Kidlington Railway Station

Kidlington railway station opened in 1852 on the Oxford and Rugby Railway to serve the adjacent Oxfordshire village of Kidlington, and act as a railhead for the town of Woodstock, 2. 5mi away. It became a junction station in 1890 upon the opening of the Blenheim and Woodstock Branch Line, and served the area for over 100 years before falling victim to the programme of closures initiated by the Beeching Report in 1964. Following many proposals for its reopening, a new station to serve Kidlington opened in October 2015 at on the Oxford to Bicester Line. HistoryOpeningAlthough the Oxford and Rugby Railway opened in 1850, it was a further two years before the Brunelian station building was completed. Originally named Woodstock Road, the station was inconveniently-sited at the northern end of Kidlington, around 20 minutes walk from the village centre. The station, a conventional two-platform stopping place with modest goods facilities, defied the railway convention that station buildings were usually sited on the platform nearest the settlement that they were purporting to serve. In this case, Kidlington village was to the east, whereas the station buildings were constructed on the western side, leaving the station effectively back-to-front. This can apparently be explained by the fact that the station was opened to serve Woodstock and not Kidlington, then a small village of around 2, 400 inhabitants clustered around a church located over 1mi away from the station.

Kidlington railway station opened in 1852 on the Oxford and Rugby Railway to serve the adjacent Oxfordshire village of Kidlington, and act as a railhead for the town of Woodstock, 2. 5mi away. It became a junction station in 1890 upon the opening of the Blenheim and Woodstock Branch Line, and served the area for over 100 years before falling victim to the programme of closures initiated by the Beeching Report in 1964. Following many proposals for its reopening, a new station to serve Kidlington opened in October 2015 at on the Oxford to Bicester Line. HistoryOpeningAlthough the Oxford and Rugby Railway opened in 1850, it was a further two years before the Brunelian station building was completed. Originally named Woodstock Road, the station was inconveniently-sited at the northern end of Kidlington, around 20 minutes walk from the village centre. The station, a conventional two-platform stopping place with modest goods facilities, defied the railway convention that station buildings were usually sited on the platform nearest the settlement that they were purporting to serve. In this case, Kidlington village was to the east, whereas the station buildings were constructed on the western side, leaving the station effectively back-to-front. This can apparently be explained by the fact that the station was opened to serve Woodstock and not Kidlington, then a small village of around 2, 400 inhabitants clustered around a church located over 1mi away from the station.