It’s been many years in the planning and will finally open next year, but the 1,000 cycle parking spaces planned for Cambridge South railway station won’t be enough to cater to demand, says an official from Camcycle, the cycling advocacy group in this cycle-friendly university city.
The new station on Francis Crick Avenue, at the city’s Biomedical Campus, will have solar panels and wildflowers on the roof but nowhere for cars to park. Instead, there will be space to park 1,000 bicycles, which will soon fill capacity, reveals Camcycle's infrastructure campaigner Josh Grantham.
“With the planned growth of the campus and continued investment in cycling in the city, we believe the 1,000 cycle parking spaces provided will likely need to be expanded in the future,” says Grantham.
“We have always pushed to make Cambridge South station the best it can be,” he continues. “While it may not be exactly as we would have designed it, it will still be a leading sustainable transport hub and a significant improvement on many major transport designs typically seen in the U.K.”
Grantham added: “Instead of adding to the congestion in Cambridgeshire, this station will enable thousands of people to reach the Cambridge Biomedical Campus by train and provide local residents with a station that is easily accessible on foot, by cycle, or by bus.”
Network Rail says the station, which is expected to open in early 2026, is next to guided busway services and connects with local cycleways and footpaths. The campus is also next to a nature reserve.
Cambridge mainline rail station has 400 car parking spaces. Cambridge South Station will connect with Stansted Airport, London, Eurostar, and Birmingham.