Extinction Rebellion (XR) protesters blocked a busy junction on Chesterton Road during rush hour yesterday afternoon in their latest bid to raise awareness of Cambridge’s reliance on fossil fuels.

The non-violent protest took place between 5:45pm and 7pm. XR members staged several short roadblocks and handed out leaflets to motorists inside their cars.

The blockade marks the latest action in preparation for their ‘Rebel for Justice’ campaign, which will “bring the city to a halt with a week-long roadblock” starting on 16th February, if their three demands are not met by the Cambridge institutions.

XR have urged the University of Cambridge to cut ties with the fossil fuel industry and the Cambridge City Council to hold a Citizens’ Assembly on Climate Justice. They have further called Cambridgeshire County Council to “provide a plan for a just transition away from an inadequate transport reliant on fossil fuels”, a demand echoed in the roadblock yesterday.

Marcus, an XR member at the forefront of yesterday’s protest, said its objective was to make people conscious of “how much this city depends on fossil fuel-based transport architecture.”

“The County Council has done very little to put in place proper public transport and schemes to allow everyone to access it. People who can’t afford to live in the city centre … are forced to drive in and out”.

Yesterday’s protest was more peaceful than the XR occupation of a BP petrol station last week, which saw cars attempting to drive into the protestors.

Police arrived at around 6:40 pm to maintain order, but there were no clashes between protesters and the motorists.

Mary Laven, a History lecturer at the University of Cambridge, was in charge of handing out leaflets and apologise to held-up motorists. She told Varsity the disruption was a necessity, given the “climate and ecological emergency”.

She said there was “lots of support this evening” from drivers, and argued they mostly agreed “the government isn’t doing enough, [and] that corporate businesses are too invested in fossil fuels and other polluting industries.”

However, some of those affected by the protest raised doubts over XR’s methods.

“I don’t think the cause is bad, obviously, but ... people are trying to get home and they’ve not done anything wrong. I think there needs to be a better way of doing it,” said Jack, an Anglia Ruskin University student who was on his way home.

Both Marcus and Mary highlighted the urgency for the University to divest from the fossil fuel industry.

Marcus criticised the University for attempting to “greenwash” through the recent Cambridge Zero initiative, which has previously provoked controversy and criticism for promoting carbon capture methods.

“The University seems to think it’s doing enough already, however, it has a BP institute ... and Schlumberger is hosted on one of their campuses. They have hundreds of millions of pounds invested in fossil fuels, so I don’t think they are doing enough,” he said.

As a staff member at the University, Mary stresses “we have intellectual capital and that put us in a very good position to lead this campaign”.

A University spokesperson has previously told Varsity “only 5% of the University’s indirect investments are in the energy sector”, which includes some fossil fuel companies, and emphasised the positive role of the Cambridge Zero initiative.

Marcus said the County Council has not reached out yet, but the City Council is in the process of talking to XR.