How East West Rail would benefit Winslow
East West Rail would make it easier to connect to other parts of the UK and get around the local area, bringing friends, family and culture even closer. The railway would also make it easier to access public services and enjoy days out, employment and entertainment in nearby Oxford and beyond – without relying on cars.
EWR would be a new, environmentally sustainable way to travel across the region and we’re committed to protecting the area’s much-loved natural environment and wildlife.
East West Rail’s new station in Winslow would provide easy access to train travel across the region, as well as reducing reliance on cars and easing congestion on local roads with faster connections to Oxford and Milton Keynes.
We’re investing in Winslow to provide a new railway station, easing pressure on local roads and improving the area around the station. We’re also committed to protecting the area’s much-loved natural environment and wildlife, with greener for the environment one of our key priorities.
East West Rail would connect to most of the north-south main lines making it easier to get to the rest of the UK from Winslow bringing family, friends and days out closer. With more options and shorter journey times, EWR would bring Winslow residents closer to the nation’s most-loved destinations and cultural hotspots.
Easy interchange with other train lines will also provide better connections to UK airports such as Luton, Stansted and Birmingham, making overseas destinations more accessible.
EWR would provide new direct connections to Milton Keynes, Bedford and Cambridge, as well as twice as many trains to Oxford. Better connections would mean access to more jobs and opportunities at all levels.
With improved connections across the region and beyond, EWR would make it easier and faster to see family, friends and loved ones.
With easy, fast and affordable travel that’s better for the environment, Oxford’s many museums, theatres, restaurants and galleries would be just a short journey away.
What work is required in this area?
- Constructing and restoring structures, including a new station at Winslow, new high-level platforms at Bletchley station, refurbishments, reconstruction and general repairs to existing infrastructure. This includes refurbishment of the Bletchley Flyover.
- Making railway crossings safer by replacing structures and diverting or closing highway, foot and field crossings.
- Upgrading track, including doubling track and upgrading infrastructure from Bicester to Bletchley.
- Installing new and upgraded signalling and cabling.
- Clearing overgrown vegetation, including removing overgrown vegetation predominantly along the railway corridor.
East West Rail Alliance engineers have almost completed work constructing the section of East West Rail from Bicester to Bletchley and we expect customer services to start operating at the end of 2025. The work in this area includes:
A new and accessible train station is almost complete for Winslow, complete with car park and facilities, with over a five-million-pound investment in the site.
Meet your community engagement team
Here at EWR Co, we’re passionate about hearing what local representatives and their communities think about East West Rail. It means we can work together as we build a successful project that will deliver shorter journey times, lower transport costs and ease pressure on local roads while bringing people closer to the things that matter most – jobs, friends and family.
Meet your Community Engagement Manager, Gail Buckland and your Local Representatives Groups Engagement Manager, Sarah Jacobs.
We’ve set up 15 Local Representatives Groups in areas along the EWR route. Head over to our community hub where you can find out more, including details of our events.
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Update following General Election
24.05.24
Update following government announcement
We're delivering EWR over several stages. This includes:
- Upgrading an existing section of railway between Oxford and Bicester
- Bringing back a section of railway between Bicester and Bletchley
- Refurbishing existing railway between Bletchley and Bedford
- Building brand new railway infrastructure between Bedford and Cambridge
East West Rail trains are expected to start running between Oxford and Bletchley/Milton Keynes in 2025, with services extending across the route in the coming years – following planning approvals and construction of the new railway.
What’s next?
We expect trains to start running on this section of the railway to Bletchley/Milton Keynes in 2025. To build and operate a railway which would extend services from Oxford to beyond Bletchley/Milton Keynes, we need to apply for a Development Consent Order (DCO) and as part of this are required to carry out a statutory consultation.
