THE first train will roll out of the new Oxford Parkway station in October, it has been announced.

On October 26, at 7.26am the first train will depart from the station and arrive at London Marylebone just 56 minutes later.

It is part of a £130m investment from Chiltern Railways and the first project between a major British city and the capital for more than 100 years.

And it is expected that 1,000 more passengers will use the Oxford line every morning.

Chiltern Railways director Graham Cross said the station will bring a “fast and frequent” rail service between Oxford and London.

He added: “I have worked on this project since 2008, when it was just a line on the map.

“And I’ve enjoyed seeing it through its planning process and now all through the construction process. It’s nearly finished and just under six months from now it will launch.

“I remember peering through a fence and seeing this as an semiderelict industrial site with the vision that this is a perfect location for the kind of multi-modal transport interchange that we are building now.”

Oxford Parkway is the first new station to open in Oxfordshire since Combe railway station was opened in 1935.

The launch will also include the opening of Bicester Village station, which will provide Bicester with more trains to London.

Two trains will operate every hour. They will start at Water Eaton, before calling at Bicester Village and High Wycombe station before moving onto the captial.

Mr Cross thinks the line will give passengers “a choice” between Chiltern and First Great Western.

He added: “When work is finished here, work will move onto the next stage, which is to upgrade the short distance of railway between here and Oxford.

“Once that’s finished Chiltern Railways will start running trains between Oxford and London Marylebone, which will be an addition to the current First Great Western service.

“It will give passengers a choice between operators and we have always made sure that we offer a good range of competitive prices and a high-quality service.

“We are the most punctual operating train company in the country.”

The station will host a cafe, provide 850 car parking spaces and 150 spaces for bikes.There will be a taxi rank dropoff zone built outside the front of the station and buses will be able to access the site from the nearby Water Eaton park and ride.

The bridge between the two 240m-long platforms is being built with lifts to allow passengers with pushchairs or wheelchairs to access both sides.

Mr Cross said that it would be a “multi-purpose” station and that he expected the project to be on the £130m budget.

He added: “I think this station will serve a number of purposes. It will be really handy for people who live in this area of Oxford and Kidlington.

“It will be really convenient for business in this area, with the possibility of the Northern Gateway and the already-built Begbroke Science Park, as well as the Oxford airport.

“It will draw people in from a wider sweep Oxfordshire.”

Managing director Rob Brighouse said he was “delighted” with the announcement.

He added: “The line will transform travel in Oxfordshire, helping passengers avoid city centre traffic congestion and benefit from more convenient journeys to London via our new stations.

“It will bring significant economic benefit to the region.”