed.

Structural condition

Brook Cottages were poorly built compared to other buildings of a similar type and age. Decades of decay have left them in a very bad condition.

Over the last 60 years, various repairs to the outside of the building, primarily the use of cement plaster, have stopped it from 'breathing'.

As a result, the timber frame has substantially rotted. Together with widespread insect damage, this has left it very fragile. We’ve had to install additional supports due to the risk of collapse.

What relocation would mean

If relocated, most of the buildings' structure would need to be replaced, losing its original heritage.

Modern alterations to the cottages have also moved the structure further away from its original state.

These changes include the removal of sections of the timber frame and their replacement with brick.

The independent heritage structural engineer’s recommendations

The engineer has advised us that any attempt to relocate the cottages would require a complete rebuild to make them safe.

This would mean using different materials and building methods. As a result, much of the cottages’ original heritage features would be lost.

For these reasons, the engineer recommended that Brook Cottages should not be relocated once dismantled.

Historic England and Bedford Borough Council agree with these recommendations. We are following them closely.

Future steps

We're committed to dismantling Brook Cottages in a safe manner.

As a part of the process, we'll work alongside Historic England to preserve any items of heritage interest, ensuring they're safely removed and transported to a safe location. These items include:

• bread oven door
• structural beams
• two fireplace lintels
• internal fixtures and fittings

We started this work last week.

Specialist teams will soon remove any hazardous materials from the buildings such as asbestos.

The final job will be to remove the thatched roof and dismantle the timber frame from top to bottom.

Once complete, we'll continue building the new link between the A421 eastbound and the A1 northbound carriageways.

Our team was joined by Anthony Browne MP, Richard Fuller MP and the Mayor of Bedford as we put the first spades in the ground to mark the official groundbreaking moment on the much-anticipated A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet improvements.

In a significant milestone for local, regional, and national transport infrastructure, we took the first ceremonial spadefuls of earth today to mark the start of main construction at the A1 Black Cat roundabout.

Transport Secretary, Mark Harper said:

“I'm delighted we have marked the start of works on the A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet project, a huge investment by the government to grow the economy in the region and reduce congestion for drivers."

Our plans will see the creation of a new 10-mile dual carriageway linking the A1 and A421 Black Cat roundabout in Bedfordshire to the A428 Caxton Gibbet roundabout in Cambridgeshire. Both existing roundabouts will be upgraded into modern, free-flowing junctions with a new junction added at Cambridge Road, improving access to St Neots and its train station.

The scheme is expected to open to traffic in 2027.

A £2 million initiative aimed at leaving a lasting positive legacy in the region has launched today (27 November) and we are asking for applications from local not-for-profit groups and community organisations.  

Our A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet improvements are set to begin construction before the end of the year. Recognising the importance of community engagement and the desire to create a legacy that extends beyond the physical project, we are committing £2 million to a dedicated legacy fund.   

Our aim is to maximise the wider benefits of the A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet improvements for local communities, the environment, and the local economy.  

We're calling on all local not-for-profit groups to apply for the grants, including local schools, charities, community groups and environment and heritage groups.  

To find out more on our leaving a positive legacy page.

On Thursday 18 May, the Court of Appeal refused Transport Action Network’s (TAN) application to appeal the refusal of permission for a judicial review of the Secretary of State’s decision to grant the A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet improvements a Development Consent Order (formal planning permission).

We are pleased to say this means that the legal process is now over, and we can start working towards full construction.

Unfortunately, the legal challenge has disrupted our construction timetable and the start of work has been delayed.

We are keen to get started as soon as possible, so you will see us continue preparatory works including archaeology, environmental surveys and diverting utilities as we get ready for full construction.

We are continuing to work closely with local authorities, parish councils and community groups to ensure that there is minimum disruption for road users and those who live locally when the project moves into construction.

We plan to move into full construction by the end of the year and expect the road to open in 2027.

We are disappointed to let you know that we won’t be starting construction on the A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet scheme this month like we had initially planned.    

Planning permission (called a Development Consent Order) was granted by the Secretary of State back in August 2022 and we have been busy preparing for construction.  

However Transport Action Network (TAN) submitted an application to the High Court for permission for a judicial review of the Secretary of State’s decision to grant the A428 Development Consent Order. They are challenging the Secretary of State’s decision on the grounds of biodiversity, need for the scheme and climate change.   

We were hoping a decision on the application could be made before the end of the year but the decision is now looking as though it will happen early 2023, because of this we have had to delay the start of construction. 

As this is an ongoing legal case we can’t provide any further information. However, we are continuing to assess the impact and will provide you with further updates as quickly as possible.   

Following our recent public information events we know the improvements are very much wanted by local people, commuters and businesses. We are continuing our surveys of land, water, ecology and finalising the design of junctions and bridges to minimise impact when we start building the road.  

Our plans will help transform the region, improving journeys between Milton Keynes, Bedford, St Neots and Cambridge by bringing communities together and supporting long-term regional growth. 

