Monday 12 June marked six months since Chiltern Railways began running services between Oxford and London Marylebone and the completion of the first new rail link between a major British city and London in over 100 years.
This landmark achievement, undertaken in partnership with Network Rail, has significantly increased the transport options for Oxfordshire residents and provides easy commuting into London and to Oxford from the growing town of Bicester and from High Wycombe.
Results so far show that the line is encouraging residents to travel by rail. Since the Oxford to Marylebone route opened in December 2016, the rail market between Oxford station and London has grown by an impressive 18%. Chiltern’s passenger numbers between Oxford Parkway, Bicester Village station and London are also continuing to grow. Just over 18 months after launch, three million journeys have been made on the new line with over a million passengers travelling through Oxford Parkway. Bicester Village station, the gateway to one of the UK’s most popular destinations for overseas visitors, has seen two million passengers make journeys through the station. The number of overall visitors arriving by train at the shopping destination has soared from 3% to more than 10% since the opening of the new route.
Dave Penney, Managing Director of Chiltern Railways, said:
“It is six months since we launched services between Oxford city centre and London Marylebone; the new line is performing ahead of expectations and we are delighted with how it has been received. The route provides new options for those commuting into Oxford and real choice and flexibility for those travelling between Oxford and London delivering meaningful benefits for those living and working in the region.”
Sarah-Jane Curtis, Business Director of Bicester Village, said:
“Working in partnership with Chiltern means that we can continue to enhance the overall experience for our guests whilst reducing traffic on local roads. With one in ten travelling by train, this is now the preferred option for many of the visitors to Bicester Village.”