A railway watchdog has welcomed the inclusion of plans for a second Oxford to London Rail link in the Government's Strategic Rail Plan.

A £250m proposal to link Oxford with the capital's Marylebone station is one of the most ambitious schemes listed in the Strategic Rail Authority's report, setting out priorities over the next decade.

The scheme, drawn up by Chiltern Railways, which currently operates services from London to Bicester and Banbury, would see the re-instatement of the 18-mile line between Oxford and Princes Risborough, which was closed in the 1960s. There would be stations at Thame and near the Wheatley junction of the M40, and possibly in south Oxford, where the route would join the existing branch line to BMW's Cowley car factory.

David Over, of the Rail Users' Consultative Committee (Western England), said: "Providing an alternative route from Oxford to London would be welcome.

"The problem about the SRA report as a whole is that it envisages total spending of £60bn over ten years, with the Government putting in half and the rest expected to come from the private sector.

"Anyone who has looked at the experience of Railtrack will know there lies the big question. Just how much funding can be obtained from the private sector?"

Mr Over said the committee was also pleased to see the strategic plan included proposals to re-open the line from Oxford to Bletchley and Milton Keynes.

A more ambitious version of the scheme, that would have seen Oxford linked to Cambridge, via Bedford, has been shelved for the time being.

A spokesman for Chiltern Railways said more details of its proposals would be announced once its new franchise agreement had been finalised.