YOUR TRAVEL CHOICES
As a Kingsmere resident you have many travel options available to you. To find out more download our “Your Travel Choices” booklet in the link below.
TRAVEL BY FOOT
Travelling by foot is a quick and easy way of getting around Kingsmere. Due to the number of on-site facilities available to residents, and Kingsmere’s close proximity to central Bicester, many local facilities can be reached via a short walk. Key destinations and approximate walking times are shown on the map.
Key locations
Bicester town centre can be reached in a 15 minute walk, whilst Bicester Village railway station is around a 10 minute walk from the north east of Kingsmere. Bicester North railway station is situated 20-25 minutes walk away. Additional local facilities can be accessed on site, including local food shops, leisure and sports facilities, Kingsmere Community Centre and local primary and secondary schools.
All of the on-site footways and cycleways being installed through out Kingsmere are of high-quality and connect you to, from and around your new neighbourhood with routes to Bicester Town Centre, Bicester Village and other local destinations. Kingsmere also provides many local opportunities for recreational walking trips, including our proposed Community Woodland which will be provided by Cherwell District Council in later phases of the development.
Benefits
Whilst many health benefits are associated with walking, you can also help minimise environmental impacts caused by car travel by walking more often as part of your daily journeys.
By Bike
Kingsmere provides ample cycle opportunities with Bicester town centre located within a 5-minute ride, and Bicester Village and Bicester North Railway Stations located within a 5-10 minute ride. There are a number of quiet on-road and off-road cycle routes provided throughout Bicester and within the Kingsmere development itself, as shown on the Cycle Route Map. Sections of the A41 which routes past Kingsmere forms part of the National Cycle Network Route 51 which provides connections through Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire.
Bicester Bicycle Parking
There is secure and covered cycle parking provided at both Bicester railway stations,and at the Bicester Park and Ride site, to help you travel by bike more easily and to support connections to public transport. All of these cycle parking areas provide sheltered and secure cycle parking facilities. Cycle parking is available at the Bicester Park and Ride Site on Vendee Drive, which is less than a 5-minute cycle from Kingsmere.
There is also secure covered cycle parking available at both Bicester railway stations, in the following locations:
- Bicester Village Station: at the station entrance.
- Bicester North Station: at the car park exit (opposite taxi bay).
Bicester Bike Loan
You can hire a bicycle for free from Bicester Green (located on Station Approach in Bicester Town Centre) as part of the ‘Cycle for Bicester’ programme. ‘Cycle for Bicester’ encourages more people to give cycling a try, for free.
By Bus
At Kingsmere, we want our residents to benefit fully from the sustainable transport opportunities available to them. We have coordinated with Stagecoach to ensure that bus services available throughout the development site provide resident’s with easy and convenient cross-town links. Kingsmere is served by two main local bus services, providing residents with access to Bicester Town Centre and Oxford City Centre.
The 26 bus service
The no. 26 service runs directly through the development connecting you to Bicester Town Centre. The no.26 routes through Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the development and provides a direct service to Pioneer Square every 30 minutes, with a journey time of just 10 minutes. From Pioneer Square, the no.26 will route to Bicester Village Railway Station as the no. H5 or no. 29 and provide half-hourly services to Graven Hill and Ambrosden and hourly services to John Radcliffe Hospital, Brookes University and Bullingdon Prison.
The S5 bus service
The S5 service to Oxford is a Stagecoach Gold service that routes through the development in the morning and evening peak periods, with a journey time of just 35 minutes. At other times, it can be accessed from the Bicester Park and Ride site or from stops on the A41 Oxford Road. The S5 also routes to Bicester North station.
The X5 bus service
The Stagecoach X5 services offers a non-stop Bicester to Oxford link. The service also provides connections to Cambridge, Bedford, Milton Keynes and Buckingham. The X5 can be accessed from stops on the A41 – next to Kingsmere. It is possible to interchange to additional services in Bicester town centre or Oxford city centre.
By Train
The proximity of local railway stations operated by Chiltern Railways mean Kingsmere is highly accessible to destinations further afield.
Bicester Village railway station has direct services to London Marleybone and Oxford. The station is also within walking distance of the site, making your daily commute to work, education or shopping trips to the City faster and more convenient – without having to worry about sitting in traffic or paying for parking! Additionally there is Bicester North railway station with services to London Marylebone, Birmingham Moor Street, Birmingham Snow Hill, Leamington Spa and Banbury.
Chiltern Railways’ trains provide:
- Free wifi on most trains
- Spacious carriages with plenty of tables and power points
- Fast, frequent trains to London, Oxford and Birmingham
For live arrival and departure times, advanced ticket prices and booking information see Chiltern Railways or National Rail websites:
By car
Car Sharing
You can cut the cost of your journey by registering as a member of a car share website. It works both ways meaning you are able to share your journey either as a driver or by joining someone else as their passenger, which is a great way of travelling to work or further afield.
Oxfordshire Car Share
Oxfordshire County Council and the UK’s largest car-share network, Liftshare have created a partnership scheme. They provide a matching service for all those who live or work in and around Oxfordshire as well as longer journeys to other locations outside the county.
Once you have been matched, you can choose to journey share as little or as often as you like, with whomever you choose.
The service is available to anyone over 18. Joining the scheme is simple and completely free. All you have to do is register your details and then activate your account. Once you’ve registered your journey, the database searches for possible matches. When you have found a suitable match, you can then contact the member(s) using our internal messaging system.
Additional information about the Car Share scheme including ‘benefits and frequently asked questions’ can be found at: