Light Rail with the Isaac Newton Line would provide a vital service to commuters in satellite towns such as Cambourne, Northstowe, Bar Hill, and Girton, etc in the northwest of Cambridge, and such as Sawston, the Shelfords, and Babraham in the south. The Isaac Newton Line would also provide a vital connection to Addenbrookes, better linking a large proportion of the Cambridgeshire population to the hospital.
Cambridge Light Rail is expected to offer major economic, social and environmental benefits to residents. In practical terms, some examples of direct benefits to residents are:
- Faster, more reliable and more convenient journey times to work, for shopping, for health visits including to GPs and the hospital, for social activities and leisure;
- Reduces vehicle pressure in the inner City and at Cambridge Rail Station;
- Reduces the number of buses and coaches in the City core, thereby improving safety for cyclists and pedestrians (around 60% of vehicle accidents in Cambridge involve a cyclist), including improving opportunities for more pedestrianisation;
- Potentially enables easier access for the elderly and disabled to the City centre and to Addenbrookes, which are increasingly important considerations as people in the UK are living longer;
- Improvements to inner city environmental quality, including air quality and amenity space, by placing some transport infrastructure underground.
