COTSWOLD Line Rail commuters were back on track yesterday after major improvements in West Oxfordshire were completed on time.

Four miles of new double track between Charlbury and Ascott-under-Wychwood, new signals controlled from a digital panel in Ascott’s Victorian signalbox and extra platforms at Charlbury and Ascott stations were opened after a nine-day closure.

The improvements are part of a £67m Network Rail project to improve punctuality and reliability on the route between Oxford and Worcester by reinstating 20 miles of double track that was removed in the early 1970s as a cost-cutting measure As the first train to call at Charlbury’s new platform arrived from Oxford, passengers gave it a round of applause.

Speaking after helping to cut a ribbon to open the platform, John Ellis, the chairman of the Cotswold Line Promotion Group (CLPG), which represents passengers, said: “This is a great day for the Cotswold Line.

“My congratulations to everyone who has been involved in this project.”

Charlbury Town Council chairman Nick Potter added: “It is a splendid day. It is super to see it all actually happen and that it has all worked as planned.

“The next thing we need is an extension to the station car park and a pricing structure to encourage people to use it, rather than parking in streets all over the town and walking to the station.”

Half-an-hour later, at Ascott-under-Wychwood, passengers Jacquie Bugeja – Oxfordshire’s chief superintendent registrar – and Carole Hawtin were invited to cut the ribbon to open the station’s new platform before boarding the 7.44am train to Oxford.

Mrs Hawtin, who grew up in the village, said: “I remember the station when it used to be like this, with two platforms.

“It is better this way. When I was little my mother would put me on the train at the old platform here to travel to London, where my sister would meet me so I could spend holidays with her.

“There has always been a train into Oxford at this time of the morning, about quarter to eight. We called it the workman’s train back then.”

Network Rail’s scheme sponsor David Northey, who heads the redoubling project team, said: “It has been a very long time getting to this point. I started work on the project in 2007, so I am over the moon we have got to today, D-Day, on June 6.

“It is fantastic to see so many people here, from the CLPG, Network Rail, Amey and our other contractors, who have all had a part in this amazing day in the regeneration of the Cotswold Line.”

With the first phase of the redoubling project complete, the focus now moves to the Gloucestershire and Worcestershire sections of the line, where another 16 miles of double track are due to open in late August.

The only sour note was that the last key commuter service, the Cathedrals Express from Hereford to London, was running 40 minutes late at Charlbury after a trespasser on the line in South Wales delayed the train’s journey from its depot in Bristol.