Passenger trains came to a halt in Witney in 1962

Yes, long forgotten, but had it survived, it is one that could now be relieving pressure on the congested A40 in West Oxfordshire.

The pictures were taken at Witney station on the Oxford-Fairford line where the last passenger trains ran in 1962.

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It veered off the Oxford-Worcester route - now known as the Cotswold Line - and the steam trains called at Yarnton, Cassington, Eynsham, South Leigh, Witney, Alvescot, Brize Norton & Bampton, Carterton, Kelmscott & Langford, Lechlade and Fairford.

One of the mysteries of the line was why the terminus was at Fairford. Passengers might want to go to Witney and nearby village stations, but few would want to travel to the Gloucestershire village of Fairford.

The original plan was to extend the line to Cheltenham, giving a quicker journey from Oxford than the circuitous route via Swindon.

But the railway company building the line through West Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire ran out of money.

Had the extension been completed, there was a chance that the line would have survived. Trains linking two major towns would have attracted more passengers than on what was essentially a rural route.

The single line to Witney opened in 1861 and the extension to Fairford was completed in 1873.

The whole route, 22 miles long, was a lifeline for rural communities, handling both passengers and freight, in its early years.

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But after the Second World War, competition from the roads hit passenger numbers and led to its decline. The closure saved British Railways £30,000 a year.

The last passenger train in 1962, hauled by tank engine No 9653, was packed with passengers.

There have been several attempts to reopen the line, but the track was pulled up after it closed and the cost of relaying it would be colossal.

Another problem is that in places, the track has been built on.

Passengers often question why the Oxford-Witney-Fairford line disappeared and why the Oxford-Bicester line survived.

The latter remained opened for freight, to the military base at Bicester and the rubbish tip at Calvert, near Buckingham.

When talk of restoring passenger services between Oxford and Bicester began in the 1980s, the line was still in place.

All that was needed was for the track to be upgraded.

Now, of course, Chiltern Railways have taken over the line and passengers have an excellent service all the way to and from Marylebone station in London.

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This story was written by Andy Ffrench, he joined the team more than 20 years ago and now covers community news across Oxfordshire.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Andy.ffrench@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter @OxMailAndyF