Winslow railway station

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Coordinates: 51°56′53″N 0°53′13″W / 51.948°N 0.887°W / 51.948; -0.887
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Not to be confused with Wilmslow railway station.
Winslow
National Rail
New railway station for Winslow under construction, June 2023
General information
LocationWinslow, Buckinghamshire
England
Coordinates51°56′53″N 0°53′13″W / 51.948°N 0.887°W / 51.948; -0.887 (new)
Grid reference
Platforms2
History
Original companyBuckinghamshire Railway
Pre-groupingLondon and North Western Railway
Post-groupingLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
London Midland Region of British Railways
Key dates
1 May 1850Opened
22 May 1967Closed to goods traffic
1 January 1968Closed to regular passengers
May 1993closed completely
Late 2025Planned reopening on a new site
Location
Map

Winslow railway station refers to either one of two

railway stations which historically served or is planned to serve, the town of Winslow in north Buckinghamshire, England. The original station (1850–1985) was on the former Varsity Line between Cambridge and Oxford. As of August 2023,[needs update] construction of a new station nears completion and is scheduled to be served by East West Rail, as part of the plan to reinstate the Oxford–Cambridge service.[1] In March 2025, Chiltern Railways announced that it had been appointed to operate passenger services on the EWR line between Oxford and Milton Keynes Central (via Oxford Parkway, Bicester Village, Winslow and Bletchley). Chiltern expects the service to become operational in late 2025.[2]

First station

Early days

Winslow was opened by the Buckinghamshire Railway on 1 May 1850[3][4] as part of its line from Banbury to Bletchley.[5][6][7] The line was worked from the outset by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) which absorbed the Buckinghamshire Railway in 1879.[6][5][8][9] The line was subsequently extended westwards to Islip, to a temporary station at Banbury Road and then to Oxford, opening throughout on 20 May 1851.[6][10][8][11][9] Winslow station was centrally situated at the end of Station Road which branches off from the High Street,[12] serving Winslow, which comprised 1,805 inhabitants at the time.[13][12] The coming of the railway had a significant impact on the village, resulting in its northward extension and the opening of a "Railway Inn".[14]

A 1911 Railway Clearing House map of railways in the vicinity of Winslow

Winslow was regarded as an important station on the line, for it was the place where westbound trains for the

goods yard was provided to the west.[24] Winslow Gasworks opened in 1880 on a site immediately to the south of the coal yard; it received up to 1000 tons of coal annually via the yard, although it was not rail-connected.[24][12] The station was lit by gas until the trains cease to call.[25]

A typical LNWR

signal box with 34 levers which controlled the section between Verney Junction and Bletchley No. 1 box.[12][27] Two water columns - the only ones between Bletchley and Oxford - supplied water to locomotives, these tanks taking their supply from a large 70,000 imperial gallons (320,000 litres) iron water tower which pumped water from a nearby brook.[12][25][7] The columns, which had been manufactured by Edward Bury, may have pre-dated the station itself.[19] Beneath the water tower was a brick engine house and boiler room which also served as accommodation for an LNWR engine driver.[12][14] Until 1907 there was a long refuge siding trailing off the Up main line behind the Up platform which allowed freight trains stopping to take water to allow a following passenger train to pass.[25][24][19] A second siding from the Up main line further to the west led to a turntable; this had been removed by 1925.[24] Three further sidings trailed from the Down line; two for coal and one serving a separate side end loading dock for horses.[19] A final siding served a milk dock at the rear of the Up platform.[19]

Closure

Winslow railway station in 1985

In the wake of the abandonment of a plan to develop the

marshalling yard near Swanbourne, Winslow station was listed for closure in the Beeching report[28] which called for the closure of all minor stations on the line.[29] This followed the introduction of diesel trains in an attempt to reduce operating costs after a failed proposal to close the line, which had been put forward in 1959 but successfully resisted by local authorities.[29][30] With the line's expenses amounting to £199,700 against a revenue of £102,200 in 1964,[29] Winslow duly closed to goods traffic on 22 May 1967[31] and to passengers on 1 January 1968;[3][4] the signal box followed one month later.[27] The delay in closure was the result of replacement bus services not being able to handle the projected extra traffic.[29][30] The line between Oxford and Bletchley was closed to passengers and local goods services,[29][32] and later singled in 1985.[33]

Winslow station continued to be used during the 1980s for "Chiltern Shopper" specials and

Waterloo to Bletchley via Winslow.[36] Winslow station site was later developed for housing,[37]
(Comerford Way and McLernon Way).

New station

Main article: East West Rail

A new station is being built for Winslow as part of the East West Rail project which is to re-establish the route between Oxford and Cambridge; the station is "scheduled for completion of testing and commissioning in 2024".[1][needs update]

The new station is located at the western outskirts of the town, at the junction of Buckingham Road (A413) with Horwood Road (B4033) at grid reference SP766283.[38] Groundworks began on the site in Summer 2021, with drainage improvements and reshaping of the cutting.[39]

When the line opens, Winslow will have direct trains to Oxford, Milton Keynes Central and Bedford.[40] The journey time from Winslow to Oxford is estimated at 27 minutes.[40]

Aylesbury connection

In March 2021, the East West Rail Company announced that its opening plans for East West Rail have changed, notably deferring indefinitely a connection to Aylesbury.[41]

