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The Bicester Military Railway (BMR) is a railway in Oxfordshire, England belonging to the Ministry of Defence. It links military depots at Piddington, Arncott and Graven Hill with the Oxford to Bicester Line.

History

The Bicester Military Railway was built in 1942 within the Bicester Central Ordnance Depot and was used extensively in the Second World War, particularly in the preparations for D-Day.^[1]

The Prime Minister Harold Wilson visited the BMR in mid-1965 prior to a government spending review. On his orders it was spared from the railway cutbacks that were left over from Richard Beeching’s railway review of the early 1960s. ^{[citation needed]}.

Railway Squadrons

The BMR has about 40 miles of standard gauge track in use.^{[citation needed]} The BMR is the main base for 275 Railway Squadron, a unit of the Royal Logistic Corps. Before 1999, 275 Railway Squadron was a stand-alone Squadron. Other RLC Regiments refer to the squadron colloquially as the Railway Children. The Sub Unit recruits exclusively from the railway industry. Every soldier in the unit is a tradesman, able to drive a locomotive, operate railway signals, shunt, and do permanent way work.

The unit's regular sister unit was 79 Railway Squadron and sometimes undertakes permanent way work with the Royal Engineers unit 507 STRE. 275 Railway Squadron's now defunct insignia is a cross section of flat bottom rail in a blue diamond. This dates back to unit's involvement with the Longmoor Military Railway.

Sources

Lawton, E.R.; Sackett, M.W. (1992). The Bicester Military Railway. Oxford Publishing Co. ISBN 0-86093-467-5.

References

^ "BICESTER MILITARY RAILWAY". Past Scape. Historic England. Retrieved 21 December 2017.

51°52′08″N 1°07′55″W / 51.869°N 1.132°W / 51.869; -1.132

[1] "BICESTER MILITARY RAILWAY". Past Scape. Historic England. Retrieved 21 December 2017.

[1]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2016}}
 {{Use British English|date=December 2016}}
-[[File:A train enters Bicester Military Railway - geograph.org.uk - 1267913.jpg|thumb|right|[[British Rail Class 58]] heads a train into the transfer sidings of the Bicester Military Railway, October 2001]]
+[[File:A train enters Bicester Military Railway - geograph.org.uk - 1267913.jpg|thumb|right|A [[British Rail Class 58]] heads a train into the transfer sidings of the Bicester Military Railway, October 2001]]
-[[File:Thomas_Hill_(Vanguard)_319V_(5676879108).jpg|thumb|right|MoD No.01512 (ex-301) "Conductor", a Thomas Hill (Vanguard) 34t 0-4-0 diesel hydraulic locomotive with 255 hp Rolls Royce C6SFL engine. On display at Long Marston Open Day in June 2009, from its home base of the Defence Storage & Distribution Centre, Bicester.]]
+[[File:Thomas_Hill_(Vanguard)_319V_(5676879108).jpg|thumb|right|MoD No.01512 (ex-301) "Conductor", a Thomas Hill (Vanguard) 34t 0-4-0 diesel hydraulic locomotive with 255 hp Rolls-Royce C6SFL engine. On display at Long Marston Open Day in June 2009, from its home base of the Defence Storage & Distribution Centre, Bicester.]]
 [[File:Railway_shed_-_geograph.org.uk_-_464214.jpg|thumb|right|The 2-row carriage shed at the Bicester Military Railway, June 2007]]
-The '''Bicester Military Railway''' (BMR) is a railway in [[Oxfordshire]], [[England]] belonging to the [[Ministry of Defence (UK)|Ministry of Defence]]. It links military depots at [[Piddington, Oxfordshire|Piddington]], [[Arncott]] and Graven Hill with the [[Oxford to Bicester Line]]. The line has no road bridges. All of its crossings of public roads at Ambrosden, Arncott and between Arncott and Piddington are by [[level crossing]]s.
+The '''Bicester Military Railway''' (BMR) is a railway in [[Oxfordshire]], [[England]] belonging to the [[Ministry of Defence (UK)|Ministry of Defence]]. It links military depots at [[Piddington, Oxfordshire|Piddington]], [[Arncott]] and Graven Hill with the [[Oxford to Bicester Line]].
 ==History==
-The Bicester Military Railway was built in 1942 within the [[MoD Bicester|Bicester Central Ordnance Depot]] and was used extensively in the [[World War II|Second World War]], particularly in the preparations for [[D-Day]].<ref>{{cite web|title=BICESTER MILITARY RAILWAY|url=http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=1363495|website=Past Scape|publisher=Historic England|accessdate=21 December 2017}}</ref>
+The Bicester Military Railway was built in 1942 within the [[MoD Bicester|Bicester Central Ordnance Depot]] and was used extensively in the [[World War II|Second World War]], particularly in the preparations for [[D-Day]].<ref>{{cite web|title=BICESTER MILITARY RAILWAY|url=http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=1363495|website=Past Scape|publisher=Historic England|access-date=21 December 2017}}</ref>
-The British [[Prime Minister]] [[Harold Wilson]] visited the BMR in mid-1965 prior to a government spending review. On his orders it was spared from the railway cutbacks that were left over from [[Beeching cuts|Lord Beeching's railway review]] of the early 1960s. {{Fact|date=May 2008}}.
+The [[Prime Minister]] [[Harold Wilson]] visited the BMR in mid-1965 prior to a government spending review. On his orders it was spared from the railway cutbacks that were left over from [[Beeching cuts|Richard Beeching’s railway review]] of the early 1960s. {{Fact|date=May 2008}}.
 ==Railway Squadrons==
-The BMR has about 40 miles of [[standard gauge]] track in use.{{cn|date=November 2011}} The BMR is the main base for '''275 Railway Squadron''', a unit of the [[Royal Logistic Corps]]. Before 1999, 275 Railway Squadron was a stand-alone Squadron. Other RLC Regiments refer to the squadron colloquially as the ''Railway Children''. The Sub Unit recruits exclusively from the railway industry. Every soldier in the unit is a tradesman, able to drive a locomotive, operate railway signals, shunt, and do permanent way work.
+The BMR has about 40 miles of [[standard gauge]] track in use.{{cn|date=November 2011}} The BMR is the main base for '''275 Railway Squadron''', a unit of the [[Royal Logistic Corps]]. Before 1999, 275 Railway Squadron was a stand-alone Squadron. Other RLC Regiments refer to the squadron colloquially as the ''Railway Children''. The Sub Unit recruits exclusively from the railway industry. Every soldier in the unit is a tradesman, able to drive a locomotive, operate railway signals, shunt, and do [[permanent way]] work.
 The unit's regular sister unit was [[79 Railway Squadron]] and sometimes undertakes permanent way work with the [[Royal Engineers]] unit 507 STRE. 275 Railway Squadron's now defunct insignia is a cross section of flat bottom rail in a blue diamond. This dates back to unit's involvement with the [[Longmoor Military Railway]].
 == Sources ==
-* {{Cite book | author=Lawton, E.R. | authorlink= |author2=Sackett, M.W. | title=The Bicester Military Railway | date=1992 | publisher=Oxford Publishing Co. | location= | isbn=0-86093-467-5 | pages= }}
+* {{Cite book | author=Lawton, E.R. |author2=Sackett, M.W. | title=The Bicester Military Railway | date=1992 | publisher=Oxford Publishing Co. | isbn=0-86093-467-5 }}
 == References ==
@@ Line 31: / Line 31: @@
 [[Category:Royal Logistic Corps]]
 [[Category:Bicester]]
-{{England-rail-transport-stub}}