New access road to Banbury railway station ‘should reduce traffic at Bridge Street junction'

The county council hopes that opening up Tramway Road as an extra access road will also alleviate the build-up of traffic in the town centre.

Plans are underway to start the construction of the road by this autumn, for it to be opened to the public in September 2025.

Currently, bollards prevent drivers from getting to the station via Tramway Road, making the Bridge Street junction the only access route.

However, these will be removed, and a junction will be placed connecting Tramway Road with Station Approach Road and the station’s west car park.

The opening of the road should enable vehicles travelling from the south of Banbury to drive to the station’s west car park and use the pick-up and drop-off facilities while avoiding the busy Bridge Street junction.

A spokesperson for Oxfordshire County Council said: “This new route should make it easier for pedestrians, cyclists, buses, and taxis to reach the station. Traffic should also be reduced at the Bridge Street junction, currently the only route to the station.

“Tramway Road will benefit from a new footway, cycleway, and bus stops. We also plan to build a new route to the west station car park and improve car parking and drop-off options.

“Subject to the approval of our council cabinet, we hope to begin construction this autumn and finish in September 2025.”

Banbury and Deddington county councillors Kieron Mallon, Eddie Reeves and Arash Fatemians campaigned to open the road with the aim of keeping the town centre traffic flowing and improving the station’s accessibility for their constituents.

Cllr Kieron Mallon said: “As the three county Cllrs who represent residents in south Banbury and villages in the south and the west, we wanted to improve the access to the station for our constituents, whilst at the same time taking the pressure off the Bridge St Junction.

"Our wish is to keep Banbury moving and ease bottlenecks such as the Bridge St. crossroad and Station Approach.“