MAJOR engineering works will derail commuters as a part of Oxfordshire’s rail network grinds to a halt for more than a week.

Network Rail will be closing a line through Oxford to allow for preparatory work ahead of an overhead cable being installed for Great Western Railway’s (GWR) new electric trains.

The line between Didcot, Oxford and Banbury will be closed from Saturday, July 22 until Sunday, July 30 and there will be frequent shuttle buses to replace most GWR and CrossCountry trains in the area.

But it is hoped the chaos endured by commuters last summer during rail upgrades will not be repeated this time thanks to the six-month-old Chiltern Railways’ line from Oxford to London Marylebone, which will remain open during the works.

Chris Bates, of Cherwell Rail Users’ Group, said: “The news has been out for quite a while and (GWR) have done quite a reasonable job of communicating with us.

“There are posters up at the station so hopefully people will take some holiday during the upgrade.

“We’ve also got the Oxford line up to Marylebone which we did not have last year and I can imagine a lot of people will get on that.

“It will be interesting to see what Chiltern Railways will do to accommodate all those extra people.”

Although the closure has been timed to coincide with the start of the school summer holidays, when the number of commuters reduces, Chiltern Railways has pledged to add as many extra seats as it can to its half-hourly services.

A spokeswoman added: “Our service to Oxford is unaffected by the closure.

“We will be seeking to lengthen trains and add as much additional capacity as possible.”

Most GWR tickets will be accepted by Chiltern during the work, but passengers should check before travelling.

Passengers wanting to travel between Oxford and Reading will need to use the bus link to Didcot Parkway and change there for GWR and CrossCountry trains.

Buses will serve Radley, Culham and Appleford stations throughout the closure.

CrossCountry trains linking Oxfordshire with the Midlands and the North of England will start and terminate at Banbury, connecting with replacement buses, except for on Saturday, July 29, when the line will be open between Oxford and Banbury and CrossCountry and GWR services will operate.

In a statement Network Rail said: “Both passengers and freight traffic through Oxford continues to grow.

“We are modernising the existing 1960s signalling, which will make train services travelling through Oxford and Didcot more reliable.

“We are also upgrading and remodelling the track layout around Oxford station.”

Apart from Chiltern services, the only trains operating into and out of Oxford throughout the closure will be an hourly shuttle service to and from Worcester along the Cotswold Line through West Oxfordshire. For more details visit: gwr.com