Morris Cowley railway station
Encyclopedia
Morris Cowley was an intermediate station on the Wycombe Railway
which served the small town of Cowley, just outside Oxford
, from 1908 to 1915, and then from 1928 to 1963. The station originated opened as part of an attempt by the Great Western Railway
to encourage more passengers onto the line at a time when competition from bus services was drawing away patronage. The line through Morris Cowley remains open for the purposes of serving the BMW Mini
factory, although the possibility of reinstating passenger services has been explored by Chiltern Railways
, the franchise holder for the Chiltern Main Line
which runs through .
opened an extension of its single track
line from to Kennington junction, about 2.5 miles (4 km) south of . The line ran past Cowley but it was a further 40 years before a station was opened here.
In an attempt to stimulate Oxford
suburban traffic, the Great Western Railway
opened three motor halts on the line, one of which was to be situated to the south of the railway bridge over Garsington Road (now classified the B480). The station was named Garsington Bridge Halt and its opening was approved by the Board of Trade in December 1907. The first services, operated by GWR steam rail motors
, ran on 1 February 1908. As with the other halts, Garsington Bridge had a single platform, 150 feet (45.7 m) long, with a 20 feet (6.1 m) by 70 feet (21.3 m) corrugated iron passenger shelter. Steps linked the halt with Garsington Road. The halt remained open for only seven years, being closed in 1915 as a First World War
economy measure.
In May - June 1917, two loop sidings
were opened on the Up side of the line to serve a munitions factory. By September 1917 the sidings were however no longer required and had been removed.
decided to concentrate the packing of cars for export at Cowley, the bulk of which would be moved to port by rail. Two sidings were installed in March 1926 to serve the adjacent Pressed Steel Company
factory and five more were added in July 1928 for Morris Motors. Around the same time Morris proposed to the GWR to open a passenger and goods station on the site of Garsington Bridge Halt and the new Morris Cowley station subsequently opened to passengers on 24 September 1928 and to goods on 10 December 1928. A new signal box
was opened in October 1928 to control the sidings. Basic passenger facilities were provided: a single timber platform 400 feet (121.9 m) and 12 feet (3.7 m) wide, together with a parcels and booking offie, booking hall and toilets. Access to the station was had by a footway leading up from Cowley Road. As production at the Cowley plant increased, so the freight facilities were extended. Car trains ran to Brentford Dock
for export, reversing at Kennington junction, whilst a daily train ran from . Special services were laid on for the workers, beginning with a through train that departed at 6.00am, arriving at Cowley at 7.00am. The return working left Cowley at 5.08pm and reached Banbury at 6.06pm. On Saturdays, a service left Cowley at 12.10pm and ran to where it connected with a Banbury train.
painting Totes Meer (Dead Sea). Ernest Fairfax
also mentioned the scene in his book Calling All Arms. At this time, the factories at Cowley were used for the manufacture of new aircraft and the freight facilities there were substantially extended to handle the extra traffic, including the laying of two new private sidings in 1940 and 1943. Although the post-war period saw a decline in passengers and freight on the line in general, this was not the case at Morris Cowley. Figures from 1933 showed that 1,944 passenger tickets were sold in the year, whereas in July 1957, 1,350 passengers were reported to be using the station in a week. Freight forwarded had also risen from 16,490 tons to 77,147 tons.
, Under-Secretary of State for Transport
. The terminal was to be managed by F.C. Bennett, but in the event was only operational for 13 years. Diminishing rail traffic led to the Rover Group
, which had taken over Mini production, acquiring the site for further expansion. Track rationalisation at Cowley in the early 1990s resulted in the down loop becoming a dead-end siding and three of the eleven remaining sidings being taken out of use.
acquired the Rover business in 1994 and ended production of the Rover model, in order to concentrate on the Mini. A new loading terminal was opened and five weekly double-deck car-carrying trains run from the plant, each carrying 264 cars to Purfleet
in Essex
for onward shipping to Zeebrugge. By 2001, approximately 35% of Cowley's production was sent by rail.
announced in 2000 that it was looking into the possibility of reinstating passenger services on the line between Oxford and Risborough, the cost of which it estimated at £250m. It was decided instead to build a 0.75 miles (1.2 km) link between the Oxford to Bicester Line
and the Chiltern Main Line
in order to run through services between Oxford and London via High Wycombe.
