COMMUTERS in Oxfordshire on trains and buses faced major disruption yesterday as flooding interrupted their journeys to work.

With Abingdon Road and Lower Kennington closed for the morning and evening rush hours, several Oxford Bus Company and Stagecoach services were forced to take major diversions.

The CityX3/X13 and 300 park-and-ride services were diverted along Iffley Rd and the ring road in both directions.

And the City35 was diverted via Bagley Wood Rd, ring road and Iffley Road.

Seacourt Park-and-Ride was closed, with the Thornhill Park-and-Ride 400 service starting and finishing at Oxford rail station.

Spokesman Phil Ashworth said he hoped Botley Road would remain open because otherwise there would be increased congestion in the city centre if the High Street, normally only open to buses and taxis between 7.30am and 6.30pm, was reopened to all traffic.

Between Oxford and Didcot, there was an hourly First Great Western service from Oxford at 40 minutes past the hour, and from Didcot at nine minutes past the hour, with buses running between Oxford and Didcot to support the revised timetable.

On the Cotswold Line, most trains ran at normal times between Oxford and Worcester/Malvern/Hereford with a limited number of peak hour trains running through to and from London.

For passengers travelling with CrossCountry, there was one train an hour running Oxford-Banbury-Birmingham-Manchester and Chiltern Railways accepted FGW tickets between Banbury and London Marylebone.