Buses or Trees?

The proposed new transport link, between Cambridge and Cambourne, illustrates the type of environmental conundrum that can face planners. Cambourne is only 8 miles from Cambridge. It's increasingly serving, however, as a commuter location for the University town. There's clearly a need to create a low carbon link between Cambourne and its larger partner. The current plan is to provide optically-guided electric or hybrid buses to carry folk between the two locations. The route will, however, currently involve bisecting the ancient Coton Orchard. Coton Orchard contains around 1000 mature trees with 26 varieties of apples, along with pear and plum trees. The location is biologically very diverse and worthy of conservation. People responsible for the Coton Orchard say the place will be nonviable, if it is cut in two by the transport link (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/21/hundreds-trees-felled-cambridge-bus-route-tackle-climate-change). This is clearly a very difficult choice. It's very hard to think of a workable alternative, to losing these trees. Mitigation, by planting trees elsewhere, just wouldn't do it. It's presumed that alternative routes around or even over the orchard, have been carefully considered? It might be worth it, even if it makes the route longer.