MARLOW commuters affected by the tunnel collapse at Gerrards Cross are furious at a decision by Chiltern Railways which they claim has wrecked their journey plans into London.

Since the tunnel collapse on June 30, thousands of commuters have been forced to change their travel plans and get buses into Amersham from High Wycombe and then a train to Marylebone.

However, they were permitted to go on alternate services, including Great Western Link trains to Maidenhead from Marlow, where they could get a connecting service to Paddington.

But on Thursday, June 21, Chiltern Railways withdrew the privilege, and said their tickets couldn't be used on the service any more, despite it saving time and money.

Gareth Roblin, an accountant, said the Amersham route added 45 minutes to his journey each day and that the Marlow to Paddington route was a much better fix.

He said: "It is extra time and cost. I have asked to them to explain the decision.

"This is a Marlow issue because we are nowhere near Amersham. "

Mr Roblin, of Spinfield Lane, who has been a £2,000 season ticket holder for two years, called on Chiltern to allow customers to use the alternate service - or pay them compensation.

He said: "I pay a lot of money how about a bit of customer service here?".

Tim Kidd, 40, of Marlow, said driving into Amersham was adding a further half an hour to his journey, and he was losing additional money in parking which he had no guarantee of being compensated for.

He said: "I'm spending four hours a day travelling which is just ridiculous. I'm leaving earlier and getting back a lot later, I'm not even seeing my kids."

Mr Kidd, also an accountant, said he would have expected Chiltern to have an insurance policy to recompense Great Western for taking Chiltern customers.

Great Western Link said it was happy to accommodate commuters on its route, but that the decision rested purely with Chiltern.

A Chiltern Railways spokesman said that while journeys were taking longer, it was offering 50 per cent discounts on tickets and a "generous" compensation scheme to customers.

Season ticket holders are being credited with half-a-day's free travel for every day of disruption. This will be discounted when they purchase their next season ticket.