Chiltern Railways celebrates 25 years of Warwick Parkway Station
A celebratory event was held at Warwick Parkway today (Friday 24 October) to mark 25 years since the station opened.
Warwick Parkway sits on Chiltern’s intercity route between London and Birmingham. The station has been a significant success story, with 440,000 customers using the station to access regional rail services last year.
Operator Chiltern Railways and Warwickshire County Council hosted the event, which included speeches on the future of rail in Warwickshire, a musical performance by Newburgh Primary School and a plaque unveiling for the station’s birthday. This also formed part of the wider bicentenary of the modern railway.
The event highlighted the importance of the station for providing rail connectivity in rural Warwickshire, with Chiltern due to launch newer (Mark 5A) trains and additional services from the station in December 2026.
Richard Allan, Managing Director of Chiltern Railways, said:
“Warwick Parkway is one of the newest stations on the Chiltern network, providing frequent, fast services to London and Birmingham. The success story of Warwick Parkway underlines how the railway supports economic activity and personal connectivity.
“In addition to celebrating the station's past, we are excited for the future, including looking forward to customers boarding our newest trains, which will come into service from early 2026."
Cllr Jennifer Warren, Portfolio Holder for Transport and Planning at Warwickshire County Council, said:
“The anniversary of the opening of Warwick Parkway station is a key milestone for both us and Chiltern Railways and provides a good opportunity to take stock of this council’s commitment to investing in and facilitating more rail travel. The Railway 200 celebration is another reason to celebrate the work we have done to help residents and visitors to Warwickshire have better rail facilities.
“Warwick Parkway has an excellent train service towards Birmingham and London and also provides rail users with access to the wider rail network for business, education/training and leisure trips. The station is a key asset to the West Midlands region as well as supporting the local economy of Warwick and Leamington Spa.”
Warwick Parkway Station opened on 25 October 2000, as a joint partnership between Warwickshire County Council and M40 Trains (Chiltern’s parent company at the time). The station opened with park and ride facilities to encourage commuters to use the train.
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Notes to editors
- Chiltern Railways is part of the Arriva group, one of the leading providers of passenger transport in Europe, employing around 36,200 people and delivering around 1.5 billion passenger journeys across 11 European countries.
- Chiltern operates commuter/regional rail passenger services from its Central London terminus at London Marylebone along the M40 corridor to destinations in Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Warwickshire, as well as long-distance services to the West Midlands along two routes. Services on the Chiltern Main Line run from London Marylebone to Birmingham Snow Hill, Stratford-upon-Avon and Oxford, with some peak-hour services to Stourbridge Junction.
- Chiltern also runs trains on the London to Aylesbury Line to Aylesbury (with some trains terminating at Aylesbury Vale Parkway instead), on the Princes Risborough to Aylesbury and Oxford to Bicester branch lines.