Another major development in Central Bedfordshire is to start as the site of the new £2.3million Biggleswade Transport Interchange is prepared for construction.

Central Bedfordshire Council’s main contractor Galliford Try will next week (from Monday 28 February) begin clearing unused land owned by Network Rail next to Biggleswade Railway Station, ready for the construction to begin in the summer.

The modern, new bus and rail interchange will make it easier for people to use public transport for their journeys. It also helps support future growth and new development in Biggleswade.

It will include bus stops, a bus turning circle and improved pedestrian access. The scheme will include attractive new public space and landscaping, with plants, trees and a rain garden set alongside paved areas and seating.

This will create a striking development offering improved public transport connections in one convenient place. It will also encourage more sustainable travel to and from the railway station.

The scheme is one of four transformational projects in Biggleswade benefiting from a total of £70million of Homes England funding through the Housing Infrastructure Fund.

The other three planned projects, designed to support growth in Biggleswade, are a new electricity substation, a new footbridge to replace Lindsell’s Crossing over the East Coast Main Line and the council’s Schools for the Future programme.

Additional plans at the railway station include a Department for Transport funded Access for All programme. This is delivered by Network Rail and will provide an obstacle-free, accessible route to and between the railway station platforms.

There is also a Govia Thameslink led project to provide improved cycle parking at the station and accessible toilet facilities which is part of its network-wide station improvement programme.

Cllr Kevin Collins, Executive Member for Planning and Regeneration at Central Bedfordshire Council, said: “It’s great to see preliminary work starting on this new transport interchange, which is an important part of the Biggleswade Masterplan set to deliver transformational growth and real change.

“This project will create a vibrant new bus and rail interchange with enhanced public transport and offer a superb sense of arrival and public space. It will encourage more people onto public transport and supports our sustainability and climate change agenda. Residents, visitors and businesses will all benefit from this eye-catching new development.”

As part of the plans, the transport interchange will become the new Biggleswade bus terminal however, the town centre will continue to have bus stops at Hitchin Street.

Construction work will start during summer 2022 and should be complete by spring 2023. The scheme received planning approval in July 2021.

More information on the Biggleswade Masterplan and the projects lined up is available at: www.centralbedfordshire.gov.uk/biggleswade