Today (18 August 2022) we welcomed the Secretary of State for Transport’s decision to grant planning permission (a Development Consent Order) to upgrade the route between the A1 Black Cat roundabout and A428 Caxton Gibbet roundabout with a brand new 10-mile dual carriageway. Both existing roundabouts will be upgraded to modern, free-flowing junctions with a new junction at Cambridge Road, improving access to St Neots town centre and train station.  

This announcement is a major milestone, not only for us but also for the many local communities who have long campaigned for improvements and our stakeholders who we’ve been working with for several years. 

The new road will fill in the missing link of dual carriageway on the strategic road network between Milton Keynes, Bedford and Cambridge, helping drivers save up to an hour-and-a-half on their journeys every week. 

What happens next? 

There is a process we need to follow over the next few months and construction is due to start at the end of this year, with the road opening in 2026.   

If you live or travel in the area you may have seen us over the last few months carrying out surveys and investigations, ahead of the decision. This is to help us prepare for construction. We will continue to do this until the end of the year before construction begins. 

To keep you fully up to date on what we are doing, we are planning some online Q&A sessions and face-to-face public information events later this year. We’ll be visiting venues around the local area and will be out and about with our mobile visitor centre. These events will provide information about the improvements and allow us to answer any questions you may have. We will provide you with more details on our online and face-to-face events on this page going forward.   

Find out more 

You can view the Secretary of State’s decision letter and find out more information on our Development Consent Order (DCO) on the Planning Inspectorate website.   

Plans to transform journeys between Milton Keynes, Bedford and Cambridge moved a step closer today (Wednesday 24 March) after our proposals were formally accepted by the Planning Inspectorate for examination. 

Our plans will see a new 10-mile dual carriageway built linking the A1 Black Cat roundabout in Bedfordshire to the A428 Caxton Gibbet roundabout in Cambridgeshire. Both existing roundabouts will also be upgraded into modern, free-flowing junctions and a new junction added at Cambridge Road, improving access to St Neots and its train station. 

The project replaces the only remaining section of single carriageway between Milton Keynes and Cambridge and tackles one of the region’s most notorious congestion hotspots.  

The Planning Inspectorate will now start the process of a full examination of our proposals before deciding whether to grant a Development Consent Order, which will help to inform the Secretary of State for Transport when deciding whether to give the green light for construction to begin. 

The Planning Inspectorate’s examination process will provide people with the opportunity to comment on the proposals in writing as well as the chance to participate in hearings. Following the examination, the Planning Inspectorate will make a recommendation to the Secretary of State for Transport, who will decide whether the project can move forward with construction. 

In a project that will improve a key east-west road link, journeys on the A1, the A421 and the A428 will be improved by a new three tier junction at the Black Cat roundabout in Bedfordshire, which will allow drivers to pass through the junction uninterrupted, while keeping the roundabout clear for drivers making turns between the roads.

And a brand new, 10 mile dual carriageway will link directly between the upgraded Black Cat junction and the Caxton Gibbet roundabout near Cambourne in Cambridgeshire, with a new junction at Cambridge road and new bridges. The existing A428 will become a local road serving communities between St Neots and Caxton Gibbet.

Options for the new road scheme were put to the public in 2017, and the route being announced today (18 February 2018) combines the best mix of benefits and were also the most popular options at consultation. The chosen options were referred to at the consultation as the Orange Route and Option C respectively.

Currently, the A428 between the A1 at Black Cat and the A1198 at Caxton Gibbet is a single carriageway with a series of roundabouts and give-way junctions. It experiences severe congestion and delays during peak periods or if there is an incident in the wider South Cambridgeshire area. The improvements will cut the average peak time journeys between the Black Cat and Caxton Gibbet junctions by more than a third – around a 10 minute saving on every trip.

The improvements will tackle these delays by creating a new dual carriageway, with junctions served by slip roads, and bridges to carry local roads over it. The new dual carriageway will lead directly to the Black Cat junction which is itself being upgraded to allow smoother, safer access between the A1, the A421 and the A428. The A428 currently joins the A1 at Wyboston 1.5 miles to the north.

Retaining the existing A428 for local traffic will offer significant benefits for communities along the route, while four new routes for pedestrians, cyclists and equestrians will maintain and improve access across the new road.

Three options for the new road were put to the public in 2017, along with three options for the junction upgrade. The chosen options announced today were referred to at the consultation as the Orange Route and Option C respectively. 89 percent of respondents agreed with the need for the upgrade, with a clear majority of respondents backing the options chosen today (83 per cent for the Orange route and 60 per cent for Option C).

The scheme is valued between £810m and £1.4bn, and is being funded by the Government’s £15bn Road Investment Strategy, the biggest investment in road infrastructure since the 1970s.

Today’s announcement paves the way for a further, more detailed consultation later in 2019, and a planning application, expected in 2020. Subject to statutory processes, main construction work on the upgrade could start before April 2022.