£1bn Black Cat scheme gets green light

19/08/2022 | CHRIS AMES

Transport secretary Grant Shapps has granted a Development Consent Order (DCO) for National Highways to begin work on the much-delayed A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet scheme, which is due to cost nearly £1bn.

The scheme will see the creation of a new 10-mile dual carriageway linking the A1 Black Cat roundabout in Bedfordshire to the A428 Caxton Gibbet roundabout in Cambridgeshire.

Both roundabouts will be upgraded into free-flowing junctions with a new junction added at Cambridge Road, improving access to St Neots and its train station.

National Highways said the project, which is currently priced at £810m to £950m, will help drivers save up to an hour and a half every week at what it called ‘one of the region’s most notorious congestion hotspots’.

Project director Lee Galloway said: ‘This announcement is a major milestone, not only for us, but also for the many local communities who have long campaigned for improvements, as well as our stakeholders who we’ve been working with for several years.'

Dave Hodgson, mayor of Bedford Borough, said: ‘It’s great to see that we have passed another important milestone for the upgraded route.’

The scheme was first announced by the Coalition Government in 2014 and formed part of the first (2015-20) Road Investment Strategy (RIS).

When it was announced in 2018 that the start of the scheme had been put back to 2021-22, Mr Hodgson slammed the delay as ‘costly for businesses and desperately disappointing for motorists’.

In its latest announcement, National Highways said it ‘aims to start construction later this year’.

The Infrastructure and Projects Authority’s Annual Report on Major Projects 2021-22 gave the project an ‘amber’ rating - meaning delivery is feasible but there are significant issues.

Spending data released by the Department for Transport in relation to the report noted that the scheme had underspent by £20m (42%) against budget, noting: ‘The DCO application was submitted later than anticipated to allow the incorporation of lessons learnt from other unsuccessful applications. The DCO examination also started later than expected due to a longer DCO pre-examination period imposed by PINS.’

It added: ‘As a result, the programme was rephased and the spike associated with the commencement of construction, budgeted in 2021/22 will now occur in the following year, subject to the DCO being granted in August 2022.’

In its recent Annual Assessment of National Highways, the Office of Rail and Road disclosed that the scheme was one of two that had their start of works targets deferred and were classified as ‘missed commitments’.

It noted that the government-owned company gave reasons for missing its commitments, but stated: ‘National Highways should have foreseen these issues and mitigated them beforehand.’

The Black Cat roundabout will be upgraded to a triple deck junction

AECOM technical director Phil Wayles said: ‘AECOM’s multidisciplinary teams have worked collaboratively with National Highways and other project partners for over five and a half years and led delivery of the preliminary design and DCO statutory process stages.

‘This significant milestone has been achieved through amazing teamwork to meet the many challenges of the DCO process.’

Highways InProfile

latest magazine issue
Highways jobs

Senior Civil Engineer - Major Projects x 4

£45,894.00 - £54,952.00
We are looking for experienced engineers to help us progress a number of key projects and programmes Glasgow, Glasgow City
Recruiter: Transport Scotland

Technician - Maintenance

£31001.0000 - £36471.0000 per annum
Essex Highways is responsible for managing and maintaining one of the largest highway networks in the country
Recruiter: Essex County Council

Highways Contract Engineer

£46,731 - £49,764
The team helps provide a safe road network that operates efficiently and effectively.  Northamptonshire
Recruiter: North Northamptonshire Council

Principal Transport Planner

£46,731 - £49,764 (pro-rata)
We are looking for an experienced professional to join us on a six-month temporary contact as a Principal Transport Planner. Kettering, Northamptonshire
Recruiter: North Northamptonshire Council

Highways Maintenance Operative

£Competitive
We have a fantastic opportunity for a Permanent Highways Maintenance Operative Broughton, Brigg
Recruiter: Amey

Head of Highways Contracts & Network

£81,803 progressing to £90,664 per annum
The team includes approximately 60 directly employed HCC people Hertfordshire
Recruiter: Hertfordshire County Council

Principal Construction Manager

£Competitive
We are excited to offer a fantastic opportunity for a Permanent Principal Construction Manager Yorkshire and the Humber
Recruiter: Amey

Quality Technician

£Competitive
We are excited to offer a fantastic opportunity for a Permanent Quality Technician Yorkshire and the Humber
Recruiter: Amey

Senior Highway Engineer (Development Management)

£42679.0000 - £50211.0000 per annum
Senior Highway Engineer (Development Management)Permanent, Full Time£43,960 to £51,718 per annum*Location
Recruiter: Essex County Council

Project Manager (Major Projects)

£44,711 - £47,754
Are you an experienced project professional or engineer with looking to take the next step in your career? Halifax, West Yorkshire
Recruiter: Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council

Senior Civil Engineer - Roads

£45,894 - £54,952
Are you an experienced engineer looking to support the Scottish Government’s national objectives. Scotland
Recruiter: Transport Scotland

Project Team Manager

£55,147 to £60,676 per annum
We are pleased to be able to offer an opportunity for a role as Design Team Manager Norwich, Norfolk
Recruiter: Norfolk County Council

Clerk of Works

GRADE 08 (£37,938 - £41,511)
Warrington is one of the most successful towns in the country Warrington, Cheshire
Recruiter: Warrington Borough Council

Assistant Projects Engineer

GRADE 06 (£29,093 - £32,654),GRADE 07 (£33,366 - £37,035), GRADE 08 (£37,938 - £41,511)
Warrington is one of the most successful towns in the country Warrington, Cheshire
Recruiter: Warrington Borough Council

Principal Engineer - Traffic Management

£45,718 - £48,710 per annum
At Bath & North East Somerset Council we have one overriding purpose – to improve people’s lives. Bath, Somerset
Recruiter: Bath & North East Somerset Council

Vehicle Technician - Improver

£28,624 - £30,060
Transport Services is responsible for all aspects of transport and related services Huddersfield, West Yorkshire
Recruiter: Kirklees Metropolitan Council

Programme Delivery Office Administrator

Grade 9 £31,344 - £33,253 per annum
At Derbyshire, we have been on a journey to transform the way we deliver highway services to make them fit for the future Derbyshire
Recruiter: Derbyshire County Council

Support Officer - Highways Asset Management Systems

£31,586 - £34,314
We are a forward-thinking organisation dedicated to maintaining and improving our highway infrastructure. Lincolnshire
Recruiter: Lincolnshire County Council

Principal Transport Planner (Strategy)

£46,731-£49,764
We are looking for an experienced professional to join North Northamptonshire Council as a Principal Transport Planner (Strategy). Sheerness House, 41 Meadow Road, Kettering moving to Haylock House, Kettering Parkway, Kettering NN15 6EY, United Kingdom
Recruiter: North Northamptonshire Council

Electrical Engineer

Grade 9 £34,314 to £37,938 - Grade 10 £37,035 to £40,476 - Grade 11 £39,513 to £43,693 - Grade 12 £42,708 to £46,731 p.a.
The Construction Consultancy Services (CCS) team provide client-side construction consultancy services across a range of professional disciplines to d Durham
Recruiter: Durham County Council
SUBSCRIBE NOW

Latest Video

Subscribe to Highways today to ensure you keep your finger on the pulse of everything happening in the UK road network throughout the year.

SUBSCRIBE NOW