Oxford–Bicester line
| Oxford–Bicester line | |||
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| Operating speed | 100 mph (160 km/h) | ||
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The Oxford–Bicester line is a
History
Opening and original operation
The line was opened in 1850 as part of the
20th-century closure and reopening
In 1967
Since 2005, an enhanced service including Sunday services has run during the weeks before Christmas, mainly for the
In May 2009, a partnership between
Evergreen 3
In August 2008
Work on Evergreen 3 commenced with the closing of the line in February 2014. The works included complete reconstruction of the line to modern standards, with new track, signalling and bridges, and the infrastructure improvements ready for 'East West Rail' services (see below). The line was double tracked from Oxford North Junction to Bicester South Junction, upgraded for 100 mph (160 km/h) operation and prepared for electrification. Between Oxford station and Oxford North Junction the line uses the former 'Jericho' line, bi-directionally. A new 1 km chord has also been built at Bicester (from Bicester Gavray Junction, linking with the Chiltern main line at Bicester South Junction) and 37 level crossings have been eliminated.
Chiltern Railways commenced driver training on the upgraded line in September 2015, and the line between the new Oxford Parkway and Bicester Village stations reopened on 26 October 2015,[4] with two trains per hour running between London Marylebone and Oxford Parkway. It was originally planned these would be extended to Oxford in March 2016,[5] but services to Oxford started on 11 December 2016.[6][7] Planning permission for the work at Oxford Station allowing the new platforms to be constructed was given on 1 December 2015.[8]
Current services
Chiltern Railways reopened the line between the new Oxford Parkway station and Bicester on 26 October 2015.[4] The timetable for December 2015 to May 2016 has two trains per hour between Oxford Parkway and London Marylebone, all of which stop at Bicester Village but only a few at Islip.[9] The fastest trains are scheduled to take just under an hour for the whole journey.[9] Services along the full lengths of the line from Oxford started on 11 December 2016.[6] (The service received its ceremonial opening on the following day.)[7] Chiltern Railways originally proposed that the journey from Oxford to London Marylebone would take 66 minutes.[10]
Future
In addition to allowing new services between Oxford and London via the Chiltern route, the Evergreen 3 project formed the first phase of the "East West Rail" project that is to see a new 100 mph (160 km/h) service linking Oxford with
References
- ^ a b "Chancellor accepts East West Rail targets and strengthens plans with extra cash". www.railtechnologymagazine.com.
- ^ a b "Transport Secretary officially launches East West Railway Company at Bletchley Park". East West Main Line Partnership. 14 December 2017. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ New rail link is capital idea Oxford Mail
- ^ a b Chiltern Railway's restores direct trains from High Wycombe to Oxford Chiltern Railways (Press Release)
- ^ "Chiltern starts driver training on Oxford link". International Railway Journal. 29 September 2015.
- ^ a b "Chiltern Railways Timetable from 11th December" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 December 2016.
- ^ a b "Chiltern Oxford Launch". Chiltern Railways News. Chiltern Railways. Archived from the original on 16 May 2016. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
- ^ "Oxford Station planning permission" (PDF). City Development: Planning Control. Oxford City Council. Retrieved 8 January 2016.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b Winter and Spring train times (pdf) – Chilterns Railways, December 2015
- ^ "Evergreen 3 Journey Times". Chiltern Evergreen3 -FAQs. Chiltern Railways. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
- ^ MK rail link plan on track The Oxford Times
- ^ East West Rail could be running by 2017 Accessed 14 December 2011
External links
- East West Rail project
- Chiltern Railways Evergreen 3 Project
- Oxford to Bicester Rail Action Group website
- Oxford to Bicester, Banbury and Worcester, Description of line
