WITNEY MP Robert Courts hailed plans to spend £180m improving the A40 as a 'significant step in the right direction'.

Mr Courts has pushed for an integrated transport network in West Oxfordshire since before his election, addressing the issue in Parliament on several occasions.

In May, he called on Prime Minister Theresa May to help ensure upgrades to the A40, calling congestion on the road a 'blight'.

The MP also wants a second track to be added to the Cotswold Line to increase frequency, as part of wholesale improvements for road, rail and buses.

Mr Courts was encouraged by the 'much-needed' proposals.

He said: “The proposals represent a significant step in the right direction, delivering a much needed upgrade to public transport provision on that route and essential widening of the road.

"With the prospect of further funding being unlocked through the Housing Infrastructure Fund and the creation of a Major Road Network, there is greater cause for optimism on this issue than there has been for decades."