A428 upgrade makes Bedford 'centre of universe' says mayor

A ground-breaking ceremony with MP Anthony Browne (second from left) and local mayor Tom Wootton (right) was held at the Black Cat junction, near Bedford

A £950m upgrade of the A428 will make Bedford "the centre of the universe", according to the borough's mayor.

Tom Wootton made the claim at a ground-breaking ceremony at the Black Cat Roundabout in Bedfordshire.

"It puts Bedford in the centre of the universe... the M1, the A1 and the M11, all joined up by a dual carriageway via Bedford," he said.

The new road, which will link Bedford to Cambridge via dual carriageway for the first time, is due to open in 2027.

The 10-mile (16km) section will run south of St Neots from the Black Cat roundabout, at Roxton, to the Caxton Gibbet roundabout, near Cambourne.

Both junctions are getting an upgrade to keep traffic flowing freely.

About 25,300 vehicles use the road each day and this is expected to rise to to 32,900 by 2040, due to new housing and jobs - National Highways says.

Conservative mayor Tom Wootton said he was "bubbling" with excitement as the project began in Bedfordshire

Lee Galloway, National Highways' project director, said it was a "significant investment for the region".

He said improvements to the Black Cat roundabout, which has been a notorious bottleneck, would save drivers 10 minutes on each journey through it.

"Over the course of a working week, it will save people over a third of the time they would usually travel through," he said.

A new 10-mile dual carriageway will link the A1/A421 Black Cat roundabout, in Bedfordshire (pictured), to the A428 Caxton Gibbet roundabout in Cambridgeshire

He added that disruption over the next four years was "inevitable", but road closures would be limited to overnights and weekends.

Mr Wootton said he was excited for work to officially begin, as it was the "culmination of years and years of work".

"We're just bubbling because this is the best news that Bedford borough has had in years," he said.

Anthony Browne, Conservative MP for South Cambridgeshire and minister for transport, said: "At the moment the roads around here get very congested, which slows down businesses and means people can't get to jobs."

He added it would be "a lot more attractive place for people to live and to invest [in]" once the works were complete.