MORE than 300 people have signed an online petition to stop Bicester Town Station being renamed Bicester Village.

In a decision made by Chiltern Railways, the railway station will be renamed as part of the £130m high-speed rail line connecting Oxford to London.

The change was made It came despite the plan being dubbed “disappointing” by town mayor Lynn Pratt and a public objection made by North Oxfordshire MP Sir Tony Baldry.

The online petition currently has 362 signatures with supporters commenting mostly that Bicester is not a village and expressing concerns that Bicester Town is being “stripped of its identity”.

In a comment added to the petition, supporter Robert Atkins, from Bicester, wrote: “How can a town growing as fast as Bicester be downgraded to a village? Disgraceful behaviour by Chiltern Rail [sic] in totally misrepresenting the views of Bicester residents and their elected representatives.”

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The petition has even attracted supporters from further afield with one comment from Anita Pope in Hastings reading: “Although I no longer live in Bicester, I was born and bred there. It is not a village, it is a lovely market town that is over 1,000 years old. Why should its heritage be ignored for commercial reasons?”

Reasons behind the name change to Bicester Village included making it clearer which station shoppers should travel to when visiting the popular designer outlet. It is hoped by getting more people visiting by rail will ease congestion.

Chiltern Railways commercial director Thomas Ableman said: “The process to change the station name has begun. We know that station names generate strong emotions. However, the decision has been shaped by an independent survey.

"This is the biggest change in the railways for Bicester since 1910 and it is right that the station name reflects that change.”