A new cycle route link from Soham to Ely and an upgrade to the footway on the A142 Witcham Toll will be improved as part of £3 million funding for road safety.

More than £400,000 will be ploughed into the two schemes in East Cambridgeshire that were ranked of highest importance out of 150 across the county proposed for Integrated Transport Block (ITB) funding.

Only eight were chosen with a review of the 50mph speed limit on the A10 in Little Thetford also just missing out on a slice of the funding.

Sixteen schemes were proposed in East Cambridgeshire, including creating a new pedestrian route in Littleport, traffic calming measures in Swaffham Bulbeck and 20 mph zones in Ely city centre.

It forms a stark contrast to across the border in Fenland, where none of their projects were chosen despite 51 being put forward.

Highways bosses say work is on track for completion at “accident cluster site” Broad Street, Ely, after funding was approved over two years with £122,500 in 2018/19 and £127,500 in 2019/20.

The A142 Stuntney to Ely cycleway/footway - part of the wider scheme cycle route Soham to Ely (via Stuntney) is set to receive £175,000.

The report states: “This scheme scored high on the Delivery Case and has local support.”

An upgrade of the existing footway on the A142 Witcham Toll to Sutton will receive £250,000 and is set to “add value to the network”.

A point scoring system meant that areas were ranked for their “safety benefits”.

Twelve were ranked as having “localised positive impact” and one “no evidence” for improvement - being cyclist accessibility over the river on Lodes Way.

Graham Hughes, executive director of place and economy, wrote in the report: “Eligible schemes are assessed and prioritised. Integrated transport schemes either provide direct improvements to the local road network or look to encourage a shift to sustainable transport modes.

“Greater weighting is given to added road safety benefits.”

The ITB funding was reported to the highway and community infrastructure committee at Cambridgeshire County Council on December 3.

It comes as the combined authority is now responsible for local transport plan (LTP) and any associated funding, including ITB grants.

It will be discussed in full at the economy and environment committee this Thursday (January 10).