Tag: traffic

Mill Yard Deliveries

(Mill Yard, formerly Devonshire Gardens)

Whilst none of us actively like heavy goods vehicle deliveries in and around Mill Road, we recognise that this is temporary, in the construction phase of Mill Yard.

Image as caption
Aerial visualisation of the completed Mill Yard development

The outcome will be a low-car, low motor-traffic development – a huge improvement on the previous use by builders’ merchants, which generated a daily stream of large and small goods vehicles, unsuited to a primarily residential area.

Mill Road Bridges are pleased to note that Morgan Sindall Construction – the tier one contractor – has taken the trouble to minimise the impact of delivery traffic during construction of this new development. A good neighbour, indeed!

Image is a map with delivery instructions, as below. Morgan Sindall Construction Delivering to us Project: Devonshire Gardens/Mill Yard Address: Devonshire Road, Cambridge, Cambridge CB1 2AG Directions From A1307/Hills Road, turn onto Station road, then turn left onto Tenison Road. Turn Right onto Devonshire Road and enter the site through Gate A. NO DELIVERIES TO APPROACH SITE FROM THE MILL ROAD DIRECTION (NORTH).NO VEHICLES TO USE THE NORTHERN SECTION OF TENISON ROAD Deliveries can only be made between the hours of 9:30am and 3:30pm unless prior permission is given by the site team for exceptional circumstances.

We are indebted to local resident Richard Calverley, who writes:

For the next two years Mill Road will be carrying the traffic from the [Mill Yard] Devonshire Road development. In theory all the incoming traffic (deliveries) have been instructed to arrive via Station Road / Devonshire Road.

The traffic leaving the site have been told to use Mill Road, exit to East Road.

I […] have had very good interactions with the [contractors], Morgan Sindall. When their instructions have been ignored, I have provided photos or company names / timing. They have threatened to cancel contracts and this has been a game changer.  […]  I have been very impressed by [these contractors]. […]

If you see construction traffic passing [along Mill Road, from East Road] in the direction of Devonshire Road, this is against the guidelines and you can help by reporting the “incident” to Morgan Sindall.

If you observe any delivery traffic misusing Mill Road, click this link – Construction Traffic Misusing Mill Road – to generate an email to Chris Webb, Project Director and Matt Cade, Project Manager.

Please give them as much detail as possible, for example:

  • date and time of the incident
  • company name on the offending vehicle
  • registration mark
  • photo of the vehicle
Photos of Chris Webb, Project Director and Matt Cade, Project Manager.

Find out more about Mill Yard from Morgan Sindall at Mill Yard: Cambridge’s new sustainable neighbourhood, and from the Mill Yard, Cambridge website, where you can sign up for updates.

Maths School on Mill Road?

Eastern Learning Alliance intends to open a new free school, Cambridge Maths School, a specialist sixth form centre catering for students across the whole of East Anglia.

This would be in the former premises of the Regent Language School, 119 Mill Road, Cambridge CB1 2AZ, at the western foot of Mill Road bridge.

Unfortunately, this came to our attention only recently, and well after the public consultation event on Wednesday 22nd June, at the Old School Hall, St Barnabas Church, Mill Road, Cambridge, CB1 2BD. We are, however, in time to inform you about the Section 10 Statutory Consultation, which ends on 29th July 2022.

Cambridge Maths School Section 10 Statutory Consultation Summer 2022 Consultation ends 29th July
Click the image above to read/download the 6-page PDF

The Cambridge Maths School is set to open in September 2023 under the Eastern Learning Alliance, a Multi Academy Trust that is currently comprised of Impington Village College, Chesterton Community College, Witchford Village College, Downham Market Academy, The Cavendish School and Girton Glebe Primary School.

An initial site for the school has been identified on Mill Road in the centre of Cambridge. This is a repurposed language school, with science labs added to the already well-established school. The school will be open to 80 students across years 12 and 13.

It is the intention to eventually secure a larger site for the school to allow for up to 200 students. This site will also be in central Cambridge with similar excellent transport connections. Details will be made available as soon as a suitable site has been secured.

Cambridge Maths School consultation PDF

Mill Road Bridges sees advantages in new specialist facilities for sixth form students, however, there would cause for concern if parents were to be ferrying students to and from the Maths School by car. Whether or not new traffic restrictions are introduced on Mill Road bridge, an additional (say) 40 car movements in and out of the restricted access to this site, would amount to 160 additional vehicle movements each school day.

The academy trust refers to “excellent transport connections” and says:

Because CMS is a sixth form school, students will travel to the school in the same way they would be expected to travel to any other post- sixteen provision they would otherwise choose to attend. The location of the school provides excellent transport links for students travelling to the CMS from across the whole of East Anglia, being only 5 minutes from the Cambridge Station, and so students and staff will be expected to travel by public transport, cycling or walking and will not add any traffic to the area.

Cambridge Maths School consultation PDF
Note that the trust says “students and staff will be expected to travel by public transport, cycling or walking”. This is far from being an assurance that this expectation will be written into staff contracts, nor into the school rules for students.

You can respond to this consultation online, here. Note that the questions are identical to those in the PDF which you can read/download, above.

In the view of Mill Road Bridges, the most important section is the box: If you have any other comments or queries, please list them here. The online box appears to be able to expand to take an extended narrative comment.

You are also welcome to comment (politely) below. Yes, we are aware that an Education Minister recently gave a middle finger gesture to a crowd. We will not permit the equivalent on this website.

Please also note that any comments made here will not necessarily be seen by the Eastern Learning Alliance.