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New Oxford-London services begin, which compete with GWML services

Chiltern Railways has launched its new Oxford-London services today (26 October) following nearly 20 months of construction.

The launch, attended by prime minister David Cameron and Sir Peter Hendy (pictured below), formally opened the new rail link as part of a £320m investment by the operator and Network Rail to create the first new link between Oxfordshire and London in over a century.

It serves new stations at Oxford Parkway and Bicester Village, both of which officially opened today as part of the programme.

The Bicester Village station will create a direct 46-minute connection to the shopping destination from the capital for the first time.

The new service also offers Oxford passengers an alternative to travelling into London via Reading and the Great Western Main Line.

The operator hopes to attract an extra 250,000 return commuter journeys each year. Network Rail described this as a “rare example of new direct competition on Britain’s railways”.

And Oxford Parkway, which sits on the outskirts of Oxford, was explicitly designed to attract motorists in an effort to take cars off the road. It is immediately adjacent to the congested A34, close to the A40 and A44 trunk roads, and boasts a 1,500-space car parking onsite.

Rob Brighouse, the TOC’s managing director, said: “This is a historic day. Our significant and unique investment will be economically advantageous for the regional economy, creating competition in the rail market between Oxford and London, as well as delivering the first new service between a major British city and London for over 100 years.”

As well as increasing competition, the new service will also offer two new fast trains per hour throughout the day between Oxford Parkway and Bicester Village station to London, with journey times coming short of an hour.

The programme saw a share of £130m from Chiltern while Network Rail topped up the remaining £190m to finish off the new line and stations.

Mark Carne, Network Rail boss, said: “By working closely with Chiltern Railways on this part of our railway upgrade plan, we have been able to deliver precisely what its customers want – a much-needed new transport option for Oxford-based business and leisure travellers to London. It will also help provide the capacity needed as rail travel is forecast to double over the next two decades.”

Under the agreement, Network Rail will provide the capital for the upgrade and recover this through a facility charge over the next 30 years, payable by the existing Chiltern franchise and subsequent franchisees.

And to finish off the string of upgrades, Chiltern is also upgrading their free wi-fi to 4G, following on from its pioneering 2011 move when it first introduced free internet connection.

(Top image: Martin Frobisher, from Network Rail, and Rob Brighouse open Oxford Parkway station)