East West Rail's consultation is closed. 5,000 responses received. The DCO is next.

East West Rail's final public consultation closed at midnight on 9 June 2026. More than 5,000 feedback forms were submitted and over 3,100 people attended the 16 consultation events held between April and June, both in-person and online. The project now enters the Development Consent Order (DCO) process: the formal legal step required before any construction can begin on a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project. No further public consultations are planned before the application is submitted to the Planning Inspectorate in 2027.

What does the consultation closing mean in practice?

EWR Co described this as its final route-wide public engagement before the DCO. The 5,000-plus responses are now being reviewed alongside environmental and transport assessments. EWR Co has said it will publish a summary of the main themes in autumn 2026 once the review is complete.

That does not mean designs are fixed today. EWR Co can still refine proposals based on what the responses say, within the scope of what was consulted on. But the broad route alignment, station positions and key infrastructure choices are now settled. Huntingdonshire District Council was one of five host authorities in the central section, and the district had its formal opportunity to shape the final design during those eight weeks. That window is now closed.

What is a DCO and why does it matter for buyers in Huntingdon?

A Development Consent Order is the planning consent England requires before a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project can be built. EWR Co will submit its DCO application to the Planning Inspectorate (project TR040012), which examines the application over several months before making a recommendation to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State then decides whether to grant consent.

For property buyers, this matters because it changes the risk profile of the "future East West Rail benefit" argument. A project in consultation is one thing. A project with a submitted DCO application, or better still a granted one, carries demonstrably more certainty. The consultation closing with 5,000 responses and a confirmed DCO filing date is firmer ground than the project has stood on for some time.

When would trains run for Huntingdon commuters?

EWR Co has said the Oxford to Stewartby section could be operational by the early 2030s. The Bedford-Cambridge central section, which includes the stops relevant to Huntingdonshire, is expected in the mid-to-late 2030s. That timeline assumes the DCO application is submitted in 2027 as planned, consent is granted, and government funding commitments hold. As of June 2026, none of those are guaranteed, but each one is more concrete than it was before the consultation closed.

The EWR project has been paused, restarted and redesigned more than once in its history. Price in the mid-to-late 2030s as your planning baseline, not a more optimistic earlier figure.

Which parts of the patch are directly affected?

The Bedford-Cambridge route passes through eastern Huntingdonshire. Huntingdon already has a station on the CrossCountry and Thameslink network, and EWR trains are planned to call there, giving the town a direct link to both Cambridge and Bedford. For villages along the A14 corridor (Brampton, Godmanchester, Hartford, Houghton, Hemingford Abbots, Hemingford Grey, Hilton, Fenstanton and St Ives), the primary benefit is a faster, more frequent Cambridge service via Huntingdon as the hub.

Villages on the A1 and A428 south (Buckden, Perry, Grafham, Ellington) already benefit from the A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet upgrade, and a stronger Huntingdon rail hub improves their options too. The far west rural patch (Kimbolton, the upper Nene valley villages) is more distant from the route and would see secondary rather than direct benefit.

What should buyers and sellers do now?

If you are buying near the proposed route, factor the mid-to-late 2030s timeline into your pricing, not a speculative earlier date. Properties in Huntingdon with "future EWR connection" as part of the pitch are not unusual; make sure the price reflects today's market alongside tomorrow's infrastructure. Our free property valuation gives you a grounded starting point, and our instant valuation estimate is available online any time.

If you are selling in the Huntingdon area, the DCO direction of travel is now a legitimate part of the listing argument. Not a guarantee, but a meaningful qualifier for buyers who have Cambridge or Bedford on their radar as employers. For the full background on what changed in EWR's updated plans during the consultation period, our earlier East West Rail piece is still the best primer.

Sources: East West Rail Company, public consultation 2026 (14 April to 9 June 2026, eastwestrail.co.uk); Rail Business Daily, June 2026, reporting over 3,100 consultation event attendees and 5,000 responses; Huntingdonshire District Council, EWR consultation page; Planning Inspectorate, project reference TR040012.