Network Rail and train operator First Great Western have poured cold water on plans for a new station to serve Grove and Wantage - but there is a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

Provision of the station has not been ruled out completely, because of the planned development of 2,500 homes on the old Grove airfield over the next decade.

The Vale of White Horse District Council has given outline planning consent to Oxfordshire County Council for the station north of Grove, off the A338 where it crosses over the Didcot-Swindon main line.

The area earmarked is the site of the old Wantage Road station, which closed in the 1960s and was the junction between the main line and the Wantage Tramway, which operated from 1875 to 1945.

Network Rail spokesman Chris Mitchell said it had no current plans to build a station at the site, but in six to nine months' time it would look into the likely traffic on the rail line over the next 30 years and would take local development plans and population growth into account.

He added: "Building a station is not a simple process. Not only would we have to go through the local authority planning process, but we would also have to assess whether and how it can be accommodated on the railway."

First Great Western has no plans to introduce a service to Grove and High Speed Trains are unlikely to stop, because it would add to journey times.

Spokesman Adrian Booth said: "We would assess the business case if the infrastructure is put in place and we would work with Network Rail on these considerations."

But councillors are determined to prove the station would be viable. Grove and Wantage county councillor Zoe Patrick said: "Now we need to call for action from the Government and the county council to secure investment and ensure rail services can be provided at the station in the future."

The chairman of Grove Parish Council, Frank Parnell, said: "For commuters like myself it would be very beneficial. I travel to Reading each day and with the railway, I could walk or cycle to the station and manage with one car, instead of leaving one at Didcot all day. It would help the environment considerably."