New railway station to have cafe and waiting room

A new railway station in a village could include a cafe, waiting room and toilets.

The station in Waterbeach, Cambridgeshire, is due to open next year and will replace the existing one, which does not have any of these amenities.

The Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP) is funding the project alongside Homes England, to serve the village as thousands of new properties are built.

The GCP said the next step would be finalising the designs for the station, if funding and approval was found for the proposed facilities.

The new station will also have wider platforms, 100 cycle spaces and a new car park, which will include electric vehicle charging points.

The site would be about a mile-and-a-half (2.4-km) north along the track from the current one.

Work has already begun to create on a temporary haul road, which will be used by construction traffic accessing the new station site from the A10.

Thomas Fitzpatrick, the head of programme at GCP, said the partnership had "listened to residents" while developing its plans.

"We have incorporated many of these ideas in our proposals which we believe will make the new station even more useful as people look to travel more sustainably," he said.

Plans for up to 4,500 new homes in Waterbeach were approved in 2024.

The new town will also include new primary and secondary schools as well as shops, businesses and leisure facilities.

The GCP said the existing station would not close until the new one was open.

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