Teresa Turner’s experience of Cross Country Trains (Letters, August 21) is not unusual. The Department for Transport, who created the franchise and awarded it to Arriva, are now consulting on the upcoming franchise renewal.

They need to tackle the endemic overcrowding that often occurs on the four- and five-coach trains serving the routes. The DfT acknowledge that this particularly occurs in the afternoon, where there is an overlap between long-distance business and leisure journeys with shorter-distance journeys by commuters and returning shoppers, and on Sundays, when travel tends to be compressed into the afternoon. Overcrowding around a series of cities and hub stations can be evident for long distances on Cross Country services. In addition, there are often high numbers of passengers boarding and alighting at intermediate stations (which can be relatively short distances apart).

In combination with crowding, this ‘churn’ often causes delays and discomfort as passengers queue to get on or off, and seek available seats or space to store their luggage. The lack of spare seats also causes issues for passengers without seat reservations, or who may need to move seats to accommodate other passengers.

The Voyager trains which Arriva use have proved to be unfit for purpose in terms of capacity, leg room and luggage space. Let us hope that the DfT respond positively to customer feedback.

Paul Hepworth,

Windmill Rise, York

Nothing has changed even after 18 years

As a former railway guard (from 2000 - 2008) on northern routes including Transpennine l do not condone any government’s handling of railway investment, although l appreciate transport minister Chris Grayling’s position is the usual one of being the fall guy. The problem, given its complexity and the need for heavy long-term investment, is one that no administration will face.

During my period of employment virtually all trains during peak hours were scheduled to be no more than 2 - 3 cars (carriages) in length, overcrowding to an incredible level was the normality and weekends - due to engineering work diversions and the Sunday opening hours, combined with sporting fixtures, entertainment events, extended drinking hours etc - created an almost untenable operating situation, where as a guard we could only concentrate upon safety rather than our revenue duties. This was a problem increased by non-barriered stations such as York. These were the conditions that both the regular fare paying passenger and the train crew /station staff had to endure regularly.

So, what has changed over the last 18 years? Obviously, not a lot!

Lisa Dunster,

Appleton Roebuck,

York