Media centre

Monday 16 Aug 2021

Road closure for August bank holiday Bicester level crossing work

Region & Route:

North West & Central

| North West & Central: Central

People in Bicester are being advised of level crossing work this August bank holiday as part of the East West Rail project.

London Road level crossing will be upgraded so a newly built section of track can be connected to the main line rail network.

Once signalling is improved at the level crossing, 400 hundred metres of new railway line between Gavray Junction and Charbridge Lane can be brought into use for engineering trains.

These will carry construction materials to keep building the new rail link between Oxford and Cambridge, taking a significant amount of construction traffic off local roads.

The changes to the level crossing’s signalling system will also shorten barrier ‘down time’ meaning road users won’t need to wait as long when trains pass – reducing to around 26 seconds for passenger trains and 42 seconds for freight trains.

New pedestrian signals, similar to those used at road crossings, will be also installed to make it safer for people to cross on foot.

Mark Cuzner, East West Rail Alliance project director, said: “This marks a significant milestone in the delivery of connection stage one of East West Rail between Bicester and Bletchley. It allows engineering trains to deliver materials to site, thereby reducing the number of lorries on roads. This work also improves the time the barriers are down at the crossing therefore traffic and pedestrians will be waiting for less time and also installs new signals similar to those used at road crossings making it easier for pedestrians to safely cross.”

Simon Blanchflower CBE, chief executive at the East West Railway Company, said: “This is an important moment for the East West Rail project that highlights the solid progress that is being made to develop a railway that will bring huge benefits and improve connectivity for people who live and work across the Oxford-Cambridge Arc.

“This latest development means that the local community in Bicester will experience an improvement in their day to day use of the level crossing as well as a reduction in HGV lorries on their roads. All of this paves the way for us to continue building a safe and secure railway that is better for the customer and better for the environment.”

For the improvements to take place London Road will need to be closed to traffic from 10pm on Saturday 28 August until 4.15am on Tuesday 31 August.

Road diversions for traffic will be in place.

Traffic marshals will be there in person so pedestrians can still safely cross the railway.

People are urged to plan their journey in advance at www.nationalrail.co.uk

For details of other essential railway improvements this August bank holiday visit: www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/look-before-you-book-august-bank-holiday-travel-advice