Services

Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Verney Junction
Line and station closed 		  British Rail
Varsity Line 		  Swanbourne
Line and station closed
  Future services  
Bicester Village
towards Oxford 		  Chiltern Railways
Oxford–Milton Keynes Central (or Bedford) 		  Bletchley
towards Bedford or Milton Keynes Central
East West Rail
Legend
Didcot & Reading
Oxford
Cherwell Valley line
to Banbury
Oxford Parkway
Islip
Bicester Military Rly
Bicester Village
Western Section
Phase 1
Phase 2
Chiltern Mainline
HS2
to Euston
HS2 to
Birmingham
Interchange
Winslow
West Coast Main Line
to Euston
Bletchley Flyover
 Bletchley
Fenny Stratford
Milton Keynes Central
Bow Brickhill
West Coast Main Line
to Glasgow Central
Woburn Sands
Aspley Guise
Ridgmont
Not all stations
between Bletchley and
Bedford are expected
to be served by East
West Rail services[42]
Lidlington
Millbrook
Stewartby
Kempston Hardwick
Midland Main Line
to St Pancras
Bedford St Johns
Bedford
Western Section
Central Section
Sheffield
King's Cross
Edinburgh
Cambourne
Cambridge line
to Hitchin
Liverpool Street
Cambridge South[nb 1]
Cambridge
Central Section
Eastern Section
Dullingham
Cambridge North
Newmarket
Waterbeach
Ipswich–Ely line
(not to be used by EWR)
Kennett
Ely
Bury St Edmunds
Hereward Line
to Peterborough
Fen Line
to King's Lynn
Thurston
Shippea Hill
Lakenheath
Elmswell
Brandon
Thetford
Not all stations
between Cambridge
and Great Yarmouth
are expected to be
served by East
West Rail services[42]
Harling Road
Eccles Road
Attleborough
Spooner Row
Wymondham
Great Eastern Main Line
(not to be used by EWR)
Stowmarket
Needham Market
Norwich
East Suffolk line
to Felixstowe branch line
Bittern Line
Ipswich
Brundall Gardens
Mayflower line
to Harwich Town
Brundall
Manningtree
Great Eastern Main Line
Lingwood
Acle
Great Yarmouth
  1. ^ New station not directly linked to EWR scheme


References

  1. ^ a b Cuzner, Mark, ed. (August 2023). "EWR2 Project Newsletter – Summer 2023". East West Rail Alliance.
  2. ^ "Chiltern Railways selected as operator for the first stage of East West Rail - Oxford to Milton Keynes". www.chilternrailways.co.uk (Press release). Chiltern Railways. Retrieved 25 March 2025.
  3. ^ a b Butt (1995), p. 252.
  4. ^ a b c Quick (2009), p. 415.
  5. ^ a b Oppitz (2000), p. 53.
  6. ^ a b c Davies & Grant (1984), p. 102.
  7. ^ a b Maggs (2010), p. 97.
  8. ^ a b Leleux (1984), p. 39.
  9. ^ a b Awdry (1990), p. 63.
  10. ^ Oppitz (2000), p. 55.
  11. ^ Reed (1996), p. 46.
  12. ^ a b c d e f Simpson (1981), p. 106.
  13. ^ Leleux (1984), pp. 39–40.
  14. ^ a b Grigg (1980), p. 76.
  15. ^ Simpson (1981), pp. 18, 106.
  16. ^ Mitchell & Smith (2005), fig. 78.
  17. ^ Oppitz (2000), pp. 55–56.
  18. ^ Grigg (1980), pp. 75, 103.
  19. ^ a b c d e f Preston Hendry & Powell Hendry (1986), p. 175.
  20. ^ Maggs (2010), p. 100.
  21. ^ a b Simpson (1981), pp. 106, 108.
  22. ^ Mitchell & Smith (2005), figs. 77 and 81.
  23. ^ Preston Hendry & Powell Hendry (1986), p. 176.
  24. ^ a b c d Mitchell & Smith (2005), fig. XVI.
  25. ^ a b c Grigg (1980), p. 75.
  26. ^ Mitchell & Smith (2005), figs. XVI and 83.
  27. ^ a b Mitchell & Smith (2005), fig. 82.
  28. ^ Beeching (1963), p. 121.
  29. ^ a b c d e Leleux (1984), p. 28.
  30. ^ a b Grigg (1980), p. 152.
  31. ^ Clinker (1988), p. 149.
  32. ^ Davies & Grant (1984), pp. 102–103.
  33. ^ "Winslow History". 1 November 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  34. ^ Simpson (2000), pp. 10, 42.
  35. ^ Oppitz (2000), p. 56.
  36. ^
    RAIL
    (200): 6.
  37. ^ Mitchell & Smith (2005), fig. 80.
  38. ^ East West Rail (July 2010). "GRIP 4 Outline Business Case; Final Report" (PDF). Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  39. ^ Cuzner, Mark, ed. (January 2021). "EWR2 Project Newsletter – Winter 2020/2021". East West Rail Alliance.
  40. ^ a b East West Rail (November 2011). "East West Rail - Western Section Prospectus" (PDF). Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  41. ^ "Connect Stages". East West Rail Ltd. 2021.
  42. ^ a b "East West Rail Bedford to Cambridge Preferred Route Option Report" (PDF). East West Rail. 30 January 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 July 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2020.

Bibliography
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