Ten years ago this month, the review that planned this network was published. In the time it then took Greater Cambridge to appoint the consultants who would design its routes, Copenhagen's equivalent partnership of councils built a finished cycle route connecting one of its towns to the capital. A decade on, Greater Cambridge has finished one route of twelve.

Finish the Greenways

Corridor 4 of 12

Bottisham Greenway

Absorbed the shared Cambridge-end section from the Swaffhams, gained Riverside, lost its underpass and its Wilbraham link.

In design or planning

Map from the 2016 review showing the proposed Bottisham Greenway and its links
The corridor as drawn in 2016. Reproduced from the review commissioned by Cambridgeshire County Council; base mapping © OpenStreetMap contributors. See the full document →

What became of the 4 proposals for this corridor

In design or planning · 2 Delivered differently · 1 Not in current programme · 1

What the 2016 review asked for

  • Minor improvements and solar studs on the existing Stow-cum-Quy to Bottisham path
  • New 1.2 km path in the A1303 verge to link with Wilbraham Road
  • Upgrade the Newmarket Road Park & Ride and Ditton Lane / Fison Road junction

What happened

  • Autumn 2019Initial route consultation.
  • June 2020Board approval alongside Swaffhams.
  • Spring 2023Updated plans presented; the route is extended west towards Cutter Ferry Bridge.
  • 2023A Ditton Lane underpass is investigated and abandoned — utilities, flood risk and land acquisition cost make it 'poor value for money'. Signalised surface crossings are substituted.
  • June 2023Board approval following design refinements.
  • December 2025Land procurement, designs and road safety audits under way.
  • 2 June – 13 July 2026Consultation on the Riverside section: wider footways, crossings, seating and cycle parking over 2.5 miles from Elizabeth Way Bridge to Stourbridge Common.
  • Late 2026Construction expected to begin, subject to planning.

Where it stands, September 2026

In design with a planning application for the whole route pending, and the largest single jump in the 2026/27 budget — from £1.0m to £4.16m — implying construction is genuinely imminent. The Wilbraham Road verge path, which the review itself flagged as the weaker case, is gone.

2026/27 budget £4,164kConsulted 2019, 2023, 2026Construction Late 2026 expected
Audit

Every proposal on this route

Proposed intervention (2016)Type ScaleStatus 2026What happened
Minor improvements and solar studs on the existing Stow-cum-Quy to Bottisham path Upgrade ~5 km In design or planning Carried into the scheme; designs in final review, planning application pending.
New path in the A1303 verge to link with Wilbraham Road New route 1.2 km Not in current programme Identified in 2016 as a weaker case; not in the current scheme.
Grade-separated crossing of Ditton Lane New structure underpass Delivered differently An underpass was considered and abandoned — utilities, flood risk and land cost made it 'poor value for money'. Replaced by improved signalised surface crossings.
Riverside, Cambridge — wider footways, crossings, seating, cycle parking Upgrade 2.5 miles In design or planning Added to the scheme after 2016; public consultation ran 2 June to 13 July 2026.
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