In the 1962 the remaining portions of the Banbury and Cheltenham Direct Railway open to passengers closed down.
This project looks at transport links between Cheltenham and Oxford and how they could be improved, specifically whether the Cheltenham to Kingham portion of the route could become a viable rail reinstatement project.
East West Rail is the project to reopen the railway between Oxford and Cambridge which closed in 1968.
The consortium behind the project has existed since 1995 when it was set up by Ipswich Borough Council.
The first attempt at persuading the then Strategic Railway Authority to back reinstatement of the service from Oxford as far as Bletchley failed in 2001.
In 2012 the project gained UK government backing.
East West Rail is being delivered in phases with upgrading the rundown but extant Oxford to Bedford section prioritised.
The first phase built by Chiltern Railway's by 2016 between Oxford and Bicester to allow a through Oxford - Bicester - Chilterns - London service is complete.
The second phase between Bicester and Bletchley (Milton Keynes) is being built along the site of a freight only line parts of which had been disused since 1993.
It will allow through Oxford to Milton Keynes trains.
Upgrading the rundown but open Bletchley to Bedford line is being planned to extend line from Oxford to Bedford.
A route for the removed line from Bedford to Cambridge was announced in May 2023.
Currently the only routes available to travellers between Cheltenham and Oxford are a circuitous rail journey via Didcot costing £41.50 return (at 2020 prices) or a two hourly bus seven times per day (Stagecoach S2) or a Cheltenham to Moreton in Marsh bus -> rail link with long waits at Moreton.
Could the Stagecoach bus Cheltenham to Oxford improve to hourly?
Could the Pullhams bus from Cheltenham to Moreton in Marsh improve to hourly with better connections at Moreton?
Could a through Cheltenham to kingham Oxford line ever become viable?
A restored railway between Cheltenham and Kingham and with services on to Oxford would cut journey times from Cheltenham to Oxford railway station and allow the many inhabitant's of Gloucester, Cheltenham, Andoversford, Bourton - on - the - Water and Stow - on - the - Wold to access East West Rail and the Oxford - Chilterns - London railway with ease.
A more direct service from Cheltenham to London would also be created and journey times would be cut.
In 2013 Mr. Will Windsor Clive the then responsible Cabinet member at Gloucestershire County Council, rejected restoring the former railway entirely along the former railway line closed to passengers in October 1962 on the basis of its huge cost and impact on the town of Cheltenham.
He also pointed out that the Cheltenham to Kingham railway would not provide faster services to and from London.
Earlier in 2012 Mr. Adrian Saunders the then Rail Development Officer for Oxfordshire County Council had raised serious concerns raised that the railway entirely along the former railway line closed in 1962 would cost hundreds of millions of pounds, works be hugely disruptive and far out-weigh the benefits.
These concerns were the basis for designing the proposal for a DEVIATED railway line avoiding areas of line that had been redeveloped in Cheltenham, Bourton - on - the - Water and so on.
Over the 24 mile route of the existing disused railway line most of the rail bed is intact and used as a path (cia 18 miles) but six miles of the original formation has been re-developed.
So Deviations are needed South of Cheltenham and West of Bourton-on-the-Water (beside Fosse Way & industrial area) and at Notgrove and Stow - on - the - Wold station sites and at Chadwick Lakes leisure complex near Kingham.
Deviation South / Cheltenham requires the railway to diverge from main line at a new junction at Badgeworth, cross the A46 near Shurdington, a long tunnel from East of Crippetts lane beneath Leckhampton Hill to West of Cirencester Road behind C and G building and deviation to South of houses at Little Herberts, before rejoining the railway formation East of Little Herberts area of Cheltenham.
The viaduct at Dowdeswell has been demolished so a new structure will be required.
Sandywell Tunnel nearby requires examination and extensive works are needed to cross Sandywell Park.
At Andoversford would approach Station Road running to South of houses at Pine Holt (built on station site) and cross Station Road via a staggered bridge to the embankment beyond.
The old railway embankments between Station Road and Old Gloucester Road to South of Andoversford bypass are intact and would be graded to meet the railway at Station Road.
At Notgrove, Stow-on-the-Wold and Chadwick Lakes the new railway would run beside old formation.
New bridges would be required to carry nearby roads across the railway at Notgrove and Stow-on-the-Wold.
At Bourton-on-the-Water Deviation to West of A429 Fosse Way & North of the nearby industrial area would be needed.
The new railway proposals will obviously strengthen the case for a double track railway to reinstated between Kingham and Ascott under Wychward and Charlbury and Wolvercote Junction.
Details of the proposed restored railway between Cheltenham and Kingham can be found at this page.
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