Lord Berkeleyasked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the total estimated cost, including cost of buses, legal services, land purchase, development and construction, of the guided busway proposal to link Cambridge and St Ives; and [HL5369]
What environmental impact assessments have been done for the proposed St Ives-Cambridge guided busway; and whether they will place a copy of these in the Library of the House.[HL5370]
§ Lord Davies of OldhamCambridgeshire County Council has estimated the total cost of the proposed bus rapid transit scheme as £73.8 million. This includes £54.8 million for construction, £2.7 million for preparation costs, £5.6 million for land, and £2.3 million for design and supervision. All these costs have been adjusted for risk and an allowance of 203WA £8.4 million has been made for inflation. It has been assumed that the private bus operators will provide 77 additional buses by 2031, at an estimated cost of £11.5 million.
The county council will need to carry out an environmental impact assessment (EIA) of the project before applying for an order under the Transport and Works Act. It is also required to submit an environmental statement (ES) to the Department for Transport as part of its application, setting out the likely environmental impacts of the project and the mitigation measures proposed. All application documents, including the ES, have to be deposited in the Libraries of both Houses.