London Road underpass victory for MP and campaigners

The East West Rail Company (EWR Co) has confirmed that a single-lane motorised underpass is now the preferred and only option for replacing Bicester’s London Road level crossing.

This is a major milestone for residents, businesses and campaigners who have fought for years to keep Bicester connected.

MP Calum Miller, who delivered a petition with more than 4,500 signatures to the House of Commons last year, called the decision “a genuine victory for Bicester.”

He said: “In 2021, EWR consulted on closing the crossing altogether. In 2024, they consulted only on non-motorised options. Today, an underpass is their preferred solution.

“That shift has not happened by accident. It has happened because local people organised, spoke up and kept making the case that Bicester deserved better, and I am proud to have worked alongside them every step of the way.”

CGI images of single-lane motorised underpass, which is the preferred option for Bicester’s London Road level crossing (Image: East West Rail Company)

The announcement was made as part of the rail company’s latest consultation which will run until Tuesday, June 9, offering communities along the route an opportunity to have their say.

A Development Consent Order application for government backing, which will be submitted next year, will include the final design, business case and cost estimates.

Campaigner Carole Heatherington, chair of the Langford Village Community Association, said she is relieved that a motorised underpass is the only long-term solution.

She said: “We have campaigned for so long to get to this point, well done Bicester. We now just need confirmation from the government and EWR that the funding package is finalised, which I’m sure won’t be long.”

L-R: Rob Haxton (Vice Chair, Graven Hill Residents Association), Dawn Seward (Ambrosden Parish Council Chair), Calum Miller MP, Carole Heatherington (Chair, Langford Village Community Association) and Pete Turner (Bicester BUG). (Image: Contributed)

The design includes a single-lane road that could be used by vehicles, alongside a protected active travel corridor for pedestrians and cyclists.

By aligning with Bicester’s wider connectivity plans, this solution is expected to cut delays and congestion caused by barrier closures, make journeys safer and improving the reliability of bus and emergency vehicles.

There will also be a height restriction on the underpass and a diversionary route for HGVs will be put in place.

Further travel modelling and wider environmental assessments are now underway to refine the details of the junction improvement proposal.

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A new active travel hub to the south of Bicester Village station is proposed. It will include cycle parking, an enhanced bus stop and a private car pick-up and drop-off area.

A sloped embankment along one side of the underpass approach ramps will create a more open and lighter underpass, retain public space and walkways and provide a direct walkway from the station towards Langford.

Hybrid electric/battery-equipped trains are planned to operate along the railway, including between Oxford Parkway and Bicester Village.

CGI images of single-lane motorised underpass, which is the preferred option for Bicester’s London Road level crossing (Image: East West Rail Company)

Paul Troop, chair of Bicester Bike Users’ Group said he welcomes the belated recognition for active travel and public transport users who depend on the crossing.

However, he said the company “should commit to funding the underpass out of its own core budget rather than relying on the whim of others.”

While the design vindicates relentless campaigns to keep the underpass to maintain proper connectivity through the town, it remains subject to third-party funding.

East West Rail and Oxfordshire County Council is working closely with the Government’s Department of Transport to develop a funding package but no agreement has been reached yet.

Mr Miller added that funding “needs to be resolved quickly”. He said: “The clearer and louder local voices are in the weeks ahead, the harder it will be for anyone to wobble. Bicester has made itself heard once. Now we need to do it again and finish the job.”

David Hughes, CEO of EWR Co, said that out of six different options they are hoping to go with the “more expensive but much better option”.

He said: “Over the last five years we’ve consulted on at least six different options about what the best solution is but what has always been clear is the severance of closing that level crossing on the local community.

“We have heard loud and clear that the community wanted to maintain vehicle access and the only way to do that is through this option which I think has been really positively received.”