A drop-in event is being held for residents to give their views on the plans to reopen the Cowley Branch line.

Two new stations, "Oxford Littlemore" near the Oxford Science Park, and "Oxford Cowley" near ARC Oxford, will be developed if the plans go ahead.

Under current proposals, the railway line will run through the Oxford Science Park and Oxford Business Park, connecting to the existing Oxford Parkway and Oxford Station, and will offer routes to Bicester and London among other destinations.

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The planning assumption is for two trains per hour via Oxford Station through to London Marylebone Station. 

Currently, the line caters exclusively to freight services to BMW’s Cowley manufacturing plant.

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There will be a drop-in event between 4pm and 6pm at the Jungle Art Gallery, Templars Square shopping centre, Cowley on Wednesday, July 10.

Organisers would like to hear the public’s views on the proposed passenger train services from the proposed stations at Littlemore and Cowley to Oxford city centre.

A statement on Oxford City Council’s website said: “The new rail stations would connect significant employment sites and residential areas to the city centre in less than 10 minutes, with the possibility of direct connections to Oxford Parkway, Bicester and beyond.

“This would help to improve the public transport options for journeys into and around the City, increasing overall capacity locally, reducing congestion on our roads and contributing to a better rail network in Oxfordshire and the wider region.

“Network Rail estimates that more than 1,000,000 journeys per year would be made using the new stations after only three years of operation.

“In addition to transforming journeys, reopening the Cowley Branch Line to passengers would support the sustainable development of new homes and commercial employment spaces already proposed near the stations.”

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A local funding mix has been brought together to develop the Full Business Case (FBC) for this project, including funding from ARC Oxford, The Oxford Science Park, Ellison Institute of Technology, Oxfordshire County Council and Oxford City Council.

However, the delivery phase is still to be funded and there is a need for “significant investment” for the scheme to be delivered in the coming years.

In April 2023, the city council instructed Network Rail to start work on the FBC to produce cost estimates based on outline designs for the rail infrastructure.

A £498,799 contract was awarded to SLC Rail in December 2023 to develop plans for walking, cycling and public transport connections to the stations from the surrounding areas.

Concept design work on a potential pedestrian and cycle bridge linking Blackbird Leys and Oxford Retail Park started in late 2023.

Design work for the bridge is progressing at the same time as station design.