[10] The business case identified a site on the West Anglia Main Line, approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) to the north of Cambridge station, which is owned by Network Rail and partly leased to English, Welsh and Scottish Railway as stabling sidings.

[19][20] By this time, the cost of a new station had risen to £24m, of which £21m had been expected to be provided through government funding, and Cambridgeshire County Council began seeking alternative options.

[21] The Council eventually settled on an approach whereby it would provide the initial capital funding and recoup the cost over a period of time from access charges paid by train operating companies.

[24] In February 2012, Theresa Villiers sent a letter of support to Cambridgeshire County Council indicating that so long as the station's business case remained positive, it would be included in the timetable for the reletting of the East Anglia franchise covering the Fen Line.

[27] The Council released details of a proposed service pattern comprising four off-peak Up and Down trains per hour and indicated that the planning process would begin in 2013.

[36] Numerous suggestions were put forward for the official name, including "Stephen Hawking Cambridge Science Park" which was supported by Julian Huppert and Daniel Zeichner.

[38][39] On 11 March 2015, councillors at Cambridgeshire County Council voted to recommend to Network Rail that the station should be called Cambridge North.

[40] By contrast, St John's Innovation Centre was closer and landowners, including the Crown Estate, had been lobbying to have the station named "The Business Park".

The cladding of the building features a pierced design derived from Rule 30,[48] a cellular automaton introduced by Stephen Wolfram in 1983.On 23rd December 2021, the Abbey-Chesterton Bridge over the River Cam opened, providing cycle and pedestrian access to the station from the Abbey district of Cambridge and from Fen Ditton.

[49] The bridge provides pedestrian access to the Abbey Stadium, Cambridge United Football Club's home ground, approximately 1.5km (1 mile) away.

The station is also served by a single peak hour service between London Liverpool Street and King's Lynn, operated by Greater Anglia.