Wycombe Railway
The Wycombe Railway was a British railway between and that connected with the Great Western Railway at both ends; there was one branch, to .-History:The Wycombe Railway Company was incorporated by an act of Parliament passed in 1846...
which served the small town of Cowley, just outside Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, from 1908 to 1915, and then from 1928 to 1963. The station originated opened as part of an attempt by the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
to encourage more passengers onto the line at a time when competition from bus services was drawing away patronage. The line through Morris Cowley remains open for the purposes of serving the BMW Mini
MINI (BMW)
Mini is a British automotive marque owned by BMW which specialises in small cars.Mini originated as a specific vehicle, a small car originally known as the Morris Mini-Minor and the Austin Seven, launched by the British Motor Corporation in 1959, and developed into a brand encompassing a range of...
factory, although the possibility of reinstating passenger services has been explored by Chiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways is a British train operating company. It was set up at the privatisation of British Rail in 1996, and operates local passenger trains from Marylebone station in London to Aylesbury and main-line trains on the Chiltern Main Line to Birmingham Snow Hill with its associated branches...
, the franchise holder for the Chiltern Main Line
Chiltern Main Line
The Chiltern Main Line is an inter-urban, regional and commuter railway, part of the British railway system. It links London and Birmingham on a 112-mile route via the towns of High Wycombe, Banbury, and Leamington Spa...
which runs through .
Garsington Bridge Halt
On 24 October 1864 the Wycombe RailwayWycombe Railway
The Wycombe Railway was a British railway between and that connected with the Great Western Railway at both ends; there was one branch, to .-History:The Wycombe Railway Company was incorporated by an act of Parliament passed in 1846...
opened an extension of its single track
Single track (rail)
A single track railway is where trains in both directions share the same track. Single track is normally used on lesser used rail lines, often branch lines, where the traffic density is not high enough to justify the cost of building double tracks....
line from to Kennington junction, about 2.5 miles (4 km) south of . The line ran past Cowley but it was a further 40 years before a station was opened here.
In an attempt to stimulate Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
suburban traffic, the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
opened three motor halts on the line, one of which was to be situated to the south of the railway bridge over Garsington Road (now classified the B480). The station was named Garsington Bridge Halt and its opening was approved by the Board of Trade in December 1907. The first services, operated by GWR steam rail motors
GWR steam rail motors
The steam rail motors were self-propelled carriages operated by the Great Western Railway in England and Wales from 1903 to 1935. They incorporated a steam locomotive within the body of the carriage.-History:...
, ran on 1 February 1908. As with the other halts, Garsington Bridge had a single platform, 150 feet (45.7 m) long, with a 20 feet (6.1 m) by 70 feet (21.3 m) corrugated iron passenger shelter. Steps linked the halt with Garsington Road. The halt remained open for only seven years, being closed in 1915 as a First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
economy measure.
In May - June 1917, two loop sidings
Rail siding
A siding, in rail terminology, is a low-speed track section distinct from a running line or through route such as a main line or branch line or spur. It may connect to through track or to other sidings at either end...
were opened on the Up side of the line to serve a munitions factory. By September 1917 the sidings were however no longer required and had been removed.
Growth of Morris Motors
By 1926, Morris Motors, based in Cowley since 1913, employed some 4,000 workers on their plant which covered some 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) and produced 1,000 cars per week. MorrisWilliam Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield
William Richard Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield GBE, CH , known as Sir William Morris, Bt, between 1929 and 1934 and as The Lord Nuffield between 1934 and 1938, was a British motor manufacturer and philanthropist...
decided to concentrate the packing of cars for export at Cowley, the bulk of which would be moved to port by rail. Two sidings were installed in March 1926 to serve the adjacent Pressed Steel Company
Pressed Steel Company
The Pressed Steel Company Limited was a British car body manufacturing company founded at Cowley near Oxford in 1926 as a joint venture between William Morris, the Budd Corporation and an American bank. Today at what was the company's Cowley plant, the BMW new MINI is assembled, this site is...
factory and five more were added in July 1928 for Morris Motors. Around the same time Morris proposed to the GWR to open a passenger and goods station on the site of Garsington Bridge Halt and the new Morris Cowley station subsequently opened to passengers on 24 September 1928 and to goods on 10 December 1928. A new signal box
Signal box
On a rail transport system, signalling control is the process by which control is exercised over train movements by way of railway signals and block systems to ensure that trains operate safely, over the correct route and to the proper timetable...
was opened in October 1928 to control the sidings. Basic passenger facilities were provided: a single timber platform 400 feet (121.9 m) and 12 feet (3.7 m) wide, together with a parcels and booking offie, booking hall and toilets. Access to the station was had by a footway leading up from Cowley Road. As production at the Cowley plant increased, so the freight facilities were extended. Car trains ran to Brentford Dock
Brentford Dock
Brentford Dock in, Brentford, west London was a major trans-shipment point between the Great Western Railway and barges on the River Thames. The building of Brentford Dock was started in 1855 and it was formally opened in 1859...
for export, reversing at Kennington junction, whilst a daily train ran from . Special services were laid on for the workers, beginning with a through train that departed at 6.00am, arriving at Cowley at 7.00am. The return working left Cowley at 5.08pm and reached Banbury at 6.06pm. On Saturdays, a service left Cowley at 12.10pm and ran to where it connected with a Banbury train.
