WORK aimed to speed up travel times on trains to and from Oxford has been completed as part of a £200m upgrade scheme.

Services between Oxford, Didcot and Banbury have returned to normal this morning.

Network Rail said more than 100 Network Rail engineers put in more than 32,750 hours during the nine-day closure to renew about 2km of track between Hinksey Lakes and Oxford Station.

The work, which included the use of more than 5,000 tonnes of ballast and more than 2,500 sleepers, is hoped to enable quicker line speeds through Oxford in order to 'reduce congestion' on the railway.

Lines re-opened at 4.45am today, with the first passenger service running through at 5.01am.

The work is part of the £200 million Oxford Corridor Project, which will deliver a series of schemes in a bid to increase capacity and improve reliability for passengers and freight operators.

Rob Mashford, senior programme manager for Network Rail, said: "We’ve had a very successful period of work over the past nine days. Our engineers have done a fantastic job in completing this work as planned and we’re always pleased to be able to deliver improvements for passengers as part of our Railway Upgrade Plan.

“I’d like to thank passengers for bearing with us as this work has taken place and I’d also like to thank our colleagues at GWR, Chiltern Railways and CrossCountry for their work which has kept passengers moving throughout this period.”

David Pinder, Oxford station manager for GWR, added: “We would like to thank passengers for their patience during the past week as Network Rail modernise the railway.

“The first Intercity Express Train to enter passenger service is just a number of months away; providing over a fifth more seats per train, more frequent service, and the greatest step-change in experience for our passengers in a generation.”