Travel and Accommodation

Didcot Parkway rail station is five miles away, with direct services to London (Paddington) in under 45 minutes and Oxford City in under 15 minutes. It is easy to cycle from the station to Harwell campus, and there are frequent bus services and taxis available for onward travel to RAL.

The launch of Crossrail and the upgrade to the Didcot Parkway Line mean it will soon be possible to reach central London Underground stations in under one hour.

Taxis may only be used when there is no public transport available and must be booked, wherever possible, through the CLF User Office. The following information is required: date, time, pick-up point, destination and reason for the visit.  Wherever possible, bookings must be made before 16.00 on Monday to Thursday and before 15.00 on Friday.  Please note that it generally takes 15 to 20 minutes for a taxi to arrive. This can be much longer at peak periods.

For taxis from Didcot Parkway please go to the rank, take the first taxi in the queue and pay the driver. You should ensure that you obtain a receipt, so that you can submit a claim for the cost to the User Office.​

If you will need a taxi from the laboratory outside office hours, but you don’t know your exact departure time, please ask the User Office to make an ‘open booking’ for you.  The transport section, security wardens and staff at The Cosener’s House are not authorised to organise taxis unless an open booking has already been made.

Private Transport

Users bringing their own transport may claim a mileage rate and passenger allowance for travel between their institute, the laboratory and their accommodation. Claims for other journeys must first be authorised by the local facility contact.​

​Hire Car

A hire car may be used if a reduction in transport costs can be demonstrated. The User Office is not able to hire cars on behalf of users.

The nearest airport to RAL is Heathrow Airport.​

Air travel may be provided for users travelling a long distance to the laboratory, for example, from Scotland, Northern Ireland or Europe.

To minimise costs and increase the choice of flights, users must submit their travel plans via the online Travel and Accommodation booking system as soon as possible.

You will need a username and password to access this site – please contact the CLF User Office if you do not already have these.