War and post-war
During the Second World War the fields around Cowley were used for the storage of scrap aircraft parts and were depicted in Paul Nash'sPaul Nash (artist)
Paul Nash was a British landscape painter, surrealist and war artist, as well as a book-illustrator, writer and designer of applied art. He was the older brother of the artist John Nash.-Early life:...
painting Totes Meer (Dead Sea). Ernest Fairfax
Miles Thomas
Miles Webster Thomas, Baron Thomas, Lord Thomas of Remenham, known as Sir Miles Thomas, or Lord Thomas, DFC was Managing Director of the Morris Motor Company, 1940–1947, Chairman of the British Overseas Airways Corporation , 1949–1956, Chairman of the merger...
also mentioned the scene in his book Calling All Arms. At this time, the factories at Cowley were used for the manufacture of new aircraft and the freight facilities there were substantially extended to handle the extra traffic, including the laying of two new private sidings in 1940 and 1943. Although the post-war period saw a decline in passengers and freight on the line in general, this was not the case at Morris Cowley. Figures from 1933 showed that 1,944 passenger tickets were sold in the year, whereas in July 1957, 1,350 passengers were reported to be using the station in a week. Freight forwarded had also risen from 16,490 tons to 77,147 tons.
Passenger services withdrawn
On the basis of an estimated saving of £34,372, passenger services were withdrawn between Oxford and Princes Risborough from January 1963. Freight services remained, the principal traffic being generated from Morris Cowley which sent five daily freight trains to Oxford. From May 1967, the line between Thame and Cowley was closed, leaving Morris Cowley to take over 's coal traffic (some 2,000 tons per year). From July 1968, Cowley no longer accepted coal traffic so that the area used could be given over to the loading and unloading of cars.Rationalisation
Cowley signal box closed from 28 January 1982 and the signals were removed except for the Up distant. A road-rail freight transfer terminal was opened on the site of the old goods shed in May 1984 by David MitchellDavid Mitchell (politician)
Sir David Bower Mitchell is a British Conservative politician who served as a Member of Parliament for over 30 years.-Education:...
, Under-Secretary of State for Transport
Department for Transport
In the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
. The terminal was to be managed by F.C. Bennett, but in the event was only operational for 13 years. Diminishing rail traffic led to the Rover Group
Rover Group
The Rover Group plc was the name given in 1986 to the British state-owned vehicle manufacturer previously known as British Leyland or BL. Owned by British Aerospace from 1988 to 1994, when it was sold to BMW, the Group was broken up in 2000 with the Rover and MG marques being acquired by the MG...
, which had taken over Mini production, acquiring the site for further expansion. Track rationalisation at Cowley in the early 1990s resulted in the down loop becoming a dead-end siding and three of the eleven remaining sidings being taken out of use.
BMW Mini
BMWBMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
acquired the Rover business in 1994 and ended production of the Rover model, in order to concentrate on the Mini. A new loading terminal was opened and five weekly double-deck car-carrying trains run from the plant, each carrying 264 cars to Purfleet
Purfleet
Purfleet is a place in the Thurrock unitary authority in Essex, England. It is situated south of the A13 road on the River Thames and within the easterly bounds of the M25 motorway but just outside the Greater London boundary. It was within the traditional Church of England parish of West Thurrock...
in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
for onward shipping to Zeebrugge. By 2001, approximately 35% of Cowley's production was sent by rail.
Projected reopening
As part of its preparations for its bid to run the Chiltern Railways franchise, Chiltern RailwaysChiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways is a British train operating company. It was set up at the privatisation of British Rail in 1996, and operates local passenger trains from Marylebone station in London to Aylesbury and main-line trains on the Chiltern Main Line to Birmingham Snow Hill with its associated branches...
announced in 2000 that it was looking into the possibility of reinstating passenger services on the line between Oxford and Risborough, the cost of which it estimated at £250m. It was decided instead to build a 0.75 miles (1.2 km) link between the Oxford to Bicester Line
Oxford to Bicester Line
The Oxford to Bicester Line is a branch line linking Oxford and Bicester in Oxfordshire, England.-History:The line was opened in 1850 as part of the Buckinghamshire Railway, which in 1879 became part of the London and North Western Railway...
and the Chiltern Main Line
Chiltern Main Line
The Chiltern Main Line is an inter-urban, regional and commuter railway, part of the British railway system. It links London and Birmingham on a 112-mile route via the towns of High Wycombe, Banbury, and Leamington Spa...
in order to run through services between Oxford and London via High Wycombe.