Skip to main content

Mill Road bridge TRO

Page Contents

Update – September 2024

At the end of July, Cambridgeshire County Council agreed with the claimant to end legal proceedings in relation to the Mill Road Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) challenge and decided to undertake the consultation and decision-making process on the traffic regulation order again.

TRO Consultation - Friday 9 August to midnight on Friday 13 September

A statutory consultation on the proposed Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) to close Mill Road bridge to all vehicles, except buses, bicycles, emergency services, taxis, and blue badge holders – who may apply to register up to two vehicles on the Permitted Vehicles List for the Mill Road bus gate – has now ended.

Special Highways and Transport Committee on Friday 4 October

A report will be presented at a special Highways and Transport Committee meeting on Friday 4 October to make a decision about the TRO.

TRO documents

PR1058 Draft Order87KB–pdf
Size: 87KBFile format: pdf
PR1058 Propose Notice12KB–pdf
Size: 12KBFile format: pdf
PR1058 Statement of Reasons88KB–pdf
Size: 88KBFile format: pdf
PR1058 Plan1.71MB–pdf
Size: 1.71MBFile format: pdf

Get in touch

If you have any questions about the TRO, please email policy.andregulation@cambridgeshire.gov.uk, quoting reference PR1058; and if you have any questions about the Mill Road Bus Gate project, please email Local.Highways@cambridgeshire.gov.uk

Blue badge holder registration

If the new TRO is approved by the Highways & Transport Committee, Blue Badge holders who wish to register up to a maximum of two vehicles, to travel over Mill Road bridge by car, would be required to provide relevant details such as name, address, Blue Badge number and appropriate paperwork.

Full registration details will be made available if the TRO is approved. 

The exemption does not apply to any other bus gates or lanes in Cambridge.

The closure would be implemented as a bus gate and blue badge holders would need to register by completing the application form.

Background

Between June 2020 and early August 2021, Mill Road bridge was temporarily closed to most vehicles under an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO). The closure was part of a government-funded scheme to help people socially distance and encourage walking and cycling during the Covid pandemic. When the order was removed and the bridge reopened in summer 2021, the Highways & Transport Committee asked the Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP) to review and consult on options for Mill Road to promote active travel and tackle air quality and congestion.

The GCP consultation in 2022, which included focus groups of key stakeholders and two public workshops, showed that there was a desire to see traffic reduced while maintaining access for those who need it, including people with disabilities and taxis. There was also a wish to see the environment enhanced along Mill Road, including improving the public realm.

After reviewing the consultation, the Highways & Transport Committee at its meeting on 12 July 2022 agreed to introduce a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) to reinstate the modal filter on Mill Road. The Committee was clear the TRO should include new exemptions, allowing blue badge holders and taxis over the bridge.

On Tuesday, 7 March 2023, members of the Highways and Transport committee voted to reinstate the Mill Road bridge closure to all motor vehicles, except buses, cyclists, emergency services, taxis and blue badge holders. The TRO was made and sealed on 14 June 2023.

The TRO was subsequently challenged in the courts and as a result the County Council agreed not to implement any of the planned changes until the legal case was resolved.

Public realm scheme

In addition, the council is planning to improve the public realm, walking and cycling provision along Mill Road. This will include general improvements not included in the consultation such as, additional cycle parking, signage and decluttering the highway.

The potential public realm changes are being considered in collaboration with the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority and the Greater Cambridge Partnership.

Frequently asked questions

A Traffic Regulation Order has a notice period and asks people for objections and any other comments relating to the order. Any objections must specify the grounds on which they are made.

Two consultations have already been carried out, first by CCC and secondly by the GCP. During the GCP consultation in 2022, respondents strongly supported closing the road but with exemptions.

In 2022 GCP carried out an extensive public consultation, where 1,986 online and written responses were received and 72% of respondents supported restricting motor vehicles from crossing Mill Road bridge.

In July 2022 members of the county council’s Highways and Transport Committee, following a majority vote, agreed to go ahead with the bus gate, including exemptions and improve the public realm on the road.

Mill Road bridge was closed to private vehicles from June 2020 to early August 2021 as part of a package of measures rolled out to help people walking and cycling to maintain social distancing following the outbreak of Covid-19.

Since then, two consultations have been carried out, first by CCC and secondly by the GCP - respondents to this second consultation strongly supported closing the road but with exemptions.

If approved, pedestrians, cyclists, buses, emergency vehicles, refuse vehicles, dial-a-ride, all taxis and blue badge holders would be allowed to use Mill Road bridge. Blue badge holders would be able to register up to a maximum of two vehicles.

Mill Road bridge would be closed to the majority of motor vehicles. The closure would be enforced by Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras with the registered owner of any non-exempt private motor vehicle recorded using the bridge receiving a fine.

Signs would be installed along Mill Road and on nearby streets to warn drivers about the new road layout

It would take three working days for your application to be reviewed and processed. You would be sent an email confirming you’ve been added to the authorised user list for Mill Road, and you’ll only be exempt once that email has been sent.

You’ll need to provide name, address, email address, contact number, blue badge serial number, blue badge expiry date and relevant paperwork such as a copy of your blue badge.

Blue badge holders would be able to register up to a maximum of two vehicles; the blue badge holder must be travelling in the vehicle when driving through the bus gate.

No, the exemption would only apply to Mill Road and not to other bus gates/bus lanes in the city.

There would be a period of time to implement the closure, including installing cameras, signs, road markings, setting up the online system and allowing people time to register.

There would be a further period of grace, around a month, where people would be sent warning notices and if they are exempt, they would be encouraged to register online.

Where possible, online would be the preferred option, but if you were unable to make your application online or email us, we would post a form to you; however, this would take slightly longer to process

You wouldn’t need to do anything if you’re a registered taxi driver; the system would recognise existing taxi registration numbers that are already on the authorised vehicle list.