Skip to main content

Mill Road bus gate - exemption application

Background information

On Friday 4 October 2024, members of the Highway and Transport committee voted to approve the modal filter on the Mill Road bridge. The closure will be implemented as a bus gate and will be enforced by Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras. If you drive illegally through the bus gate, then you will receive a £70 fine. Signs are installed along Mill Road and on nearby streets to warn drivers about the new road layout.

The Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) came into operation on 1 December 2024. From the end of January 2025, there will be a warning notice period where vehicles who contravene the restriction will receive warning notices only. If any of the exemption criteria is met (as outlined below) the applicant will be encouraged to apply. Live penalty charge notices will be issued from March 2025.

For further information please visit Mill Road bridge TRO.

Permitted authorised vehicles - Mill Road bus gate

The Mill Road bridge is now closed to all vehicles, except for the categories outlined below. The Traffic Regulation Order defines the following vehicles as permitted to use the Mill Road bus gates.

These vehicles are limited to:

  • Pedestrians and cyclists (not motorcycles or mopeds)
  • Local buses - constructed or adapted to carry more than eight passengers
  • Statutory undertakers
  • Taxis (both hackney carriages and private hire vehicles)
  • Blue badge holders may register up to two vehicles (their own vehicle or a vehicle belonging to a carer) for exemption
  • Vehicles in a disabled tax class
  • Vehicles on the Council’s Permitted Vehicles List

The following additional exemption categories have been agreed for vehicles to be added onto the Council's permitted authorised vehicle list, if an applicant meets one of the below categories:

  • Eligible NHS staff
  • Eligible Doctors
  • Disabled residents who are not Blue Badge holders
  • Resident’s carers
  • Professional carers
  • Volunteer transport
  • Community Transport including Dial-A-Ride

Any vehicles who apply to be added to the Council's permitted authorised vehicle list are subject to specific eligibility criteria as defined in the Operational Guidance and will need to be accompanied by the relevant supporting evidence.

Operational guidance

How to apply

Further details, along with the application form and terms and conditions can be found below.

If you require an application form via e-mail, please contact parkingcontrol@cambridgeshire.gov.uk

If you require an application form to be sent via the post, please contact Parking Control on 01223 727915 (9.00 am to 5.00 pm Monday to Thursdays and 9.00 am to 4.30 pm on Fridays, excluding bank holidays).

It will take seven working days for your application to be reviewed (excluding weekends and Bank Holidays). You will be contacted by the Parking Control team with an update if your application has been successful.

Defined scheme area

The railway line forms the boundaries of the wards of Romsey on the east side and Petersfield on the west side. In December 2024 Cambridgeshire County Council (CCC), installed a bus gate restriction over the bridge, limiting traffic to pedestrians, cycles, buses, taxis, and other authorised vehicles.

As part of the Mill Road bridge bus gate scheme, CCC has determined to create a geographic area in which carers are eligible for permitted vehicle rights over Mill Road bridge. This is so that they are not unduly disadvantaged whilst maintaining the efficacy of the traffic control measure. The issuance of authorised access to highways users, who lack valid reasons to cross the bridge would diminish the efficacy of the proposed traffic control measure.

To be eligible for permitted vehicle rights both carer and dependent need to live within the Defined Scheme Area (DSA). Successful applicants will need to provide their vehicle registration details which will be added to the Permitted Vehicle List for the Mill Road bus gate. The exemption issued will be the resident’s carer and voluntary transport exemption; this will only be issued if the applicant meets all the criteria in set out in the operational guidance.

Defined Scheme Area285KBpdf
Size: 285KBFile format: pdf

Please note Blue Badge holders or any vehicles registered for access by a Blue Badge holder, along with ALL the additional exemption categories are NOT permitted to use any other bus gates or bus lanes in Cambridge. You may receive a penalty charge notice if you drive through them.

For further information about the bus gates and lanes in Cambridge visit Bus lane and bus gate enforcement

Frequently asked questions

Please refer to permitted vehicles section at the top of the web page. This outlines the vehicles permitted in the TRO and the additional exemption categories.

It will take seven working days for your application to be reviewed (excluding weekends and Bank Holidays). You will be contacted by the Parking Control team with an update if your application has been successful. You must wait until you receive written confirmation that the vehicle(s) have been approved before driving through the bus gate.

Please see the How to apply section above. Details of supporting documentation required is outlined on the application form.

No, Blue Badge holders or any vehicles registered for access by a Blue Badge holder, along with ALL the additional exemption categories are NOT permitted to use any other bus gates or bus lanes in Cambridge. You may receive a penalty charge notice if you drive through them.

Where possible, online will be the preferred option, but if you are unable to make your application online or email/call us, we will post a form to you. However, this will take slightly longer to process. Please see the How to apply section above.

If you are a disabled person or resident’s carer living in the Mill Road area of Cambridge, you may be eligible to apply for exemption from the restrictions over the bridge.

If you drive through the bus gate during the warning period, you are encouraged to apply for an exemption outlined above if you meet the criteria.

If you drive through the bus gate after the warning notice period has ended and receive a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN), the registered keeper of the vehicle should follow the instructions provided on the PCN on how to make a representation.

If your vehicle is not already registered on the permitted vehicle list, please register via Bus lane and bus gate enforcement.

Vehicles who are not exempt are not permitted to travel over the Mill Road bus gate in a motorised vehicle. You would therefore need to find an alternative route by car or choose to walk or cycle if able to do so.

You would no longer be able to travel over the Mill Road bus gate in a motorised vehicle except by bus and taxi or if you apply for an exemption as detailed above. You would therefore need to find an alternative route by car or choose to walk or cycle if you are able to do so.