I am writing in response to your article ‘Drivers face 24-mile detour during works’, July 26, and wish to add some context and clarity to the story.

Network Rail is currently undertaking a huge £7bn transformation of the Great Western Railway including the route to Oxford. This massive investment will electrify the railway enabling us to introduce a new fleet of faster, quieter, greener electric trains. Our work will also increase capacity, enabling more and faster trains to run, benefiting the hundreds of thousands of passengers using the route in and through Oxfordshire every year.

With such a massive undertaking comes some disturbance and disruption that we, and your local authority, are trying to keep to an absolute minimum. We have explored many options to reduce our impact and will continue to do so. But let us not forget, as your article seems to have done, that the positive impact this work will bring will last a century or more and benefit millions, including those who never directly use the railway.

Julian Burnell
Senior Communications Manager (Western) Network Rail

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