Cambridge will charge drivers £5 city entry to fund bike lanes

CAMBRIDGE is to charge motorists £5 a day to fund cycle lanes under proposals backed by the University.

Workers and families who drive into the city every day face charges of up to £1,300 a year under the plans put forward by the Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP).

But there are warnings that people who cannot afford the fee will be pushed out of the city.

The Sustainable Travel Zone would create a £5 daily charge for private vehicles entering the city between 7am and 7pm on weekdays.

The proposed zone stretches about three miles from the city centre and would be part of a package of measures to “significantly improve how people travel around” Cambridge, the GCP said, adding it would fund “significant” improvements to local bus services and cycling lanes, increasing bike journeys by up to 60,000 a day.

The proposals made by the GCP, which comprises councils, businesses and the university, have prompted anger from residents who do not sit on the executive board.

It is understood that the university is still considering the detail of the proposals which would affect nearly 70 per cent of its workforce who live outside the city and need to travel to work daily.

Protest marches have been scheduled in the city over the plans to introduce the charge by 2027-28.

Dan Lentell, South Cambridgeshire district councillor for Over and Willingham villages to the north of the city, quit the Liberal Democrats in September over a failure to exempt NHS staff from the congestion charge.

The GCP and Addenbrooke’s Hospital were contacted for comment.