Block of 425 flats will have 711 bicycle spaces and just 22 for cars in, you guessed it... Cambridge

A city criticised for repeatedly bowing to the cycling lobby with a series of ‘anti-car’ schemes has come under fire again after approving a 425-flat development with just 22 parking bays.Councillors signed off plans for the Cambridge site – which will have 711 bicycle parking spaces – on Wednesday.Members of Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council joint development committee gave the green light after hearing from Richard Thomas, of property development firm Blocwork, who said it would provide an ‘exceptional opportunity’ to travel by public transport, on foot or on two wheels.But the scheme has been blasted as being ‘divorced from reality’, with critics pointing out car ownership among occupants would have to be just 5 per cent for it to work.It follows outcries at previous schemes in the city, including a train station with no car parking spaces and a hugely complicated Dutch-style roundabout that has caused more accidents than the previous roundabout.The Cambridge North Residential Quarter site is a joint venture by firms including Network Rail, and developers said because it is near a train station less parking spaces were needed.Online opposition to the newly approved build-to-rent scheme included a comment from Sheila Potter, who wrote: ‘Absolute lunacy. The design again is dreadful.‘People do not want to live like this. They do not make proper communities. Said it before – ghettoes of tomorrow.’Diana Smith complained: ‘I had an excellent plumber who fitted a new boiler and told me if he ever gets asked to do a job by residents at Cambridge station for example, he says no immediately. Nowhere to park. Cambridge North Residential Quarter will have 425 dwellings but just 22 car parking spaces‘I had another excellent tradesman who said he doesn’t operate in Cambridge anymore at all.‘They are creating an ideology that simply doesn’t work in the real world.’Simon Ward pointed out: ‘This would be fine if all prospective tenants were asked two questions before renting – do you own [a car] or have visitors who will need a vehicle parking space? Or will you never need tradesmen or delivery by vehicle?’Referring to the comment about the scheme providing an ‘exceptional opportunity’ to use public transport, Rob Thomas wrote: ‘That’s akin to telling people that a famine is a chance to lose weight.’Other objectors included the parish council in the nearby village of Milton, which predicted residents at the development would park their cars on its streets.Parish councillor Jane Coston said: ‘We are looking at talking to the [district and city] councils to say “How can we stop them parking in the village? What are you going to do to help us deter them?”’Cambridge City Council is run by a minority Labour administration with tacit support from the Lib Dems, while South Cambridgeshire District Council has a Lib Dem majority.Richard Williams, a Conservative councillor on the district council, branded the scheme ‘bizarre’ and ‘shocking’. Plans which were approved by local councillors on Wednesday provide 711 spaces for residents to park bikes, with another 140 for visitors The bike spaces will be distributed throughout the site in secure locations under buildings and in a purpose-built ‘cycle pod’, shown in teal in the diagramHe said he had been unable to find any area in the UK where car ownership is low enough to suit Cambridge North Residential Quarter’s parking space ratio.The closest he could find was a 150-property development in Soho, central London, where 8 per cent of inhabitants were car owners. In Cambridge, roughly 50-60 per cent of the population are car owners.‘People involved in development in Cambridge are divorced from reality,’ Mr Williams told the Daily Mail.‘They think if they write in a planning document that there shouldn’t be cars, then there won’t be cars.‘Their argument that they’re going to be near a train station, so people won’t need cars is ridiculous. Cambridge North train station is not that well connected.’The project is a joint venture between Blocwork, Network Rail, residential landlord Grainger and Platform4 Rail Regeneration, which is Network Rail's property development company.With building work due to start next year and be completed by 2030, it will provide a mixture of one-, two- and three-bedroom rented apartments, with 118 classed as ‘affordable’. They will sit alongside parks, ground floor retail spaces, ‘pocket gardens’ and tree-lined streets. Richard Thomas, of property development firm Blocwork, said the scheme would provide an ‘exceptional opportunity’ to travel by public transport, on foot or on two wheelsThe 711 bike spaces, plus 140 for visitors, will be distributed throughout the site in secure locations under buildings and in a purpose-built ‘cycle pod’.The 22 bays for cars will be at the perimeter of the site, with six set aside for disabled use only. The developers have discussed setting up a residents’ car club.There is a proposal for a 600-space car park on the site but this would be for ‘commercial business users only’.The brownfield railway land allocated to the scheme is between Cambridge North railway station and Cambridgeshire Guided Busway.It is the latest phase of the Cambridge North Masterplan, which already includes a 217-room hotel and a commercial building which houses businesses including Samsung.Henry Batchelor, the Lib Dem district councillor in charge of planning, previously insisted it was a good use of the land as it is ‘one of the most accessible sites in Cambridge’.But he appeared to accept it would lead to vehicles being left in surrounding areas, saying: ‘Milton… isn’t the area that we’re hoping people will park the car. There are other options in the north Cambridge area.’He added that ‘if it’s legal’, there shouldn’t be a problem finding street parking nearby. Cambridge South station, which opened in June, has 1,000 spaces for bikes but no parking for carsEven dedicated cyclists remained dubious about the lack of space for cars, however.Mechanical engineer Nikki Thian, 29, who has a six-minute commute to work on a bicycle, said: ‘I could see it potentially working but not for that many homes.‘It seems a lot and where will visitors park?’Viktor Nordgren, 33, who also cycles to work in the city, added: ‘I’ve also lived in fairly remote areas of Scotland for ten years, including in villages in Fife, and got around by cycling and public transport.‘But when I travel with friends the car is more convenient and, if I have duties like carrying children around or the need to do a bigger shop, I can see there are benefits to car ownership.’Both councils and the firms involved in the development were all contacted for a comment.Cllr Batchelor said: 'This site is one of the most sustainable locations in Cambridge, with excellent access to rail services, bus routes, walking, and cycling infrastructure.'A Blocwork spokeswoman said: ‘This scheme has been designed for minimal car use, reflecting its location directly next to Cambridge North station and the guided busway which is in line with local and national planning policy that encourages active travel in well-connected locations. England's first 'cycle street' opened in the city earlier this year - before it emerged there had only been two collisions on the road in seven years and hugely inflated cycling use statistics had been used to justify the £2.4 million cost‘This is exactly the type of sustainable, station-led housing the Government wants to see more of, as reflected in this week's planning update.’Helen Gordon, chief executive of Grainger, said: ‘Cambridge North is exactly the sort of well-connected, high-demand location where our build-to-rent model can make a real difference.’The historic university city, regarded as the cycling capital of the UK, is convulsed by a heated debate over greener transport.Local officials and councillors champion ‘sustainable’ schemes – with opponents branding them ‘anti-car’.Previous schemes that have caused outcries include Cambridge South station, which opened in June and has 1,000 spaces for bikes but no parking for cars.Locals complained it would lead to ‘chaos’ as drivers dumped their cars outside their homes.The city also opened England’s first ‘cycle street’ earlier this year – but it then emerged there had only been two collisions in seven years and hugely inflated cycling use statistics had been used to justify the £2.4 million cost.The £2.3 million Dutch-style roundabout caused confusion for drivers and saw more accidents in the three years after it was built than the previous three years. Drivers have complained about the confusing design of the Dutch-style roundabout, hailed as the first of its kind in the UKThere was also an attempt to impose a costly congestion charge on vehicles but plans were eventually shelved in the face of furious opposition.Costs would have ranged from £5 per day for cars, up to £50 for HGVs.