A £1 billion mobility innovation cluster could emerge under an ambitious 10-year masterplan after outline planning applications were lodged with Cherwell District Council by Bicester Motion for the initial phase of the project.
The scheme aims to convert the 444-acre mobility campus into a worldwide centre for automotive and technology enterprises, situated in Motorsport Valley along the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor. The plans outline 1.44 million square feet of new commercial floor space alongside approximately 200 homes.
Bicester Motion’s chief executive Daniel Geoghegan stated that submitting these first-phase outline applications represented a significant milestone in the site’s ongoing development. Over the previous decade, the team had painstakingly restored Bicester’s historic former RAF base while establishing a flourishing community of innovators, engineers and pioneering businesses. These applications would provide the structure for enterprises to set up, expand and remain in Oxfordshire, while continuing to preserve and improve the heritage and landscape that distinguish the location, as well as developing and supporting local employment and skills.
The proposals encompass The Rushes, offering 475,275 square feet of commercial, demonstration, hospitality and customer-engagement facilities; Command Works Phase 2, providing 167,000 square feet of adaptable employment space for current and new enterprises; and Motion Living, featuring 200 low-rise apartments including affordable housing to foster a live-work environment.
A fourth outline application remains in preparation for The New Technical Site, comprising roughly 506,140 square feet of research, development and scale-up facilities for mobility, engineering and technology companies.
If consent is granted, the complete masterplan could generate £1.19 billion in gross value added to the UK economy annually, establish 5,600 construction positions and sustain 7,600 operational roles.
The applications follow a period of public consultation, during which feedback helped mould the proposals. Geoghegan noted that the constructive responses received throughout demonstrated substantial interest in the long-term vision, and thanked all who contributed their thoughts, adding that this input had shaped the current applications and would continue guiding future stages.
Bicester Motion has deployed £100 million during the past decade restoring the former RAF Bicester Aerodrome, which now accommodates more than 50 mobility businesses with over 500 staff members.
Liz Sparrow, partner and lead architect at Ridge, commented that the firm had collaborated with Bicester Motion for over a decade to shape the long-term vision, and that being involved in this significant next stage was a genuine honour. This integrated approach combined workplaces and residences with facilities for inventing, constructing, testing and displaying automotive and aviation technologies.
The outline applications will now undergo assessment by Cherwell District Council.