A “DIABOLICAL” cycle path will be replaced as a first step towards improving cycling conditions on a major route into Royston.

The path, along the A10, will be upgraded as part of the Cycle Links to Foxton Station project, which received £300,000 Department of Transport funding earlier this year.

Campaign group the A10 Corridor Cycling Campaign were instrumental in helping Cambridgeshire County Council secure the grant, and at the group’s AGM last week, members decided the path should be the first thing to be tackled.

Melbourn’s county councillor Susan van de Ven said: “It was agreed unanimously that this funding should be deployed toward a high quality off-road path between Shepreth Frog End junction and Foxton Bottom, on the basis that the existing path is in a diabolical state. The new path will be of a 2.5 metre-wide standard, a design that will accommodate both cyclists and pedestrians.

“The campaign views project this as a ‘Step One’ in tackling improvements to cycling infrastructure along the A10. We know we must approach the overall task on a section by section basis, as that is the only realistic way of accessing necessary funding.”

The meeting, held at Foxton Village Hall on Tuesday evening, heard from Patrick Joyce, Cambridgeshire County Council Cycling Officer, who updated members on the progress of the Foxton station project, as well as other improvements being made to the cycle network.

The County Council says it will clear back vegetation and overgrowth on the existing path between Foxton and Harston, which was built to a good standard but has not been properly maintained in recent years.

The campaign will hold its next meeting in Royston, providing the opportunity to bring together both Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire officers and representatives. The date and venue for this meeting have yet to be confirmed. Though formed in South Cambs, the campaign has a Royston sub-group for cyclists from the town who use the A10.

For more information on getting involved, visit www.a10corridorcyle.com.